North Carolina Education Lottery 250 Presented by Black's Tire
Location: Rockingham, NC
Course: Rockingham Superspeedway
Format: D-Shaped Oval
Lap Length: 0.94 miles
Laps: 250
NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series Race Preview
Justin Allgaier continued to make a statement early in the season with a win at Martinsville last weekend. He won his second consecutive race, and for the third time in the last four events. With that stretch, Allgaier has opened up a 98-point lead over Jesse Love for the top spot in the standings. Brandon Jones is another driver to watch. He hasn't had the strongest results, but he's qualified inside the top five in four the last five races. If he keeps that qualifying form, stronger race results should come. Finally, it's too early to truly watch the playoff bubble, but Anthony Alfredo has been one significant positive surprise, having logged three top-15 finishes in his last four races.
Key Stats at Rockingham
- Number of Races: 43
- Winners from Pole: 12
- Winners from top-five starters: 24
- Winners from top-10 starters: 33
Previous Rockingham Winner
2025- Sammy Smith
There's a long history of Cup and Xfinity/O'Reilly Series races at Rockingham, but the Cup Series hasn't raced at the speedway since 2004. Meanwhile, the O'Reilly Series returned last season after a similar 20-year absence. The track history doesn't mean much as a result, but the characteristics at Rockingham can give us clues based on driver history at comparable tracks. Rockingham is an intermediate track with high tire wear, making Darlington and Homestead some similar tracks. Per a NASCAR.com preview ahead of last year's race, Sheldon Creed, Sam Mayer, and Jesse Love have all performed very well at high-wear tracks. Brennan Poole was highlighted among the lower-tier drivers.
NASCAR O'Reilly Series DFS Tools
DraftKings Value Picks for the North Carolina Education Lottery 250
Based on a Standard $50K Salary Cap
Tier 1 DraftKings Values
Justin Allgaier- $12,000
Jesse Love- $11,500
Austin Hill - $10,000
Tier 2 DraftKings Values
Sam Mayer - $9,500
Carson Kvapil - $9,300
Sheldon Creed- $9,000
Tier 3 DraftKings Values
Corey Day - $8,700
Ryan Sieg - $8,500
Parker Retzlaff - $7.700
Harrison Burton - $7,500
Tier 4 DraftKings Values
Dean Thompson -$6,800
Patrick Staropoli- $6,600
Brennan Poole - $6,400
Optimal DraftKings Lineup for the North Carolina Education Lottery 250
Sam Mayer - $9,500
Carson Kvapil - $9,300
Sheldon Creed - $9,000
Corey Day - $8,700
Dean Thompson - $6,800
Brennan Poole - $6,400
Given the lack of track history, this race isn't the easiest to project. Blending recent form and driver history at Rockingham, Homestead and Darlington looks to be the best approach. That was the approach taken in putting together the optimal lineup.
Sam Mayer is arguably the best value of the weekend. Mayer didn't have a great result at Rockingham last year, but he's consistently finished top five at Darlington and Homestead. Creed typically does well managing his tires at high-wear tracks and has also finished inside the top four in four of his last six races in 2026. Carson Kvapil is another driver with a blend of a strong track record at the comparable speedways, while also putting together a fairly strong season.
For those who prefer to rely primarily on recent race results, it will be very difficult to not roster Allgaier and Corey Day. Allgaier's recent success has been apparent, while Day hasn't finished outside of the top 10 since Daytona. Ryan Sieg is another interesting driver worth spending specific time on. Despite ultimately finishing 18th, he led the most laps led at Rockingham last season. On the other hand, his recent form and track history at the closest comps also are mediocre. Combined with his price, Sieg becomes a little less appealing.
Moving into the lower tiers and value plays, Poole was highlighted in last year's NASCAR preview for performing over expectation at high tire-wear tracks. He then went onto finish fourth in the race. While a repeat of that finish shouldn't be projected, Poole still offers solid savings with an inflated chance of a good finish relative to other weekends. Staropoli and Thompson have both shown flashes of good results this season. Thompson has decent results at all the relevant tracks, so he's a second value option to balance out the cost of from the top options in the lineup.
Best Bets for North Carolina Education Lottery 250
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook as of 10:30 PM ET Friday
Race Winner - Justin Allgaier (+300), Jesse Love (+400), Sheldon Creed (+1400), Sam Mayer (+1400)
Head-to-Head Matchups
Sam Mayer (+105) vs. Brent Crews (-140)
Carson Kvapil (-130) vs. Taylor Gray (-105)
Sammy Smith (-130) vs. Brent Crews (-105)
With the relative lack of information heading into Rockingham, there are some additional opportunities on the betting side. Mayer and Creed both stand out as good values based on their ability on high-wear tracks. Jesse Love is another driver worthy of consideration both in the DFS and betting context His 2025 race ended in a crash, but not before he led 53 laps. He and teammate Austin Hill should both be quick Saturday.
There are some key decisions (both in matchups and in picking the race winner) surrounding Brent Crews. He has the third lowest odds (+850), which is a surprise due to his lack of experience in the series. Crews did win the ARCA race at Rockingham last season so has familiarity and success, but I'm still inclined to generally side with veteran drivers that look to be set up for a strong finish.
Kvapil remains in good form and has also particularly showed well at Darlington. I wouldn't be eager to back him as a potential race winner, but he is a good option in his head-to-head matchup with Gray.
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