F1 DFS Playbook Dutch Grand Prix: Top DraftKings Plays

The Dutch run in the Formula 1 schedule continues this week as we’ve moved from Belgium to the Netherlands. Zandvoort — a famed track in F1 — is the host venue for the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday. Even though we’re in the similar part of the European content, the tracks couldn’t be more different than each other. One is the longest track on the schedule and the other, Zandvoort, is one of the shortest circuits. That’s not the only difference though. Let’s dig into the Zandvoort layout and what it means for F1 DFS strategy and builds for Draftkings contests.

Zandvoort Track Layout

This is a very tight racing circuit. It’s also one of the shortest tracks on the schedule at a 2.64 miles per lap with 14 corners. Some of them banked as well; unusual for an F1 track, especially with this much banking. The style of track is much more natural terrain than say just about any other track on the schedule being built on sand dunes. That also means that there’s not a ton of run-off area if there is an issue with a car. Zandvoort is similar to a few other tracks we’ve seen already this year in terms of setup being very rear-limited and high-downforce. Azerbaijan, Hungary, Canada, Miami, and Austria. Look for teams who were good there to be good this weekend as well.

Dutch Grand Prix F1 DFS Strategy

There specific tiers of drivers this week in terms of speed based on practice. The same group of drivers were chasing each other around the track at practice and qualifying which makes some sense. Certain teams are better at high-downforce setups than others and others are middling in this setup. With that being said, that kind of makes setting lineups a bit like selecting a driver or two from each tier of not only pricing but practice speeds. There are a couple of drivers who qualified way worse than they should have but they could be more popular in builds so keep that in mind. Just like the Hungaroring, I’d expect several drivers to be lapped by the end of the 77-lap race given how short the laps are. With that comes a cap on just how far up in the grid a driver might be able to move by race’s end which also gaps the Spot vs. Grid Position points and potential to defeat a teammate.

Practice To Qualifying

This table shows how each driver ranked in speed between FP1, FP2, FP3, and qualifying to determine who might be able to move up a bit in the race.

F1 DFS Dutch GP DraftKings Top Plays

Red Bull

Drivers: Max Verstappen ($18,000 D: $12,000) Sergio Perez ($13,800 D:$9,200)

Constructor: $12,000

Starting Spots: Verstappen P1, Perez P5

It’s been a work in progress weekend for Red Bull. Both Verstappen and Perez didn’t show elite speed in FP1 or FP2 but they got better on Saturday. Both starting in the top-five gives them a great shot to double-podium, so long as Checo can keep the car on track, unlike in Q3. Verstappen is at a home track, again, and if it’s a close fight with Ferrari or Mercedes, the home crowd can give him a boost to prevail. The only issue we may see in the race is perhaps more tire degradation than other teams which might force earlier pit stops or slightly slower pace to keep the tires fresh. Yet again, expect Verstappen to be the favorite for captain and paired with Red Bull for constructor though Perez has a bit of Spot vs. Grid Position upside.

Ferrari

Drivers: Charles Leclerc ($16,800 D: $11,200) Carlos Sainz ($15,600 D: $10,400)

Constructor: $11,500

Starting Spots: Leclerc P2, Sainz P3

Oh Ferrari! What to trust about them at this point? Seemingly each week they show great pace in practice and keep up with Red Bull just fine but then comes the race. Their strategy during the races have left a lot to be desired by fans, DFS players, and their own drivers alike. We saw it again last week as well too. That being said, like the gif of a guy being kicked in the nuts, we have to keep trying at least a bit of Ferrari in our builds. Because here’s the thing: if they sort out strategy and mistakes, they can absolutely finish 1-2. They are not cash game plays by any means and should only be sprinkled in to lineups but there is upside here if Red Bull has tire problems.

Mercedes

Drivers: Lewis Hamilton ($15,000 D: $10,000) George Russell ($12,900 D: $8,600)

Constructor: $10,000

Starting Spots: Hamilton P4, Russell P6

This could very well be the weekend we see the first win coming from the Mercedes duo. Hamilton has done very well of late and shown great race pace, as has Russell. The only reason they’re not starting higher in the grid is because of the yellow that came out during the tail end of Q3 that cost Hamilton and Russell the end of their flying laps. If Red Bull and Ferrari struggle, for reasons already stated, there is plenty of upside here for a double-podium finish from the Silver Arrows. It’s not a stretch either. Hamilton has finished top-3 in several straight races, prior to last week’s Belgian GP, and Russell has finished P5 or better in all but one race this year, Silverstone. If you’re looking for solid performance floor and wanting to avoid the top-two teams Merc is where it’s at.

Alpine

Drivers: Fernando Alonso ($11,400 D: $7,600) Esteban Ocon ($9,900 D: $6,600)

Constructor: $5,800

Starting Spots: Alonso P13, Ocon P12

Both of these drivers are threats for top-10 finishes. It’s simple. Between the two of them, out of 28 total chances so far, they’ve nailed down 22 top-10s and 25 top-12s. That’s an impressive level of consistency for a team that seemingly gets overlooked too often. Both Ocon and Alonso where running solidly inside the top-seven for much of practice and got slowed up by traffic in qualifying. In terms of which teammate to play, the lean is Alonso over Ocon since not only has Alonso gotten the defeated teammate bonus in 6-of-the-last-8 races but he also ran faster practice speeds than Ocon. Either guy is perfectly fine to play and you can either stack Alpine or play one with Alpine at constructor and still fit either Leclerc or Verstappen in the build.

McLaren

Drivers: Lando Norris ($10,800 D: $7,200) Daniel Ricciardo ($9,000 D: $6,000)

Constructor: $5,200

Starting Spots: Norris P7, Ricciardo P17

McLaren, even though they’re higher regarded than Williams, is in a similar spot. They have one driver who’s playable most weeks and the other driver is on his way out at the end of the year. Norris has consistently been faster than Ricciardo all season having won the defeated teammate bonus in five straight races and all but four times this year. He’s also the only McLaren car that’s been playable having hit double-digit points nine times and four of the last five, missing last week by one point. The same is the case this weekend too. Ricciardo struggled in practice and got worse each time out. Meanwhile Norris ran P4 in FP1 and FP2 and P10 in FP3. If you want to take a stab at Ricciardo getting some Spot vs. Grid Points for you, you can, however, he still likely doesn’t make the top-10 nor will he beat Norris which caps the point total to just a few.

Aston Martin

Drivers: Sebestian Vettel ($7,200 D: $4,800) Lance Stroll ($6,900 D: $4,600)

Constructor: $4,300

Starting Spots: Vettel P19, Stroll P10

It was all going so well for Aston Martin in practice with them running pretty solid times all weekend. Then Vettel went off track in Q1 and will start P19. That being said, both cars have been fast in these setups this year having moved up well at similar tracks. In 5-of-the-last-6 races Stroll has finished P10 or P11 and should be able to hold that P10 starting spot pretty well on Sunday, if not move up. Vettel has nowhere to go but up and has several drivers ahead of him he should be able to pass. The downside for Vettel is that if all he does is move up several spots but not into the top-10 or ahead of Stroll, that’s not a big points haul for him. If we’re looking for a cheap constructor to get different in tournaments, this could be the play hoping that both Vettel and Stroll get top-10 finishes and Spot vs. Grid points.

Haas F1

Drivers: Kevin Magnussen ($6,000 D: $4,000) Mick Schumacher ($5,700 D: $3,800)

Constructor: $3,700

Starting Spots: Magnussen P18, Schumacher P8

This was the fourth time that Schumacher made Q3 this year, you know what the other tracks had in common? They were all high-downforce tracks. This seems to fit Schumacher, at just the right time too. He’s been the center of a lot of debate about where he’s going to be next year and a good showing this week could seal things up. As for K-Mag, it’s been a long season to this point. He’s finished P16 or worse in three-straight races and at high-downforce setups he’s not done all that well either regardless of where he’s started. All that being said about Schumacher, he’s still only had a points finish twice this year so holding P8 might be tough but the upside is there from him for once to have a nice points day.

Alfa Romeo

Drivers: Valtteri Bottas ($8,400 D: $5,600) Guanyu Zhou ($5,400 D: $3,600)

Constructor: $3,400

Starting Spots: Bottas P16, Zhou P14

The struggles continue for Alfa Romeo. While they were solid early in the year, it hasn’t been the same after the first several races. More of that is in line this weekend. Bottas couldn’t muster anything better than P18 in practice and Zhou wasn’t that much faster only mustering a P15. They’ll both start in the back quarter of the field and likely won’t factor much in the outcome of the race nor in the scoring on DK. If we want to take a shot at a five-point bonus, Zhou has defeated Bottas in two straight races coming into Zandvoort.

AlphaTauri

Drivers: Pierre Gasly ($7,800 D: $5,200) Yuki Tsunoda ($4,800 D: $3,200)

Constructor: $3,200

Starting Spots: Gasly P11, Tsunoda P9

This might be the toughest team to project for the race on Sunday. They weren’t that convincing in practice on Friday or Saturday morning but then showed solid pace in qualifying. In fact, Tsunoda made Q3 and Gasly barely missed Q3 with a P11 time. They’ve also had mixed results at similar tracks this year as well. Even the in-race results have been up-and-down for this team over the last several races and similar setups to this one. If this write-up sounds iffy, that’s exactly what their status for DFS on Sunday is. There is just as much of a chance that they can hold their spots because of how hard it is to overtake here, as them going backward because a few cars behind them manage to move up to match practice speeds. That leaves them as a driver duo and team that we just want a small amount of exposure to.

Williams

Drivers: Alexander Albon ($6,600 D: $4,400) Nicholas Latifi ($4,500 D: $3,000)

Constructor: $3,000

Starting Spots: Albon P15, Latifi P20

As it typically the case here, Albon is the only option. Latifi is terrible and on his way out but Albon has shown speed this week. In similar races to this track, he’s run between P12 and P9 after starting basically at this same spot each time. He’ll likely be a popular, cheaper option to fill a driver spot but that’s the only playable option from Williams.