Kyle Larson was crowned the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Champion just a few weeks ago with his clutch overtime performance at Phoenix Raceway. There’s been much debate about the future of NASCAR’s Playoff system ever since. While we don’t yet know what changes may or may not happen, we do have the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Championship odds available. Let’s take a look at what every driver’s odds are and who the best bets are 90 days away from the Daytona 500.
As mentioned in the open, we don’t know what the playoff format will look like just yet, but it’s unlikely that the odds shift much, no matter which playoff format NASCAR decides to use. We discussed possible NASCAR Championship Format changes, including 36-race, 10-race, 3-3-4, and keeping it how it is on the NASCAR Gambling Podcast. Check that episode out here. No matter the 2026 format, we do know the final race of the season will be at Homestead-Miami once again. Returning to the former Championship Race host site after a six-year run in Phoenix.
36 drivers have won the 76 NASCAR Cup Series Championships over the years. Kyle Larson picked up his second championship (2021) in 2025. He bookended a three-year run by Team Penske, who won with Joey Logano in 2022 and 2024, while Ryan Blaney was crowned the 2023 champion. Larson’s teammate, Chase Elliott, won in 2020. Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr, and Jimmie Johnson round out the last 10 winners of the Bill France Cup.
2026 Championship Odds Via BetMGM
Kyle Larson (+500)
Denny Hamlin (+500)
Christopher Bell (+600)
William Byron (+600)
Ryan Blaney (+600
Chase Elliott (+1000)
Chase Briscoe (+1000)
Connor Zilisch (+1000)
Joey Logano (+1600)
Tyler Reddick (+1600)
Ross Chastain (+2500)
Bubba Wallace (+3000)
Josh Berry (+3000)
Carson Hocevar (+3000)
Ty Gibbs (+4000)
Chris Buescher (+4000)
Alex Bowman (+4000)
Austin Cindric (+5000)
Brad Keselowski (+5000)
Ryan Preece (+5000)
Shane Van Gisbergen (+15000)
Austin Dillon (+25000)
Noah Gragson (+25000)
Ricky Stenhouse Jr (+25000)
AJ Allmendinger (+25000)
Daniel Suarez (+25000)
Cole Custer (+25000)
Erik Jones (+25000)
Michael McDowell (+25000)
Todd Gilliland (+25000)
John Hunter Nemechek (+25000)
Ty Dillon (+25000)
Zane Smith (+25000)
Riley Herbst (+25000)
2026 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Odds and Best Bets
Chase Briscoe (+1000)
Chase Briscoe will kick off the best bets, but let’s start with everyone above him. They are all well-deserving of being the favorites. However, it’s hard to find much value in betting any of them at numbers you’ll be able to get during the season. I’ll hold on to betting those guys for now, even though the likely champion resides in that range. On to Briscoe at 10/1. He’s coming off a strong year one at Joe Gibbs Racing. He proved in the playoffs that he’s going to be a yearly threat with the team. If you take out the mechanical failure at Martinsville, that was irrelevant anyway; Briscoe had two wins and a 6.5 average finish.
Top Ten Drivers in 2025 via Fastest Laps Run 🔥
1) Denny Hamlin – 7.6%
2) Ryan Blaney – 7.1%
2) Kyle Larson – 7.1%
4) William Byron – 6.7%
5) Christopher Bell – 5.0%
6) Tyler Reddick – 4.5%
7) Chase Elliott – 4.2%
8) Chase Briscoe – 3.6%
9) Ty Gibbs / Carson Hocevar – 3.0% pic.twitter.com/MiDy8UP5aQ— Ryan (@ifantasyrace) November 13, 2025
That 6.4 over 9 races will be great if we go back to the “Chase” 10-race format. He made the Championship Four, so if we keep this format, he proved he’s capable of getting there. He finished fourth in his one start at Homestead with Gibbs, which will be this year’s final race. If it’s a four-race format, he’s been great at Phoenix, Martinsville, and he just won at Talladega. 10/1 on someone who will just get better and better with this team, that’s what I’m looking to bet on in November.
Tyler Reddick (+1600)
I’m salivating at getting Reddick at 16/1 odds going into this 2026 championship fight. It was a down year for Reddick, who didn’t score a single win and just seemed off in 2025. Was that some fallout from the lawsuit, or maybe adding a third car? Possibly, although his teammate Bubba Wallace’s win at the Brickyard 400, along with his impressive start to the playoffs, makes me feel good about Reddick. I’m not sure if they are baking in 23XI’s upcoming trial, but even if that shuts the team down, Reddick will immediately land a top-tier ride.
In 2024, Tyler Reddick was the regular-season champion and found himself in the Championship Four. I’ve said for years I believe he is the second most pure talent driver in the sport behind Kyle Larson. He had three wins, 12 top fives, and 21 top 10 finishes. Not to mention a few wins the team failed to close out on. Now, you add Homestead-Miami, one of his best tracks, as the final race of the year, no matter the format, that’ll help Reddick out. If he starts the season hot, you’ll never see this number again.
Ty Gibbs (+4000)
Ty Gibbs is the first futures bet I placed on the 2026 season. He’s in the same equipment that Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe have, and both made the Championship Four; he’s in the same equipment as Christoper Bell, who also had an outstanding season, including three wins in a row. We’ve seen that Ty Gibbs has all the talent in the world, which he proved by dominating the Xfinity Series. He’s been so close in the Cup Series, and it’s time for him to show up in 2026. If he can just click off that first win, the floodgates will open. He’s not the most likely driver to win. But, if his talent can match what the team is capable of and they can put it all together, this could be the steal of the century when it comes to value.
TY GIBBS IS YOUR 2022 NASCAR XFINITY SERIES CHAMPION! #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/Iw5W7msFO8
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) November 6, 2022
Shane Van Gisbergen (+15000)
Don’t laugh at this one. Yes, it’s 150/1, so based on the implied odds, it’s very unlikely to hit. But there is so much value in grabbing a ticket like this, even just for a small bet. Van Gisbergen has proven to everyone he’s almost untouchable on road courses. So pencil him in for 4-6 wins just off that alone. No matter the playoff format, or how many make it. He should be in. If they put an extra emphasis on winning and award more points, look at those 4-6 wins.
Shane van Gisbergen’s 14th place finish at Martinsville is his third Top 15 finish on an oval in his last five starts.
It’s also the second year in a row he’s run Top 15 in the Fall Martinsville race. He ran 12th here in 2024. pic.twitter.com/2gGdnAPEg1
— Steven Taranto (@STaranto92) October 26, 2025
But more impressively than that, look at his performance at traditional ovals near the end of the year. He ran 10th at Kansas, being a top 15 car most of the day. He was a top 10 car most of the day at Vegas before a late wreck. 11th at Talladega and 14th at Martinsville were impressive runs. Still in his rookie season and just his second year racing on ovals, he’s massively improved. With an off-season and likely the first 26 races of the year to get even better, he’s an excellent race car driver, and if he puts it all together, it should scare the other teams. At 150/1, give me a taste! a $10 bet would pay out $1,510.00.
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