Welcome to Wild Card Week in NASCAR! The Chase has been one of the most thrilling we’ve had; now we’re going to throw seven drivers in a blender, shake it all up, and see where they land. Talladega will do just that to the Chase this week. It’s the third-to-last race of the year, with just Martinsville and Homestead remaining. Let’s dive in and take a look at this week’s NASCAR picks, odds, and best bets for the Yellawood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Kyle Larson’s tough day last week at Phoenix reopened the Chase field, and Tyler Reddick’s win tossed his name back into the hat of contenders. There are seven drivers with a true shot (for now at least) to win it all. Larson still leads, but Christopher Bell is now just five points back. Chase Briscoe has chopped away at the leaderboard the last few weeks and now sits -24. Denny Hamlin is just -31, Ryan Blaney -40, Joey Logano -44, and Tyler Reddick is -56 back.
Remember, betting at superspeedways is wild. “The Big One” will make a break bet. It’s best to treat this type of race with a different budget, and go much lighter than a normal week. That being said, everyone on the board is in play, and the craziest of bets can hit at Talladega.
Odds to Win Yellawood 500 at Talladega
Ryan Blaney +950
Joey Logano +950
Austin Cindric +1100
Brad Keselowski +1400
Chase Briscoe +1400
Tyler Reddick +1500
Carson Hocevar +1600
Bubba Wallace +1600
Chase Elliott +1600
Kyle Larson +1600
Christopher Bell +1800
William Byron +1800
Chris Buescher +2000
Denny Hamlin +2000
Ross Chastain +2700
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +2700
Todd Gilliland +3000
Ryan Preece +3000
Ty Gibbs +3000
Josh Berry +3500
Daniel Suarez +4000
Zane Smith +4000
Erik Jones +4500
Alex Bowman +5000
Michael McDowell +5000
Shane Van Gisbergen +5000
Austin Dillon +5500
Austin Hill +6000
John Hunter Nemechek +7000
AJ Allmendinger +8000
Noah Gragson +8000
Riley Herbst +8000
Cole Custer +10000
Casey Mears +10000
Connor Zilisch +10000
Ty Dillon +10000
Daniel Dye +10000
Joey Gase +10000
Cody Ware +10000
Gray Gaulding +15000
NASCAR Picks, Odds, and Best Bets: Yellawood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway
Winning Car Number – Even (+100)
This is one of the best and most fun ways to bet on superspeedway races. This bet almost guarantees a sweat down to the end of the race. Instead of your driver getting caught in “The Big One” early on, you are going to have someone in the mix late. As the big pack is roaring around the massive oval on the last lap, you’ll have a driver, or two, or five, with a chance to win the race.
Why even? It’s the better number; the odds are -130. It gives you plenty of great options, including the Penske trio of Austin Cindric, Joey Logano, and Ryan Blaney. You get drivers like William Byron, Christopher Bell, Brad Keselowski, Todd Gilliland, and Zane Smith, among others. Have fun betting and enjoy the sweat this weekend.
Brad Keselowski Top 5 (+290)
Speaking of one of these even-numbered cars. Let’s talk about Brad Keselowski. His future is hanging in the balance currently after deciding to step away from RFK Racing after this season. Keselowski can be a little bit of a checkers or wreckers type of driver, but at almost 3/1 odds, we’re shooting for the checkers version. Only Dale Earnhardt Sr. (10) has more wins at Talladega than Keselowski, who is tied with good company at six wins with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon. Keselowski has three top-five finishes in the last seven races here at Talladega.
Carson Hocevar Win (+1600)
There’s nobody else I could put in this spot besides the winner of the spring race here at Talladega. Carson Hocevar has turned into a superspeedway merchant. He was leading on the last lap of the Daytona 500 before Erik Jones turned him. He was in the mix at the end at Atlanta, finishing fourth. He won here at Talladega, then went back to Atlanta and finished third. At Daytona, he made an aggressive move to rocket to third place in the closing laps before losing control and hitting the wall. Every single superspeedway race this season, Hocevar has been there with a shot to win it all. That’s exactly what I’m looking for in a 16/1 outright winner.
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