The Brickyard is back! The race went dormant after the 2020 running of the annual Brickyard 400 for the NASCAR Cup Series. NASCAR instead opted to use the road course within the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where they’ve raced the last three seasons. Before we dive into the NASCAR picks, odds, and best bets for the Brickyard 400, let’s look a little more at the race.
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NASCAR Picks, Odds, and Best Bets: Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The 2.5-mile oval has been around since 1909, and it famously holds the Indianapolis 500 each year. Stock cars on the track were thought to be sacrilegious until 1994, that is. When the stars of NASCAR took to the track for the very first time, a new tradition was born. On the 30th anniversary year of that first race, NASCAR’s stock cars will once again embrace the famed oval.
In 1992, over 50,000 fans got a taste of what NASCAR would look like at Indianapolis in a tire test.
Two years later, the #Brickyard400 was born. pic.twitter.com/xRq0rQtIwL
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 15, 2024
From a betting aspect, there are no races to look back on over the last few seasons. There are also no direct comparison tracks to Indianapolis. The closest thing to look at is probably Pocono from last week. Keep in mind that, like Pocono, strategy and track position will likely play a big factor in the race.
Brickyard 400 Odds
Denny Hamlin +450
Kyle Larson +600
Ryan Blaney +700
Brad Keselowski +800
Chase Elliott +1000
Tyler Reddick +1200
William Byron +1200
Christopher Bell +1400
Martin Truex Jr +1400
Joey Logano +1600
Ty Gibbs +1600
Chris Buescher +2000
Ross Chastain +3000
Alex Bowman +3000
Bubba Wallace +4000
Josh Berry +5000
Kyle Busch +5000
Austin Cindric +10000
Carson Hocevar +10000
Erik Jones +10000
Michael McDowell +10000
Noah Gragson +10000
Daniel Suarez +10000
Chase Briscoe +20000
Todd Gilliland +20000
AJ Allmendinger +20000
Austin Dillion +30000
Justin Haley +30000
John Hunter Nemechek +30000
Zane Smith +30000
Ryan Preece +50000
Corey Lajoie +50000
Ricky Stenhouse +50000
Jimmie Johnson +50000
Ty Dillion +50000
Harrison Burton +100000
Daniel Hemric +200000
Cody Ware +500000
BJ McLeod +1000000
Brickyard 400 Picks
Alex Bowman Over Bubba Wallace (-130)
Alex Bowman has had a stellar few weeks. A win at the Chicago street course followed by a third-place finish at Pocono last week brought him up to 12 top-10 finishes in 21 races this season.
While things are clicking for Bowman and the 48 team, they just haven’t been as good for Wallace and his 23 team. Wallace only has seven top-10 finishes on the season. Bowman has won the matchup eight times when you put these two drivers head to head over the last 12 races.
Joey Logano Top 5 (+225)
We know that Ford has finally found some speed on the bigger tracks, showcased again last week by Logano’s teammate Ryan Blaney winning at Pocono. Logano has been on a pretty good run himself, with four top-six finishes in his last seven races. I wouldn’t weigh past Indianapolis results too heavily, but Logano also has four top-five finishes in the last seven races.
One other big thing about Logano is that he’s good at adjusting to new things that the Cup Series races. Winning the first race at the LA Coliseum, the first Cup championship in the new car, the first Bristol dirt race, and so on.
While this isn’t a “new” track, it’s somewhere they haven’t been in a long time. Joey is good at adjusting and learning quickly, and his team is great at strategy, as they showcased last week. Joey is worth snagging to win the race as well at 16/1 odds.
Alex Bowman Top 10 (+110)
It’s surprising we’re getting this type of number on Alex, especially after another great performance last week. Nonetheless, this is a number you’ll want to get on early in the week. I’d be surprised if it hangs around long this week. As mentioned above, Bowman has 12 top 10 finishes this season.
While we don’t have any direct comparison tracks, Bowman has done well looking at the bigger intermediates this season: Third last week at Pocono, ninth at Charlotte, seventh at Kansas, and eighth at Texas are all great things to see when we’re placing this bet.
Kyle Larson to Win (+600)
Denny Hamlin is the heavy favorite here, and he’s worth a look, but I’m going to go to the next guy on the board. Kyle Larson is the best driver around. This is a great spot to bet on him. Larson can be tricky to bet weekly because of his volatility, but we’re hoping the stars align this week. He’s got one of the best cars every week and has one of the best crew chiefs in the garage.
A crew chief that made the right call and got Larson the lead late last week before he was busted for speeding on pit road, Larson could have easily won that race if not for that.
Larson has practiced and raced here at this track this season, outside of the tire test most drivers haven’t done that. Yes, it was in an INDYCAR, but if anyone can translate that experience, it’s Kyle Larson. He’s also historically great at Michigan. That’s the other track that shares some similarities here with the size and horsepower used. Give me the best driver in the field this week.
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