The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series got off to an entertaining start last week at the Daytona 500, but it was one that left many fans and bettors frustrated after the race ended under caution in overtime.
That frustration likely won’t be replicated this week since the Cup Series will be at a much calmer, intermediate track in Auto Club Speedway, which will be the last time the series will race at the track in its current form since the plan is to remodel it into a short track after the season.
While last season’s Auto Club race had its share of chaos, the hope is that we’ll be able to nail down the winner with one of our ‘Fast Five’ picks after nearly doing so last week.
Odds from Caesars Sportsbook.
FAST FIVE PICKS
Chalk play: Chase Elliott (+900 to win)
Elliott was racing for the win here at Auto Club last season until contact with teammate Kyle Larson ended up knocking him out of contention. Larson went on to win the race, and while the two have mended fences since then, Elliott will almost certainly be fired up in a quest for redemption and won’t cut Larson any slack if the two end up battling for the lead again.
Trending up: Kyle Busch (+1000 to win)
Busch has dominated at Auto Club over the years with Joe Gibbs Racing, but the good news is that his new team, Richard Childress Racing, had some of the fastest cars here last season. Busch should pick up right where he left off as far as running up front here and will have an extra chip on his shoulder after coming oh-so-close to winning the Daytona 500 last week.
Best value: Erik Jones (+2500 to win)
Jones was a sneaky contender here last season with a Petty GMS team that was one of the beneficiaries of the Next Gen car allowing smaller teams to compete for wins. Jones should be strong once again as their top driver and offers serious value at +2500 since his team, now called Legacy Motor Club, isn’t thought of as a contending organization.
Mid-pack play: Austin Dillon (+4000 to win)
Dillon made his way through the field and ended up finishing second in last season’s race, which helped make up for the fact that his teammate Tyler Reddick had dominated the first half and didn’t get the finish to show for it. While Dillon typically doesn’t contend for wins, he’s worth a flier at 40-to-1 considering how strong Richard Childress Racing has run here recently.
Longshot play: Ryan Preece (+5000 to win)
Preece got caught up in a wreck last week at Daytona, but he showed the ability to run up front at the exhibition Clash at the Coliseum and makes for a nice dart throw at 50-to-1. Stewart-Haas Racing normally has speed at Auto Club, so Preece should have a car capable of running in the top 10 and could sneak into a win if the race ends up coming down to fuel strategy.
PALA CASINO 400 FULL-FIELD ODDS
+500 to win
Kyle Larson (+160 top three finish, -140 top five, -400 top 10)
+850 to win
Denny Hamlin (+240 top three, +140 top five, -300 top 10)
+900 to win
Chase Elliott (+240 top three, +140 top five, -300 top 10)
+1000 to win
Kyle Busch (+250 top three, +150 top five, -200 top 10)
Ryan Blaney (+260 top three, +150 top five, -200 top 10)
Christopher Bell (+275 top three, +150 top five, -200 top 10)
Tyler Reddick (+300 top three, +150 top five, -225 top 10)
Joey Logano (+300 top three, +150 top five, -225 top 10)
Martin Truex Jr. (+300 top three, +160 top five, -200 top 10)
Ross Chastain (+325 top three, +160 top five, -200 top 10)
+1200 to win
William Byron (+350 top three, +150 top five, -200 top 10)
+1800 to win
Kevin Harvick (+375 top three, +200 top five, -180 top 10)
+2000 to win
Alex Bowman (+450 top three, +250 top five, -175 top 10)
+2500 to win
Erik Jones (+550 top three, +280 top five, +100 top 10)
Bubba Wallace (+600 top three, +325 top five, +100 top 10)
+3500 to win
Daniel Suarez (+800 top three, +400 top five, +100 top 10)
Chase Briscoe (+900 top three, +400 top five, +125 top 10)
+4000 to win
Austin Dillon (+900 top three, +450 top five, +100 top 10)
+5000 to win
Ryan Preece (+1100 top three, +600 top five, +140 top 10)
Ty Gibbs (+1100 top three, +600 top five, +150 top 10)
Brad Keselowski (+1100 top three, +600 top five, (+150 top 10)
+7500 to win
Austin Cindric (+1400 top three, +500 top five, +200 top 10)
Noah Gragson (+1600 top three, +750 top five, +200 top 10)
A.J. Allmendinger (+1700 top three, +600 top five, +160 top 10)
Aric Almirola (+1800 top three, +700 top five, +200 top 10)
+10000 to win
Chris Buescher (+1800 top three, +700 top five, +200 top 10)
+12500 to win
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (+2500 top three, +800 top five, +250 top 10)
+20000 to win
Justin Haley (+3000 top three, +1000 top five, +400 top 10)
+30000 to win
Michael McDowell (+7500 top three, +2000 top five, +325 top 10)
+50000 to win
Harrison Burton (+7500 top three, +2500 top five, +700 top 10)
+75000 to win
Ty Dillon (+10000 top three, +3500 top five, +900 top 10)
+100000 to win
Todd Gilliland (+12500 top three, +4000 top five, +900 top 10)
Corey LaJoie (+15000 top three, +5000 top five, +1300 top 10)
+250000 to win
J.J. Yeley (+30000 top three, +10000 top five, +2500 top 10)
Cody Ware (+30000 top three, +10000 top five, +2500 top 10)
B.J. McLeod (+30000 top three, +10000 top five, +2500 top 10)
