NASCAR’s two week stint at Charlotte started with last Saturday’s exhibition All-Star Race. Joey Logano took the checkered flag in that $1 million event followed by Brad Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr. In the last point race on the schedule at Dover on May 15, Matt Kenseth posted his first victory of the year.
The following is a look at a few of the top favorites to win this Sunday’s race along with my top value pick based on betting odds provided by Topbet.
With Sprint Cup points back on the line at Charlotte, three of the top drivers in the 2016 standings have all been opened as +600 favorites to win on Sunday night. At the top of the list is Kyle Busch with three previous victories on this year’s racing resume. Behind the wheel of the No. 18 Toyota, he has managed to make his way into the top five in nine of his first 12 point races this season. A wreck dropped him to 30th a few weeks ago at Dover, so there is some added motivation for a good showing this time around. Draining some value in his odds is the fact that Busch has never won a point race at Charlotte and his averaging finishing position is 15.1.
Next on the list at +600 odds to win is Kevin Harvick. His lone victory of the year came at Phoenix and he has a grand total of five Top-5 finishes this season. His last four races have been an up and down ride with two 15th-place finishes mixed with a fifth-place run at Richmond and a runner-up finish at Kansas. Through 12 races, the No. 4 Chevrolet is currently first in the standings with 418 total points. Adding value to his odds, Harvick has two victories and two second-place finishes at this track going back to 2013. He has not finished higher than ninth in his last six Sprint Cup races here.
Jimmie Johnson rounds-out this trio of favorites at +600. He posted victories at Atlanta and Fontana earlier in the year, but following an encouraging third-place finish at Richmond, the No. 48 Chevy has not placed better than 17th in its last three point races. This team is still holding down the fifth spot in the standings with 370 points and it is just one of four with multiple wins this season. Johnson had a very forgettable run at Charlotte last season with finishes near the bottom of the list in both races, but he did win this event in 2014 as part of seven career victories at Charlotte in a point race.
- Kevin Harvick No. 4 +550
- Kyle Busch No. 18 +550
- Jimmie Johnson No. 48 +600
- Carl Edwards No. 19 +800
- Joey Logano No. 22 +800
- Matt Kenseth No. 20 +800
- Brad Keselowski No. 2 +900
- Martin Truex, Jr. No. 78 +900
- Denny Hamlin No. 11 +1200
- Dale Earnhardt, Jr. No. 88 +1400
- Kurt Busch No. 41 +1400
- Kyle Larson No. 42 +1800
- Chase Elliott No. 24 +2000
- Kasey Kahne No. 5 +2800
- Austin Dillon No. 3 +4000
- Ryan Newman No. 31 +5000
- Jamie McMurray No. 1 +6600
- Ryan Blaney No. 21 +6600
- Tony Stewart No. 14 +6600
- Greg Biffle No. 16 +7500
- Clint Bowyer No. 15 +10000
- Paul Menard No. 27 +10000
- Regan Smith No. 7 +15000
- Trevor Bayne No. 6 +15000
- A. J. Allmendinger No. 47 +25000
- Aric Almirola No. 43 +25000
- David Ragan No. 23 +25000 +
- Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. No. 17 +25000
- Brian Scott No. 44 +50000
- Casey Mears No. 13 +50000
- Danica Patrick No. 10 +50000
- Chris Buescher No. 34 +100000
- Cole Whitt No. 98 +100000
- Jeffrey Earnhardt No. 32 +100000
- Josh Wise No. 30 +100000
- Landon Cassill No. 38 +100000
- Matt DiBenedetto No. 83 +100000
- Michael Annett No. 46 +100000
- Michael McDowell No. 95 +100000
- Reed Sorenson No. 55 +100000
