Talladega Superspeedway is the site of the next playoff race in NASCAR’s Monster Energy Cup Series’ run to this season’s racing title. Sunday’s 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega is slated to get underway at 2 p.m. (ET) with NBC carrying the national broadcast.
Most times it pays to go chalk betting NASCAR, but sometimes stretching the odds can expand that payday. Last Sunday’s value play at +1000 on Chase Elliott paid some huge dividends with his victory at Dover. Denny Hamlin took second in that race followed by Joey Logano in third place.
The following is a look at a trio of the top favorites to win Sunday’s race at Talladega along with my top-valued driver at longer odds to win as provided by 5Dimes.
1000Bulbs.com 500 Race Favorites
Brad Keselowski +600
Racing at Talladega changes everything when it comes to the betting odds to win. First off, the odds are longer for all the drivers given the unpredictability of this track. The fact that this is a restrictor plate race also has an impact on how to bet this race. Given his current form and past success, you can see why Keselowski is at the top of this week’s list. The No. 2 Ford has three victories on the year, but sitting in a tie for sixth in the current Cup Series standings, a win on Sunday is the only way to guarantee Keselowski stays in the running for his second-career racing title. Going back to 2014, he has won three times at Talladega in a Cup Series event.
Joey Logano +825
Logano is another driver that could use a victory in this race to keep his title hopes alive. He still has his No. 22 Ford and is in pretty good position to advance to the next elimination round. With last Sunday’s third-place finish at Dover, this team is fourth in the current standings with 3064 points. He only has one previous victory this season, but it just so happened to be at this Sunday’s track. He came close to doubling that total at Las Vegas a few weeks ago with a fourth-place finish. Logano has posted a trio of victories at Talladega in the past four seasons, and he was fourth in this event last year.
Chase Elliott +1300
Last Sunday’s win automatically advances the No. 9 Chevrolet to the next elimination round of this 10-race playoff. I have been touting Elliott as the cream of the crop when it comes to NASCAR’s young guns, and that potential is finally paying off in just his third full-time season racing at the sport’s highest level. His first career victory in a Cup Series event was at Watkins Glen in early August, and his best previous finish in the first three playoff races was fourth at Richmond. This will be Elliott’s sixth career start at Talladega in a point race, and he is coming off a third-place finish in the first race here this year.
