Joey Logano came through last Sunday as one of the top three favorites with his victory at Talladega. Kurt Busch upstaged his younger brother by taking second, and Chase Elliott was once again in the mix by taking third. I went out on a limb with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at +1200 odds as my top-valued pick, and he almost came through with a fifth-place run.
The following is a look at a trio of the top favorites to win Sunday’s race in Dover along with my top-valued pick at longer odds as provided by 5Dimes
AAA 400 Race Favorites
Kyle Busch +350
The No. 18 Toyota had won the three previous Cup Series events heading into Talladega, but Busch’s streak came to an end with a 13th-place finish after starting 19th. He is still one of the hottest drivers on the list driving one of the fastest cars on the track, so there is no reason to believe that he will not be right back in the thick of things this Sunday. One of the main reasons why Busch is favored to win at Dover is his two runner-up finishes and a victory in his last five trips around the Monster Mile. He was 16th in this event last season before winning the second race here in 2017.
Kyle Larson +550
Larson was a “red-hot” commodity last season with four point-race victories as part of his 15 finishes inside the top five. So far this year, he has guided the No. 42 Chevrolet to three Top 5 finishes including a second-place run at Bristol a few weeks ago. A wreck last Sunday led to an early afternoon exit, but this team is still holding down 10th place in the Cup Series standings with a total of 280 points. Larson is in his fifth full-time season racing at NASCAR’s highest level, and he has finished in the top 10 in six of his first eight races at this Sunday’s track.
Kevin Harvick +550
Harvick got things going early this season with a three-race winning streak starting with a victory at Atlanta in the second race of the year. He has kept the No. 4 competitive the past five races with finishes inside the top 10. He took second in Texas and fourth last Sunday as part of seven total runs inside the top five through 10 Cup Series events. Dover has not been one of Harvick’s top tracks over the course of his career with a 14.9 average finishing position on the Monster Mile. However, he did win the second race here in 2015 after taking second in this event that season.
