The first half of NASCAR’s Monster Energy Cup Series 2018 schedule comes to a close this Saturday night in an always exciting trip around the oval at Daytona International Speedway. This year’s Coke Zero Sugar is slated to get underway at 7 p.m. on NBC.
Kyle Busch’s win at Chicago last Sunday closed the gap with Kevin Harvick for the most point-race victories this season at five. In between these two for the Top 3 in the final running order was Kyle Larson in second place. My top-valued pick at extended +1350 betting odds did not pan out with Ryan Blaney finishing 18th.
The following is a look at a trio of the top favorites to win Saturday night’s race in Daytona along with my top-valued pick to win at longer odds as provided by 5Dimes
Coke Zero Sugar 400 Favorites
Brad Keselowski +650
Keselowski is one of the better Cup Series drivers this season behind the wheel of the No. 2 Ford, but rarely in the top three or four when it comes to betting odds to win a race. That all changes on Saturday night in this wide open restrictor plate race. The odds get stretched, and there is some excellent value to be found deep in the field. While Keselowski is seventh in the current Cup Series standings on the strength of four Top 5 finishes, his ability to win this race is why he is favored. A wreck took him out of last year’s Coke Zero early after winning this event in 2016.
Joey Logano +800
I would put Logano in the same class as Keselowski this season as a solid second-tier driver chasing a dominant trio at the top of the list. The big plus for the No. 22 Ford for this race is a victory earlier this season in a restrictor plate race at Talladega. He is just one of six drivers to win a point race this season through the first 17 events. This team is holding down third place in the standings with 617 points, and it has a total of five runs inside the top five. Logano finished fourth in this year’s Daytona 500, and his lone career victory at this track was in that same race in 2015.
Kevin Harvick +1000
It has been very common to see Harvick listed among the top three favorites all season, but not at such long odds. You cannot go wrong with a bet on him to win this race after coming through with a winning ticket in five previous races this year. Out of the first 17 races, he has guided his No. 4 Ford to a victory or at least a Top 5 finish 13 times. This team is second in the standings with a total of 674 points. When it comes to Harvick’s recent track record at Daytona, he has failed to finish better than 22nd in his last four races with three of those runs ending in a wreck. The last time he won this race was in 2010 after winning the Daytona 500 in 2007.
Get more details: NASCAR Driver vs Driver Match-Up
