Auto Club 400 Top Value Pick
Kevin Harvick continues to dominate the early part of the Cup Series schedule with three victories in his last three races after taking the checkered flag in Phoenix last Sunday. For the second week in a row, Kyle Busch finished second, and Chase Elliott rounded out the top three. I took a flyer on Ryan Blaney at +2000 betting odds, and it did not come close to paying off in his distant 16th-place finish.
The following is a look at a trio of the top favorites to win this Sunday’s race in Fontana along with my top-valued pick at longer odds as provided by 5Dimes.
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Auto Club 400 Favorites
Kevin Harvick +400
Winning four-straight Cup Series events would be an unprecedented achievement, but does it really make sense to bet against the hottest driver in the field? Harvick has been almost unstoppable behind the wheel of the No. 4 Ford in this three-race winning streak. He has already led half as many laps (433) as he did in 36 point-race events in 2017. This team has been able to build an early 12-point lead in the Cup Series standings with 168 total points. Harvick finished 13th in last year’s race at Fontana after posting back-to-back second-place runs the previous two seasons. His lone career victory here was in 2011.
Kyle Busch +550
The No. 18 Toyota should be getting a bit tired of watching the back bumper of the No. 4 Ford cross the finish line first over the past two weeks. Busch has established himself as the second-hottest Cup Series driver with is two second-place runs behind Harvick. This works to add value to his odds this week to finally finish first. The consistency has been there since a poor showing at Daytona with a seventh-place finish in Atlanta. The real value in Busch’s odds is his recent track record at Auto Club. He won this race in 2013 and 2014 as part of four Top-3 finishes over the past six seasons.
Martin Truex Jr. +700
Last season’s Cup Series Champion is off to a solid start with three runs inside the top five through the first four events. Truex guided his No. 78 Toyota to fifth place last Sunday in Phoenix after finishing fourth in Las Vegas the week before. You get the feeling that it is only a matter of time before he starts adding some checkered flags to the 2018 racing resume after winning a series-high eight races last season on his way to the title. Fontana has not been one of his favorite tracks over the course of his career with a 19.2 average finishing position. However, Truex did manage to place fourth in last year’s race.
