The NASCAR Cup Series will stay in the state of Virginia for another short, flat-track race. This time the race will be run at Richmond Raceway. This is the perfect sized track and I wish we had more of them on the schedule IMO. Oh wait…we did, but NASCAR took Iowa out of the rotation. Well at least the Cup Series will compete twice at Richmond, Phoenix and once at New Hampshire.
The races at Richmond are fun to watch but not so great if you are looking for a long-shot to hitch your wagon to this week. The cream always rises to the top at this track. The last 10 drivers to visit Victory Lane at Richmond entered the race in the top-five in the Point Standings. Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano, Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney are the top-five drivers in the Points right now. That means one of these drivers will be in Victory Lane Sunday if the trend continues.
DraftKings Odds for Richmond
* The odds could change between the time of this article and the time you place your bet
** The first number is the amount of money based on the second number (the amount of the wager). So if you bet $1 on Martin Truex Jr, you will win $4.
Here are my “Best Bets” for the race at Richmond…
Martin Truex Jr. (4-1): Usually I do not bet the favorites but it is hard to fade Martin Truex Jr. Sunday. He has momentum after his win last week. Now he starts on the pole, has the No. 1 pit-stall at a track he has a 1.75 average finishing position at in the last four races. I will bet some cash on Truex and have him as an insurance policy in case one of my drivers with longer odds doesn’t win the race.
Kyle Larson (8-1): If Martin Truex Jr. is not in Victory Lane Sunday, it should be Kyle Larson. According to the stats, the No. 5 car has had the most speed this season on the Intermediate tracks. Larson knows his way to Victory Lane at Richmond too. He won the race at this track in 2017. I really like what the No. 5 team has going on right now so I will have Larson in my betting lineup Sunday.
Kevin Harvick (11-1): We do not get double-digit odds on a driver like Kevin Harvick often, so this is a good chance to win some money with the No. 4 car. I know Stewart-Haas Racing is in a slump right now, but their slump is not going to last forever. I want to be in on Harvick when the team does hit on the right set-up for the race, because his odds will drop drastically once the No. 4 car finds Victory Lane. Harvick has finished 8 of the last 9 races at Richmond in the top-7. Even in a slump, he should have a chance to win Sunday.
Christopher Bell (28-1): Richmond is one of the best tracks for Joe Gibbs Racing. You cannot go wrong with any of their drivers this week. I like Bell because of his odds. Bell totally dominated this track in the Xfinity Series. He won three races and led 457 laps. Bell starts 8th and will have a car fast enough to win Sunday.
Long-Shot Special: My Long-Shot Special this week is Austin Dillon (40-1). Richmond is the best track for Dillon. Last year he started 3rd, led 55 laps, finished 2nd in both Stages and finished 4th in the race. It wasn’t a fluke race. Dillon finished 3 of the last 4 races at Richmond in the top 6. 40-1 odds are too good to pass up on Dillon this week.
Good luck this week!
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