The NASCAR Cup Series heads back to Darlington Speedway on Wednesday for the Toyota 500 in South Carolina so today we’ll look at our picks and parlays for the race. Sunday’s return to racing was much needed for fans and bettors alike, and this race will be no different.
The Toyota 500 race has some unique aspects to take note of before we dive into the odd and picks. This race is a 500-kilometer race (Sunday’s was 400 miles), making it just 228 laps. A mere drive to the corner store as far as NASCAR races go. The starting grid is another area we need to cover quickly. The Top-20 finishers from Sunday’s race will be reversed. So, Kevin Harvick will be rewarded for his win by starting in last place.
NASCAR Betting Odds
Kevin Harvick +550
100% Bonus up to $1,000 + $25 Token
T&C APPLY | NJ, MI ONLY Join Now100% Bonus up to $1,000 + $25 Token
T&C APPLY | PA ONLY Join Now$1000 Risk Free Bet
T&C APPLY | NJ, PA, IN, CO, NJ, MI, IA, LA, MS, OH ONLY Join NowKyle Busch +550
Denny Hamlin +650
Alex Bowman +800
Chase Elliot +800
Martin Truex Jr +800
100% Bonus up to $1,000 + $25 Token
T&C APPLY | NJ, MI ONLY Join Now100% Bonus up to $1,000 + $25 Token
T&C APPLY | PA ONLY Join Now$1000 Risk Free Bet
T&C APPLY | NJ, PA, IN, CO, NJ, MI, IA, LA, MS, OH ONLY Join NowBrad Keselowski +1000
Joey Logano +1200
Kurt Busch +1200
William Byron +1800
100% Bonus up to $1,000 + $25 Token
T&C APPLY | NJ, MI ONLY Join Now100% Bonus up to $1,000 + $25 Token
T&C APPLY | PA ONLY Join Now$1000 Risk Free Bet
T&C APPLY | NJ, PA, IN, CO, NJ, MI, IA, LA, MS, OH ONLY Join NowJimmie Johnson +2000
Erik Jones +2000
Ryan Blaney +2500
Matt Kenseth +3300
Matt Dibenedetto +5000
Tyler Reddick +5000
NASCAR Toyota 500 Picks
Darlington is a unique track as far as NASCAR circuits go. It is a 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval with a very wide turn one and two with rather narrow turns three and four. It is the only egg-shaped raceway on the NASCAR schedule, so track-specific history will come into play heavily here.
After last week’s win here, Kevin Harvick has the highest driver rating at Darlington amongst the field of drivers. The driver rating is calculated by using a number of metrics including finishing position, laps led, average running position and a number of other factors. It gives us a clear picture of a driver’s success at any given track and highlights Harvick’s dominance at Darlington. His rating of 115.71 is almost eight points higher than the next closest driver (Denny Hamlin 107.97) and makes him a clear favorite to go back to back in South Carolina.
As far as betting on a single driver here, it’s tough to bet against Harvick. Not only is he a stud at Darlington, but he’s been on a tear all season so far. He was the series leader heading into last weekend and now leads in driver rating by almost double digits.
While this race is much shorter, and therefore a whole different beast, Harvick’s Mustang showed its ability to win in the springs and marathon portions of the race equally. He will be running that same rig on Wednesday, and it should be perfectly dialed in.
At 4/1, Harvick is a great pick if you are looking to side with a single driver at the Toyota 500. I will also be making a top-10 finish bet here for Kurt Busch at -160. Busch has finished in the Top-10 here the last four races, including Sunday, and five of the previous six. He led almost 100 laps of last season’s run and showed he hadn’t lost a step with a 3rd place finish this past weekend. There are also odds for him to finish Top-5 at +220 if you are feeling extra confident in him.
Rounding out my picks for the Toyota 500 will be a prop on manufacturer winner. Despite my faith in Harvick and his Mustang, I’m not feeling his teammates much and will be siding with team Chevrolet tomorrow. They have the best odds a +185 despite no Toyota cars leading for a single lap on Sunday. A little parlay with this and Harvick to win would make for a nice little payday and will be the highlight of my betting card on Wednesday evening.
