NASCAR Odds
Are you excited about the start of NASCAR season? We sure are! But before you place a bet on a race, you need to learn the basics of NASCAR betting so you can increase your chances of winning.
Understand How NASCAR Odds Work
Betting on NASCAR requires learning the moneyline odds. Also known as American odds, a moneyline uses a set of numbers to determine the winning bettors’ potential payout.
In most sports betting events, the moneyline is a bet on which team will win the game. In NASCAR, you’re betting on which driver you think will win the race.
In the moneyline, the numbers can have a plus or minus sign.
A plus sign indicates that the team or player is an underdog. Betting on an underdog has a larger payout but has a lower chance of winning the race.
Odds with a minus sign mean that they’re the favorites. Betting on them may have a lower risk of losing your bet, but the payout is lower.
In NASCAR betting, picking a straight-up winner has you choosing from a large lineup of competitors, so every driver will have positive moneyline odds on winning the race.
Each driver has a different value. If the value is low, the driver has a higher winning rate but with a lower payout for the bettor.
The formula for the payout is your bet multiplied by odds divided by 100 plus your bet.
For example, Denny Hamlin has +800 odds of winning the Daytona 500. So, if you placed $100, you will have a potential payout of $900.
Here’s another example. Let’s say Ryan Blaney has a decent record on superspeedways. His current odds are +1,000. If you bet on him for $200, your total payout would be $2,200 as long as he wins the race.
If you need further explanation on the computation for the moneyline odds.
Every online bookmaker posts different lines, and the odds can change daily. For better bankroll management, always check any line changes.
Say Ryan Newman has +6,600, and Matt DiBenedetto has +3,000 odds today. That can quickly change during the season.
About NASCAR Auto Racing Betting
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, popularly known as NASCAR, is an American motorsports racing organization for premier stock car racing.
NASCAR combines driving skills and car adjustments. Instead of betting on a team, you bet on a driver to win.
A racing event can last for 1.5 hours or longer, depending on the number of laps and the type of race. For example, the Daytona 500 is a 500-mile-long race with 200 laps. If there are no problems with the track, the race can finish within 2 or 3 hours.
There can be 40 or more cars in the starting lineup. But that’s not always the case. There are times that a driver can’t race because of health problems or car issues.
Also, not everyone crosses the finish line because of crashes or car failures during the race.
Still, the races are designed to keep any NASCAR fan on the edge of their seats. And NASCAR betting can raise your level of adrenaline even further.
If you’re a sharp who knows the sport’s ins and outs, NASCAR betting can give you the opportunity to earn large payouts!
NASCAR Betting Guide
In most types of betting, you follow your gut. But we suggest being smart when it comes to betting on NASCAR.
NASCAR season is a nine-month racing event, including the playoffs, so there are plenty of opportunities for you to bet.
You wouldn’t want to throw away your hard-earned cash because of a weak choice, would you? Here are some tips to make your betting experience exciting and profitable.
Be Familiar With NASCAR Betting Terms
In sports betting, there are words that you need to understand before you bet. When betting on NASCAR, it helps to know these terms.
Favorite: The favorites are the competitors who are likely to win the race or the matchup. Favorites have a lower value in the betting line.
In this example:
Brad Keselowski +475
Kyle Larson +1000
Alex Bowman +2000
Brad Keselowski is likely to win the race with odds of +475. He is considered a favorite in the race.
Chalk: The driver who’s heavily favored to win the race. Their odds value in the line is lower than the other favorites.
For example, if Denny Hamlin has the highest chance of winning in the Daytona 500 with +800 odds, betting on him leads to a lower payout for the bettor, if he wins the race.
Underdog: These are the drivers who have a low chance of winning. They have a higher value in the odds and provide higher profits to the bettor upon winning.
For instance, Daniel Suarez and Corey LaJoie have +20,000 odds. You get a higher payout as long as they win the race.
NASCAR Betting Rules
If you’re new to NASCAR betting and not sure how to get started, check these industry-wide NASCAR betting rules before betting.
Postponement: If a NASCAR event is postponed, the bet will be held for 48 hours. Your bet will be returned if the event isn’t continued within the next 48 hours.
Replacement Drivers: As long as the starting driver finishes a lap, he can be substituted with another driver.
For example, Ty Dillon gets sick or injured but has started his car before giving way to a replacement driver. Per NASCAR rules, Dillon will get full points for whatever position the replacement driver finishes.
Disqualification: Placing a bet on a NASCAR driver who got disqualified during the race can make that bet void. Disqualified cars will lose points, purse money, and even the trophy.
Suppose Brennan Poole, BJ McLeod, and Christopher Bell crashed during the race, and none of them has a replacement driver. If that happens, you already lost if you placed your bet on one of them.
Another example: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. gets black-flagged for driving below the double yellow line to pass Alex Bowman. Stenhouse will be removed from the race.
A black flag means the driver must get off the track and go to the pits right away. A double yellow line divides the track and the racing surface.
According to NASCAR rules, a driver may be black-flagged for crossing the yellow line to gain ground.
To avoid any disappointments due to driver disqualification, we suggest checking the driver’s habits before placing your bet.
We don’t want you to be clueless in NASCAR betting.
Picking a Winner
Choosing the winning driver can be hard. In other sports, they use a one-on-one matchup among teams or players.
In NASCAR, around 40 drivers are competing in a race. NASCAR betting might sound tough.
Look for drivers on a hot streak. You can review their previous races and their driving habits.
For example, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, and Jimmie Johnson finished top five in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 2020.
If Chase Elliott won the final race last season, chances are he can also do well in the next race.
In NASCAR, knowing which racer performed well in previous races can give you an idea of how fast they drive.
Driver Performance
It pays that you understand how racers drive in certain conditions. Although every speedway may look similar, each track has a different shape, length, and width.
Betting on drivers accustomed to superspeedways can be a safe choice if the race is held on longer tracks, such as Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway.
Some competitors perform well on short or intermediate tracks, like Bristol Motor Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Phoenix Raceway, and Michigan International Speedway.
We suggest that you check the drivers more before placing your bet. Yes, Chase Elliott won last season. But if he isn’t good at driving in shorter tracks, he might not be a good pick if the race is in Bristol Motor Speedway.
NASCAR Teams
In NASCAR, teammates support each other via drafting. Drivers cooperate with their teammates to lower the wind resistance in order to drive faster.
As part of the Stewart Haas Racing team, Aric Almirola, Chase Briscoe, Cole Custer, Kevin Harvick, and Riley Herbst can communicate easily.
Observe how teammates coordinate with each other and bet on one of the drivers with the best driving record.
Qualifying and Practice Runs
Your betting choice can also be based on how well the drivers perform in qualifiers and practice runs.
If Martin Truex Jr. gets a fast time in the Bluegreen Vacations Duel, it means that he is good in the speedway or got better car adjustments.
NASCAR Odds and Betting Types
It might sound difficult to choose a racer out of several contenders. Still, you’re not stuck to betting on the winner of the race.
You can bet on the outright winner, head-to-head matchup, group bets, place bets, prop bets, and futures bets.
1. Outright Winner
Betting on the first-place finisher is one of the simplest betting types and has one of the largest payouts. But, the larger the payout, the harder it is to win.
When picking outright winners, every driver has different odds. If it’s a “+” (positive), it tells you the amount of money you’d win if you bet $100.
You have to look at the sign in front of the odds. The bigger the number, the bigger the underdog that driver is. Likewise, the smaller the number, the bigger the favorite.
Suppose you bet $100 on Brad Keselowski at +1400 odds in the Daytona 500. If he wins, your payout will be $1,500.
2. Head-to-Head Matchup
Head-to-head matchup or driver matchup has two drivers race each other. The drivers don’t need to win the race. You earn profit as long as your pick finishes before the other racer.
Since you’re only given two choices, a head-to-head matchup can give you a higher chance of winning.
For example, we matched William Byron (-120) against Kyle Busch (+200) for a driver matchup. Suppose you bet $100 on Busch, and he finished ahead of Byron. You’ll get a payout of $300.
But what if you bet on Byron, the favorite? You need to bet $120 to gain a profit of $100. Suppose you bet $120 on William Byron, and he wins against Kyle Busch. You will receive $220.
The payout formula would be your bet divided by the odds, multiplied by 100 plus your bet.
3. Group Betting
Group betting is similar to head-to-head matchups. But instead of a one-on-one match, you will choose from a group of drivers.
If you bet on Ryan Preece on outperforming the other drivers in the group and he places first, you and anyone holding a winning ticket are paid out based on the odds offered.
4. Place Betting
Place bets mean betting on a driver to finish in the top 3, 5, or 10. It doesn’t matter if your chosen racer wins first place in the race, as long as your pick is one of the top finishers.
This betting type can be the right choice if you’re unsure if your pick will win first, but you’re sure that the driver will perform well in the race.
Suppose Tyler Reddick didn’t win the race, but he finished second in the race. If you bet on him to get a top spot in the race, you would win your bet.
NASCAR odds are lower in place betting than NASCAR odds of picking a driver to win the race straight-up.
5. Prop Betting
Proposition bets or prop bets are bets that are not always about the winner in the race. It’s a casual way of betting on events during the race. Some examples would be:
- Will Ricky Stenhouse Jr. get penalized during the race?
- Will Christopher Bell cause any crashes?
- Will Brennan Poole’s car manufacturer win?
- Will BJ McLeod lead the most laps?
Prop bets can either be skilled or unskilled prop bets.
In skilled prop bets, you have to use your knowledge of the sport. It can be about who will finish a lap the fastest or if a Chevy will win the race. This type of betting can be profitable in the long-term.
In unskilled NASCAR prop bets, they are mainly for fun with a little payout. It’s all about guessing what will happen in the race.
This can be about how long the national anthem is performed during an event or if there will be a car that will get black-flagged. Since it’s all about fun, you can’t really expect large payouts.
6. Futures Betting
In futures betting, you place a bet on a race before the season starts or before the last race in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship. Even the top favorites have large odds.
For example:
- Denny Hamlin +800
- Chase Elliott +1000
- Joey Logano +1000
- Ryan Blaney +1000
- Brad Keselowski +1400
Placing a futures bet is risky. If your chosen driver gets injured at a Las Vegas or a Martinsville race during midseason, for example, your bet would be all for nothing.
Also, the line in futures bet changes regularly. Your chosen driver might get lower or higher odds depending on how well he plays during the season.
How to Bet Auto Racing Futures
Betting on auto racing futures may be challenging, which is why we aim to make your betting experience more fun and worthwhile.
1. Check the Stats
Sometimes, reviewing the basics of NASCAR can be your tool for success. Watching a driver’s old races can help you guess their future performance.
Sports news also covers updates on the competitors. You have to follow every development if you want to profit from NASCAR betting.
For example, underdogs like Garrett Smithley, Quin Houff, and Timmy Hill may perform better after changing their car or crew.
2. Manage Your Bankroll
If you bet all of your cash on a single bet, you’ll end up with an empty bankroll. Keep in mind that futures bets are a long-time investment, so don’t put everything on the line.
Yes, the potential payout is impressive, but you will miss many opportunities in betting individual races if you have a zero bankroll.
3. Bet Midseason
The line of futures betting can change during the season.
Although futures betting starts even before the NASCAR season begins, you can still bet in the midseason. So don’t bet hastily.
The preseason lines can have Erik Jones and Chris Buescher at +4,000. Erik Jones might have better odds than Chris Buescher after a race.
4. Try Hedging
In sports betting, you need to be focused on getting your profit. Sure, you can be loyal to your favorite, but don’t forget that you are betting on a chance to earn a decent payout.
You can always bet on another driver to increase your odds of getting a payout. Your overall profit might be smaller, but it’s better than going home empty-handed.
5. Choose Your Bookmaker
Betting lines always change, and every sportsbook gives different betting lines. You need to find a bookmaker that provides decent betting lines while providing a safe gaming experience.
We offer updated competitive NASCAR betting odds. NASCAR fans would be happy to know that our site allows bettors to bet on different NASCAR races in any season, regular or postseason.