NASCAR has a new championship favorite before Talladega playoff race

As a seasoned gamer with years of NASCAR playoffs under my belt, I’ve seen enough twists and turns to fill a racetrack. The 2024 season has been no exception, with Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell trading the top spot like a hot potato!

In the initial four races of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, two drivers have taken turns being considered the top contender to claim the championship by FanDuel Sportsbook.

In the standings, Kyle Larson from Hendrick Motorsports and Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing found themselves in the top positions after the completion of both the round of 16 and the round of 12, a result primarily due to their accumulated playoff points.

Initially, Larson was the clear favorite for the playoffs in betting circles. However, a rocky beginning to the postseason led to him sharing the top spot with another player. Then Bell took over as the favorite due to Larson’s ongoing struggles, but after a dominating performance at Bristol Motor Speedway during the round of 16 finale, Larson regained his position as the clear favorite for the next round.

Now the two are tied once again.

Contact with the wall ultimately led to a 26th place finish for Larson in the round of 12 opener at Kansas Speedway, and FanDuel Sportsbook now lists him at +450 instead of +400. Bell is still listed at +450 after a fourth place finish in that race.

In this race, Bell maintains his initial second position in the overall standings due to his 32 playoff points accumulated earlier. On the other hand, Larson slipped down from first place to fourth. Despite this shift, Larson still holds the highest number of playoff points at 47 across the entire series.

If Larson manages to move on to the quarterfinals, which is quite probable but not completely certain due to the two “wild card” races at Talladega Superspeedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval deciding the eight drivers advancing to the semifinals, he will automatically start as the points frontrunner.

In simpler terms, Larson currently has 15 more playoff points than Bell, who holds the second highest total. Each race offers a maximum of seven playoff points – one for winning a stage, one for winning another stage, and five for winning the overall race. If Bell wins both Talladega and Charlotte, his points would be reset to 4,046; Larson, if he advances, would have 4,047 points.

In the background, it becomes apparent that this championship race is incredibly open, with a fierce competition among four drivers – notably defending series champion Ryan Blaney from Team Penske, who are all priced at +600.

Leading contender William Byron from Hendrick Motorsports, as well as Tyler Reddick, the regular season champion from 23XI Racing, and Denny Hamlin from Joe Gibbs Racing, are all listed with odds of +600 (or 6-to-1) to win.

Full odds can be found here. Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Listen to NBC at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time this coming Sunday, October 6th, for the live telecast of the YellaWood 500 from Talladega Superspeedway. Sign up now for a free trial of FuboTV and make sure you don’t miss out!

2024-10-05 14:32

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