The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season is unlike any that we have ever seen. Changes to the NASCAR schedule have taken away a lot of the traditional oval track races and have added more road courses, more unique track layouts, and even a dirt track race at Bristol.
Driver | Odds |
---|---|
C. Elliott | +550 |
K. Harvick | +650 |
D. Hamlin | +650 |
Ky. Busch | +750 |
J. Logano | +750 |
B. Keselowski | +800 |
M. Truex Jr. | +800 |
R. Blaney | +1100 |
K. Larson | +1200 |
C. Bell | +1800 |
A. Bowman | +2500 |
Ku. Busch | +3300 |
W. Byron | +3300 |
A. Dillon | +4000 |
A. Almirola | +5000 |
B. Wallace | +5000 |
M. DiBenedetto | +6600 |
T. Reddick | +6600 |
C. Custer | +8000 |
C. Briscoe | +10000 |
R. Newman | +10000 |
M. McDowell | +10000 |
R. Chastain | +12500 |
E. Jones | +12500 |
R. Stenhouse Jr | +25000 |
C. Buescher | +30000 |
R. Preece | +50000 |
T. Dillon | +50000 |
D. Suarez | +100000 |
C. Lajoie | +100000 |
J. Bilicki | +100000 |
Q. Houff | +100000 |
TRACKING THE 2021 NASCAR CUP CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS
While the regular season will look a lot different, the playoff races will not. Don’t be scared off by the differences to the first 26 races of the season. Sixteen spots are available in the Cup Championship Playoffs and all of the guys that you would expect to see in the playoffs are likely to qualify.
When they get to the month of September and the playoff races, the only potential hiccups for the usual suspects are the restrictor plate race at Talladega and the Roval at Charlotte, but there is nothing new or surprising about those courses.
Once again this season, the championship race will be held at Phoenix Raceway, so we know that Kevin Harvick, if he actually makes it into the Final Four this year, will have a great chance to win.
Harvick and Hamlin combined for 16 of the 36 wins last year, but the schedule looks a lot different this time around with road course races at Road America, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the Circuit of the Americas added to the road course race at Daytona, and a return for Watkins Glen.
The nice thing is that drivers probably only need one win to secure a playoff berth, as it would be hard to see more than 16 drivers with a win over the course of 26 regular season races.
As the year goes along, don’t expect many changes on the odds board. Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick will be up at the top throughout. Prices will drop on guys as they win races and look like they’ve secured a spot in the playoffs. That will be true of guys like Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., and Ryan Blaney, among others.
As you can see, the odds for Christopher Bell have already dropped in a big way because he won the O’Reilly Auto Parts 253 on the Daytona road course. He is now very likely to make the playoffs, though he’ll probably be eliminated in the first round of them. We’ll update these as the season goes along at ATS.io, so keep tabs on the latest.
ATS NASCAR ODDS EXPLANATION: UNDERSTANDING ODDS TO WIN THE NASCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
The NASCAR Cup Series Championship will be decided on Sunday November 7 at Phoenix Raceway in Arizona. The NASCAR playoff format is very straightforward and easy to understand.
Drivers that win one of the 26 races during the regular season are guaranteed a playoff spot unless there are more than 16 race winners. Sixteen drivers qualify for the playoffs. Those that do not win a race can get in by having the most points of drivers without a win.
Drivers accumulate points, including bonus points, throughout the regular season based on their finishing position and the stages of the race. When the playoffs begin on September 5, the point totals for the playoff drivers are adjusted to 2,000 and then the bonus points are added to their scores.
For the Round of 12, the point totals are adjusted to 3,000 for the remaining drivers and then bonus points are added. For the Round of 8, the point totals are adjusted to 4,000 for the remaining drivers. The highest finisher of the four drivers left in contention in the Season Finale will be declared the winner.
The playoff rounds are in sets of three races until the championship race. The Round of 16 will include races at Darlington, Richmond, and Bristol. The Round of 12 will include races at Las Vegas, Talladega, and Charlotte. The Round of 8 will be at Texas, Kansas, and Martinsville. Then the championship race at Phoenix.
The bottom four drivers in points are eliminated from playoff contention with the final race of each round. A win in one of the races of a round means a guaranteed spot in the next round.
As drivers win regular season races or accumulate high numbers of points, their odds for the Championship are likely to change. That means that these are fluid over the course of the year and it will be up to you to decide when you want to bet on a guy. If you wait until after a race, he might win that race and get a guaranteed playoff spot and then his odds will drop.
On the other hand, if you get waiting, his odds will increase and you could have a much better bet if that driver still makes the playoffs.
These are regularly updated by the sportsbooks as the season goes along, so it is your job to stay up on the latest and then bet accordingly.