RADIO
Alright y'all, who is ready to go dirt racin'?
The NASCAR Cup Series takes to the Bristol Motor Speedway dirt track on Sunday afternoon (March 28) for the first Cup dirt race in nearly 51 years. Yes, 51 years! Of course, the Camping World Truck Series competed at Eldora Speedway once annually between 2013 and 2019, in which many of the current Cup stars competed in. But for some, that's their sole dirt experience. Others have none. Yikes!
That means, expect the unexpected come race time. There were a handful of spins in the pair of Cup practices on Friday, preparing for the event. This race is long -- 250 laps -- meaning a lot can happen. But surely, having previous dirt experience will help you this weekend. How much? That's to be determined.
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Kyle Larson
(DraftKings $12,000 | FanDuel $14,000 | DK SportsBook +300 )
Across the board, Larson is the overwhelming favorite on Sunday. He's also arguably the best dirt racer in the world, having won over 50 races last summer while suspended from NASCAR competition. The California native is on a streak of consecutive Chili Bowl victories, and ran a late model at Bristol last week.
Unfortunately for Larson, the No. 5 team had to change its engine following Friday's final practice. During the 50-minute session, the water temperature pegged to 360 degrees (that's not ideal). Because of the change, Larson will come from the rear, instead of starting on the front row after Saturday's qualifying heats were canceled.
Look for Larson to methodically make his way through the field, as he had the best 10-lap average on Friday in practice. Spoiler: Larson is my pick to win, even coming from the rear.
Christopher Bell
(DraftKings $11,000 | FanDuel $13,500 | DK SportsBook +800)
Yes, Larson is the favorite to win the event, but Bell is not far behind.
Like Larson, Bell has a plethora of dirt wins to his resume, growing up slinging mud. Prior to Larson's streak of two straight Chili Bowl triumphs, the Oklahoma native was on a streak of three straight, passing Larson on the final lap in 2019. He's among the best midget car racers in the world.
One thing that intrigues me about Bell is, he starts 15th, much higher up than Larson. I expect the No. 20 car to use its driver's dirt experience to race towards the front early and lead a chunk of laps. Ultimately, that helps you.
Tyler Reddick
(DraftKings $10,500 | FanDuel $7,800 | DK SportsBook +1600)
Like Larson and Bell, Reddick grew up competing on dirt as well. As a child, he would often race Larson, as both drivers hail from California.
Here's the thing: If you're betting on DraftKings, Reddick is a bit of a risk at $10,500 -- pricey. However, he's an absolute steal on FanDuel, coming in at $7,800.
Because of another abysmal showing last weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Reddick starts 27th. For the No. 8 team's sake, they need a solid finish on Sunday, potentially showing inside the top five.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
(DraftKings $10,200 | FanDuel $8,800 | DK SportsBook +2500)
Since joining the Cup circuit full time in 2013, Bristol has been Stenhouse's best non-superspeedway track on the schedule. Four of his 18 career top-five efforts have come at the World's Fastest Half Mile. But now NASCAR puts dirt on the track, and it might favor Stenhouse even more.
Growing up in the south, Stenhouse ran a ton on dirt between Tennessee and Mississippi. He also placed fairly well in this year's Chili Bowl, running through the alphabet soup from the B-main to the A-main. Ultimately, he finished seventh in the feature race, second best of NASCAR drivers competing.
Like Reddick, I think Stenhouse is a bit overpriced on DraftKings, but a solid choice on FanDuel. And on DK SportsBook, you best be throwing down a bet at +2500. If I had to guess, the No. 47 team places inside the top 10 on Sunday.
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Chase Briscoe
(DraftKings $9,900 | FanDuel $9,500 | DK SportsBook +1200)
How big of favorites are Larson and Bell? Well, Briscoe hold a distant third as far as odds on DK SportsBook.
Briscoe said it on Twitter himself Saturday night: He's grown up dirt racing his whole life. Following in the footsteps of his childhood hero Tony Stewart, the native Hoosier is solid when it comes to dirt racing, but is a bit pricey on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Want a sure bet? Briscoe will score his best career Cup finish this weekend (a brief of seven races). It wouldn't surprise me to see the No. 14 land inside the top 10, racing up from his 25th-place starting position. That in itself is an attractive trait to have on your team.
Austin Dillon
(DraftKings $9,700 | FanDuel $10,000 | DK SportsBook +1800)
We're going full board with Richard Childress Racing this weekend, as Dillon, too, is a solid dirt racer. In fact, he won all three races he competed in last week at Bristol to prepare for the dirt race.
Quite honestly, I believe you need the No. 3 Chevrolet on your team this weekend. Surely, his ninth-place start is a tad worrisome (in case he has a bad day), but I'm shocked he has just the 10th best odds to win the race on SportsBook. Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney, all of who have little-to-no dirt experience have better odds than Dillon to win. Don't agree with that at all.
Flashback to 2013, it was Dillon that was victorious in the first truck race at Eldora. Don't be surprised if he's in contention late at Bristol.
Alex Bowman
(DraftKings $7,700 | FanDuel $8,200 | DK SportsBook +1300)
Get the theme, yet? We're fully on board with drivers with past dirt experience. Bowman, too, runs well on dirt.
Just look at practice from Friday, Bowman was quickest in the opening session, and placed second on the 10-lap average. In final practice, the No. 48 held the second fast laps overall, fifth on the 10-lap average. Clearly he's fast.
For starting seventh, his prices are quite low across DK and FanDuel. Bristol has the potential of being Bowman's best showing of the season thus far.
Stewart Friesen
(DraftKings $9,500| FanDuel $8,500 | DK SportsBook +3300)
It's not a surprise Friesen is making his Cup debut at Bristol; he's a great dirt racer. Throughout the northeast, Friesen has won hundreds of big block modified races, having other experience in dirt late models and even sprint cars.
It took until 2019 for Friesen to get his first NASCAR triumph at Eldora, having come close on a number of times prior. Yes, the Cup car is different and the competition is more stuff, but like road course ringers back in the day, Friesen is a dirt ringer.
For the prices, it's a tad high for Spire Motorsports. I'd lean on having the No. 77 on FanDuel more than DraftKings, but ultimately that's up to you! Nonetheless, expect Friesen to make hay, having to start 32nd.
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