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A fresh NASCAR season is well underway, with five races — including the headlining Daytona 500 — already in the rearview.
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Ricky Stenhouse Jr. edged out Cup Series defendant Joey Logano in double overtime to claim his first Daytona 500 win a month ago. Kyle Busch, William Byron, and Joey Logano have won the four races since then and as a result, are now occupying the top spots on the odds board.
However, NASCAR did issue severe penalties to Hendrick Motorsports last week, with Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson, and Byron all being docked 100 points in addition to 10 playoff points.
We break it all down in our full NASCAR Cup Series odds below.
NASCAR Cup Series odds
| Driver | Odds to win NASCAR Cup Series |
|---|---|
| Kyle Busch | +700 |
| William Byron | +800 |
| Kyle Larson | +800 |
| Joey Logano | +800 |
| Ryan Blaney | +1,000 |
| Denny Hamlin | +1,000 |
| Chase Elliott | +1,000 |
| Ross Chastain | +1,200 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | +1,200 |
| Kevin Harvick | +1,400 |
| Tyler Reddick | +2,000 |
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Odds courtesy of DraftKings as of March 20, 2023.
NASCAR Cup Series favorites
Kyle Busch (+700)
Kyle Busch was the first of the heavy hitters to make a swing in 2023, winning the Auto Club 400 a month ago for the fifth time in his career.
That positions him well early on and shortens his odds from +1,200 at open to +700 — good enough for the No. 1 spot.
William Byron (+800)
With back-to-back wins in Las Vegas and Phoenix, there’s no denying Byron as the hottest driver at this juncture of the season.
However, the aforementioned 100-point docking from NASCAR drops him from inside the Top 5 in the Cup Series standings to 28th at current, a pretty major setback.
Kyle Larson (+800)
After completely dominating in 2021, Larson entered 2022 as a clear favorite to repeat but actually took a significant step back. Three wins compared to 10 and 13 Top 5s compared to 20 in 2021 resulted in just a seventh-place finish in the season-long standings.
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Though he was also impacted by the NASCAR penalties, it’s no surprise to see him near the top once again, especially after a couple of Top-5 finishes in recent weeks.
NASCAR Cup Series recent winners
| Season | Driver | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Joey Logano (2) | 4 |
| 2021 | Kyle Larson | 10 |
| 2020 | Chase Elliott | 5 |
| 2019 | Kyle Busch (2) | 5 |
| 2018 | Joey Logano | 3 |
| 2017 | Martin Truex Jr. | 8 |
| 2016 | Jimmie Johnson (7) | 5 |
| 2015 | Kyle Busch | 5 |
| 2014 | Kevin Harvick | 5 |
| 2013 | Jimmie Johnson (6) | 6 |
NASCAR Cup Series betting trends
- Repeat winners are quite common. Dating back to 1993, 16 of the past 30 winners have been previous Cup Series champions.
- Hendrick Motorsports has been the most prolific team recently, with a driver winning four times in the past decade, including both 2020 and 2021.
- Likewise, Chevrolet has been the best manufacturer, with its cars taking five of the last 10 Cup Series titles, including HMS’ wins and Kevin Harvick’s 2016 title for Stewart-Haas.
This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here
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