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The two-week break is over for the NASCAR Cup Series, and racing resumes with four weeks remaining in the regular season. Translation: There are four more opportunities for somebody to lock himself into the postseason playoff picture.
This week’s Go Bowling at the Glen race at Watkins Glen gives the series’ stronger road-course racers another chance to grab a win in a season in which there have been more road courses on the schedule than ever before. After this weekend’s race in upstate New York, races at Indianapolis (another road-course layout) and Michigan lie ahead -- with the flip-a-coin race at Daytona Beach wrapping up the regular season.
Richard Childress Racing teammates Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon are sitting on the fringe of the playoffs (16th and 17th, respectively). At the same time, veteran and solid road-course racer Kevin Harvick is only two spots above the cutoff line in 15th.
RELATED: NASCAR BetCenter | Odds for Sunday's race at Watkins Glen
Take a look at the
NASCAR racing odds for the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International:
THE ODDS-ON FAVORITE
Chase Elliott (+200)
Four career NASCAR Cup Series races at Watkins Glen and two wins -- not too shabby, right? Not only is Elliott the defending NASCAR Series champion, but he’s also good at these twisting, turning tracks. He takes after his old man -- Bill Elliott -- who also showed his strength at road-course tracks (among others).
Consider this fact when it comes to Elliott: In his 13 career Cup Series wins, seven have come in road courses in just 16 starts. His other six victories have come in 201 starts on all of the other tracks combined. In fact, he’s led nearly one out of every four of the 1,420 career laps he’s run on road-course tracks (326), whereas on other tracks combined, he has a pace closer to leading one out of 15 laps.
The numbers prove he’s outstanding on these sorts of tracks, thus his high perch atop the NASCAR racing odds.
OTHERS: Among the entrants with at least five career starts at Watkins Glen, the most successful driver at Watkins Glen has been Kyle Busch (+700). Like Elliott, he has two career wins, he’s tied with Martin Truex, Jr. with six career top-five finishes, and he has more top-10s than any driver in the field (12).
Behind Elliott in the odds are Kyle Larson (+425) and Truex, Jr. (+550).
Larson has logged three top 10s in six career starts. While he has cooled off some since his torrid streak of seven straight races finishing in the top two (including the All-Star Race), he is formidable on any style track. Case in point -- he won the race at Sonoma earlier this year.
Truex is right up there with Busch when it comes to track experience and success (one win, nine top-10 finishes at Watkins Glen).
THE DARK HORSE THREAT
Christopher Bell (+2000)
Bell won the Daytona Road Course race earlier this year and has been one of this season’s pleasant surprises in the Cup Series. He starts seventh on the grid on Sunday, and he’s locked into the postseason playoff picture.
He could be an exciting driver to keep an eye on, though he has never run a Cup Series race at Watkins Glen before. Don’t ignore Brad Keselowski (+3300). He is the pole sitter and has four career top-five finishes here.
THE INTRIGUING LONG SHOT
Daniel Suarez (+10000)
In three career starts at Watkins Glen, Suarez has two top fives and an average career finish of eighth -- which ranks only behind Elliott (7.1) and Erik Jones (6.3) in this weekend’s field. Currently 22nd in the season’s standings, Suarez would love to snag the checkered flag in this race and lock himself into the playoff picture. This race may be his best chance to do that as the regular season winds down in August.