NASCAR at Darlington: Odds, key stats, bets to consider for Southern 500

The rich southern history of NASCAR will be renewed this weekend with throwback paint schemes, particular memorabilia and nostalgia since the circuit heads to historic Darlington Raceway for the famous Southern 500, unofficially one of NASCAR’s four big races.

Sunday night’s race also marks the second-to-last race of the season prior to the 16-driver playoffs begin at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (-79 points out of cutoff), Ryan Newman (-91), Daniel Suarez (-93) and Paul Menard (-99) are drivers currently with a slender opportunity to make the playoffs without a win while the rest of the area needs a victory at Darlington or Indianapolis to punch their ticket to the playoffs.

MORE: Updated NASCAR title odds

With”The Lady in Black” ready to paint a Darlington stripe on anybody who gets too near her wall, motorists will have to be in their best since the track changes when the sexy South Carolina sun begins to set in the 1.366-mile asphalt trail. Among the most unique tracks in NASCAR features 25 degrees of banking in Turns 1 and 2, and 23 degrees in Turns 3 and 4 as the track narrows by 17 feet as the car rounds the egg-shaped oval.

There is no other track like Darlington which makes it hard to handicap however, the track is very abrasive like similar tracks in length in Atlanta and Chicagoland. Sunday’s race-favorite Kevin Harvick will soon be using his winning Atlanta chassis that led 181 of 325 laps in February while Kyle Busch expects another 50+ lap-leading triumph at Darlington like he did at Chicago this summer. The final member of the”Big 3,” Martin Truex Jr. is the 2016 Darlington winner who has a series of three top-10 finishes in the track.

Entering Sunday’s race with the fourth-shortest chances is a driver who has dominated Darlington and needs a good showing to secure a place in the playoffs: Denny Hamlin.

The No. 11 Toyota motorist is a two-time Darlington winner and defending race champion. Hamlin boasts the very best driver rating (110.3 — well above the next statistical best of Kyle Busch at 105.1), the best average running place (7.8) and tops among the fastest laps run (272) in this race. Hamlin offers 10 top-10 endings in 12 career starts including seven top-fives to go along with his 2 wins.

Odds to win Southern 500

Kevin Harvick 5/2
Kyle Busch 7/2
Martin Truex Jr 7/2
Denny Hamlin 6/1
Kyle Larson 6/1
Erik Jones 18/1
Ryan Blaney 18/1
Brad Keselowski 18/1
Kurt Busch 18/1
Clint Bowyer 18/1
Chase Elliott 25/1
Joey Logano 25/1
Aric Almirola 50/1
Jimmie Johnson 100/1
Ryan Newman 100/1
Daniel Suarez 100/1
Alex Bowman 100/1
Austin Dillon 200/1
Jamie McMurray 200/1
Paul Menard 200/1
Ricky Stenhouse Jr 300/1
Matt Kenseth 300/1
William Byron 300/1
Kasey Kahne 1000/1
Chris Buescher 1000/1
Darrell Wallace Jr 1000/1
AJ Allmendinger 1000/1
Ty Dillon 5000/1
Michael McDowell 5000/1
Field (All Others) 1000/1

Notable Southern 500 betting matchups

Kyle Busch -110
Martin Truex Jr. -110

Denny Hamlin -110
Kyle Larson -110

Kevin Harvick -145
Martin Truex Jr. +125

Erik Jones -110
Brad Keselowski -110

Brad Keselowski -110
Clint Bowyer -110

Kyle Busch -115
Denny Hamlin +135

Chase Elliott -110
Joey Logano -110

Read more: nfllive.org