Let’s get dirty.
For the second straight year, NASCAR will attempt to get back to its roots with a dirt-track showdown at Bristol Motor Speedway. After dumping truckloads of dirt on the 0.533 miles of concrete, NASCAR was able to overcome destructive weather to crown Joey Logano king of the inaugural Bristol Dirt Race.
Not surprisingly, Logano is one of the betting favorites Sunday. Take a look at our picks for the 2022 Food City Dirt Race.
All odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Ben Watanabe
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., top five +300
My honest advice for this race is to not bet it at all. There’s been only one Bristol dirt race, and last year’s event featured an entirely different car, so there’s not much of a sample size. If absolutely necessary, go with Stenhouse, who finished second a year ago and has ample dirt experience. He should be able to salvage a respectable finish as long as the elements don’t wreak havoc again.
Mike Cole
Martin Truex Jr., top 10 +180
Not exactly the most daring play this week, but as Ben mentioned, we’ve got a really small sample size, different equipment and just a general lack of data. I’ll roll with Truex to finish in the top 10 here, in large part because he did lead more laps here last year (126) than anyone else in that race despite a 19th-place finish. He also has four top-10 finishes on the season and is generally a good race-car driver, so that’s good.
Dakota Randall
Kyle Larson, to win +550
I’ll piggyback off Ben and Mike’s points in saying I want neither to bet this race nor to make any sort of aggressive play. So, I’m rolling with Larson, who is the favorite to win. He finished 29th in this race last year, a surprising result considering his immense success on dirt as a sprint-car driver. But Larson at the time still was getting used to his Hendrick Motorsports equipment, so he gets a pass. He should fare much better this time around, netting you a solid return if you bet him to win.
