It sure is good to have practice and qualifying back to help finalize this week's betting card. Saturday's action at Darlington shed some light on likely contenders and, of course, pretenders. In the good news department, Mother Nature appears to be in a favorable mood as the sun goes down…
Tensions are rising as the Cup Series regular season schedule winds down to just three more races. Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex, Jr. are battling for one playoff slot at this point in the game, though a wild card winner here at Richmond or Watkins Glen will push them into…
What else can you say about last week's battle at Pocono? Let alone the course of events that shook out a couple hours after Denny Hamlin completed his burnout and popped his bottle of bubbly. Just another week on the Cup Series circuit, right? When it comes to the on-track…
Although there's no Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast this week, we still dug into the 2022 Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway for betting angles. It's the first points-paying short track race of the season so we're dealing with yet another first with this Next Gen ride. The Clash at…
Download Episode 4 of 2022 (COTA) Episode 4 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast heads to the Lone Start State for the 2022 EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix! JJ joins Paul after an off week from the pod (life can be like that) to look ahead at a DRY Circuit…
Download Episode 3 of 2022 (Phoenix) Episode 3 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast heads to picturesque Phoenix Raceway for the 2022 Ruoff Mortgage 500. JJ joins Paul to talk intense battles and pit strategies in Vegas and how our handicaps fared last week. What have we found out…
Download Episode 1 of 2022 (Auto Club) Episode 1 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast makes its post-Daytona kickoff for the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season. JJ joins Paul to handicap their favorite head-to-head matchups before qualifying begins for the 2022 Wise Power 400! Daytona showed us that the…
Download Episode 37 (Phoenix - NASCAR Cup Series Championship) It's Championship Week on Episode 37 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast! Four teams are still alive, but it all comes down to Phoenix to decide the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Championship. JJ joins Paul on the show to look…
Download Episode 36 (Martinsville) Episode 36 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast takes you to the penultimate race of the NASCAR Cup Series season - the 2021 Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway! The high-speed intermediates give way to contact-filled short track racing in the final race of the Round…
Download Episode 35 (Kansas) Episode 35 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast heads to the Midwest for the second-to-last chance for a playoff team to lock themselves into the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix. Sunday's 2021 Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway rewards speed and a little…
Download Episode 34 (Texas) Episode 34 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast rolls on with just eight playoff drivers remaining in hunt for the Cup Series Championship. The Round of 8 begins in the Lone Star State with the 2021 Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Four…
Download Episode 30 (Bristol) Episode 30 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast takes you to the first elimination race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs - the 2021 Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. After it’s all said and done Saturday night, only 12 Championship contenders…
Download Episode 29 (Richmond) Episode 29 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast keeps the playoff vibes rolling with a preview of the 2021 Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway. Paul welcomes in his guest JJ from The BetCrushers to look back at the wild race that was the Southern…
Download Episode 28 (Darlington) Episode 28 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast kicks off the NASCAR Cup Series postseason at Darlington Raceway for the 2021 Cook Out Southern 500. The playoff field of 16 is set and four teams will be eliminated after the next three races. But first, Paul welcomes…
Download Episode 26 (Michigan) Episode 26 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast heads to the Irish Hills of Michigan for the 2021 Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway! Paul welcomes his recurring guest JJ to help break down the race - but first, as always, it’s time to look back…
Download Episode 25 (Indy Road Course) Episode 25 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast dives into the 2021 Verizon 200 at The Brickyard. The Brickyard 400 may be a thing of the past, but the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course plays host to the NASCAR Cup Series Sunday afternoon. JJ joins…
Download Episode 23 (New Hampshire) Episode 23 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast shifts gears after Atlanta, where an improbable win by Kurt Busch cranked up the intensity on the NASCAR Cup Series' playoff hunt. We move from Atlanta Motor Speedway's potholes to New Hampshire's Magic Mile. JJ joins Paul to…
Download Episode 19 (Nashville) Episode 19 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast heads to the Music City for the inaugural Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway. But first, Paul welcomes in JJ to talk fun-and-games at the All-Star Race - or was it? The points race is back on after the…
Download Episode 18 (Texas All-Star Race) Episode 18 is an All-Star Edition of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast as the NASCAR Cup Series’ mid-season exhibition comes to us live from Texas Motor Speedway! First, Paul and his guest JJ recap last weekend’s wild one at Sonoma - talking karma, pit strategy…
Download Episode 17 (Sonoma) Episode 17 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast heads cross country from Charlotte all the way to northern California’s wine country. After a year away from one of the oldest road courses on the Cup Series schedule, NASCAR returns for the 2021 Toyota Save Mart 350 at…
Download Episode 14 (Dover) Episode 14 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast ventures to the Monster Mile for the 2021 Drydene 400 at Dover International Speedway. Paul welcomes in JJ again for a race preview and handicapping - but first, the guys talk about an impressive race by Martin Truex, Jr.…
Download Episode 7 (Atlanta) The NASCAR Cup Series’ West Coast Swing is over and Episode 7 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast takes you to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the 2021 Folds of Honor Quik Trip 500. Paul and JJ discuss the Phoenix race, where Martin Truex, Jr. is the latest…
Download Episode 4 (Homestead-Miami) Episode 4 of the Playing the Odds NASCAR Style podcast takes you to South Florida for the 2021 Dixie Vodka 400. We just watched first time Cup Series winner Christopher Bell end Chase Elliott’s four-race road course winning streak in a drama-filled race at the Daytona…
One of the least likely contenders advanced to the Round of 8 last weekend by automatic bid. Kurt Busch returned to his home town of Las Vegas and proved that every playoff driver is alive if there's a race to be won. It's been The Outlaw's worst track until he…
The Southern 500 at Darlington ushered the 2020 postseason in style. Throwback Weekend at The Lady in Black delivered an excellent race where nearly all of the 16 Championship contenders were in the mix. Now the Cup Series moves north to Richmond for the second installment of the 2020 NASCAR…
It is often said that invention is the mother of necessity. NASCAR responded to the COVID curveball by scheduling mid-week races and weekend doubleheaders. With just six races to go before the playoffs, things look positive for completing the 2020 Cup season. This weekend, Michigan International Speedway hosts the FireKeepers…
Things are looking up in the NASCAR world. Last weekend, Kentucky's Quaker State 400 fired up without a weather delay and ended a rookie crossing the line in first. Wednesday night's All-Star Race at Bristol was a spectacle for sore eyes with fireworks, underlighting for the cars, and 30,000 people…
The Summer of NASCAR heads to the land of thoroughbred horses and bourbon whiskey after visiting the Tricky Triangle and the hallowed ground of Indy. There is no doubt that last Sunday's rendition of the Brickyard 400 was a little more "exciting" than in previous years. You had a pit…
2020 is a year of change for the NASCAR Cup Series in many respects, one of which is front and center this weekend. For the last two years, Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosted the final race before the postseason. This year, the traditional July 4th weekend race at Daytona is now…
After 18 years of hosting the NASCAR Cup Championship race, Homestead Speedway is now home to a mid-season 400-mile contest. At this point in the sports landscape, that suits me just fine. Miami may no longer be the center of a season-ending celebration, but plenty of eyes will be focused…
Atlanta gave us a clean race on Sunday with a ton of green flag laps. Happy Harvick walked away with the checkered flag for the second time this season and the second time at Atlanta in three years. The hot rods took over the race and held on, as you…
The whirlwind that is the 2020 NASCAR schedule takes us next to Blue Ridge Mountains for a Battle at Bristol. Charlotte treated us to a spectacular Memorial Day weekend Coca-Cola 600 and a rain-delayed 311-mile sprint on Thursday. Brad Keselowski won his first 600 and Chase Elliott pulled away with…
Memorial Day can mean many things for Americans, but most important is commemorating our fallen military. A lot of traditions have grown up around the long weekend: time with friends and family, cookouts, camping, and (usually for me) catching a baseball game. For us race fans, Sunday means the Indy…
Sunday's action at The Lady in Black was fast, furious, and long-awaited. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. started off as only he could by hitting the wall then shedding flames on his way to the garage - all before completing a single lap. Later, Jimmie Johnson ruined his own day with an…
It's been one hell of a wait, but we're a couple days away from green flag racing at the track that's Too Tough to Tame. We've had more than enough time to dig into the pair of upcoming NASCAR Cup Series races and our betting card is just about filled.…
In case you missed the news, NASCAR is back in full force. The Cup Series may have missed a couple months, but the nation has a need for speed and NASCAR is delivering. Four Cup races will run over an eleven-day stretch at Darlington Raceway and Charlotte Motor Speedway. Our…
We could all use some good news these days and boy did NASCAR deliver. Real-life, on-the-track, no-simulator-in-sight Cup Series racing is back, by God. NASCAR made the call to resume the 2020 season at Darlington Raceway on May 17th. Then the action moves to Charlotte for Memorial Day weekend. The…
I'll start by saying how competitive and entertaining the young 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season has been. Daytona - what can you say about that? Vegas - late caution forces a 2-lap sprint. Fontana - a huge, bumpy track made for flat-out racing. Three races into the season and the…
We move southwest from last week's high stakes action in Las Vegas to California for Sunday's Auto Club 400 at Fontana. We were treated to some spectacular racing in Vegas; three-wide, four-wide, and even five-wide action was not uncommon. There was just something about the competitiveness of last week's race…
Sunday's Daytona 500 was a prime example of superspeedway racing, also known as a 200-MPH crap shoot. Races at Daytona and Talladega are exciting as hell, especially in the later laps when guys are antsy and cars are nose-to-tail at extremely high speeds. The Cup Series circuit travels from the…
NASCAR Playoffs mainstay Kevin Harvick earned his free pass to the Championship 4 with a dominant win at Texas last week. He joins Martinsville winner Martin Truex, Jr. with that distinction, leaving only two open slots for the finale in Miami. It's do-or-die for two-thirds of the contenders, so let's…
The NASCAR Playoffs intensity gets dialed up another notch this week at Texas Motor Speedway. Messin' with Texas is not a good idea, but it's not quite as bad as starting a slap-boxing match on pit road. The stakes are high so let's jump right into the BetCrushers.com NASCAR Texas…
Round 3 of the NASCAR Playoffs is here and the eight drivers still in the mix are staring down the O.G. short track of the Cup Series circuit: Martinsville Speedway. With rain in the forecast, Mother Nature may have the final say when the green flag will fly. Regardless, it's…
The Yellow Flag Fiesta at the end of Sunday's race at Kansas was a nail biter. Brad Keselowski's Championship hopes were dashed at the expense of runner-up Chase Elliott. Round 3 of the NASCAR Playoffs shifts from the speedy 1.5-mile tri-oval to the half-mile short track at Martinsville Speedway. It's…
The NASCAR postseason field will be slashed by a third when checkered flag flies at the Hollywood Casino 400 this afternoon. Two drivers are locked in for the next round of playoffs and four more are effectively in, barring some sort of disaster. Who will be in next week and…
The Monster Mile is small but mighty, and there's no doubting that the racing action will be fierce to open Round 2 of the NASCAR Playoffs. We're looking to follow up a big handicapping week at the Charlotte Roval last Sunday with another one at Dover. Our card was limited…
The NASCAR Playoffs move further south this week to one of the most unpredictable tracks on the Cup Series circuit, the Charlotte Roval. It's a road course and an oval jammed together, exactly like how a spork is both a spoon and a fork. Bottom line: the Roval debuted in…
If there's anything far from a surprise in NASCAR these days, it is Kyle Busch having one of the fastest cars on the track. Friday's practice sessions showed that the Vegas native has the potential to make a strong statement in the opening race of the 2019 NASCAR postseason. The…
The NASCAR postseason kicks in after upcoming Cup Series stops at Darlington and the Brickyard. We hold a few small Championship futures tickets made before the season began, but now it's time to look for value as we near the final ten races of the season. Handicapping the 2019 NASCAR…