Enjoy Illinois 300 Odds Reflect Parity in 2023 Cup Series

The NASCAR schedules’ third major event of the season did not disappoint. Rain canceled qualifying and pushed the race from Sunday to Monday for the Coca-Cola 600. After another delay, Ryan Blaney took his first win of 2023 from William Byron and Martin Truex Jr.

But that wasn’t the biggest headline coming out of Charlotte. Chase Elliott, fresh off a podium in Darlington, is suspended for this weekend’s Enjoy Illinois 300 for intentionally crashing Denny Hamlin. The contact on lap 186 took Hamlin out of the race with significant damage. Corey LaJoie will step in for Elliott in the no. 9 Chevrolet.

Blaney’s win and NASCAR standings leader Ross Chastain finishing 22nd sees the latter’s lead cut to just one point. Eight points cover the top four drivers in the Cup Series: Chastain (446), Blaney (445), Byron (442), and Kevin Harvick (438). The second half of the 2023 regular season could be just as exciting as the first 14 races.

This weekend the Cup Series heads west to the World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois. It’s just the second-ever Cup Series event at the track. Joey Logano won the race in his championship season last year. Here’s a look at the NASCAR Enjoy Illinois 300 odds.

Larson, Championship Leaders Top Odds for Victory

Continuing Our Enjoy Illinois 300 Odds Preview: Kyle Larson (+450) leads the odds for victory again this weekend. The 2021 Cup Series champion had the shortest odds for much of this season. His commanding win in the All-Star Race broke what’s been an inconsistent streak of events. He spun out of the lead early in Kansas and battled back to the podium. He got into the wall in Darlington after contact with Chastain. Last week, he spun and collided with Logano and rookie Ty Gibbs.

Larson finished 12th in last year’s race. This season, anything that can go wrong for him usually does. It’d be a risky choice to pick him.

Byron (+600) has the next-shortest odds for victory. The Hendrick Motorsports driver has been on a tear recently. Top four finishes in the last four events (excluding the All-Star Race) on the NASCAR schedule, punctuated by a win in Darlington. This is the first time anyone can match his performance over the last month.

World Wide Technology (WWT) Raceway is similar to Darlington, where he won his Cup Series-best third race this season. Look for him to be near the front once again Sunday. A win would be far from a surprise.

Bell (+900) is third in the trio of favorites. Bell’s strong start to 2023 has faded in recent weeks. Over the first eight races of 2023, he finished an average of 10th and notched a win in Bristol. Since then, he’s averaged 17th in the following six races. His best result was sixth in Dover. He’d need to buck that downward trend for a victory this weekend.

Championship Leaders, Contenders Bunched Together in NASCAR Odds

Concluding Our Enjoy Illinois 300 Odds Preview: Following that top trio, there are eight drivers between +1000 and +1200 for victory on Sunday. Kyle Busch, Hamlin, and Truex Jr. at +1000; Logano and Blaney at +1100; Chastain, Harvick, and Reddick at +1200.

Busch makes for a solid sleeper this weekend. Last year he led the most laps of the race (66) on his way to a close second-place finish. The two-time Cup Series champion’s coming off two top-10 finishes in Darlington (seventh) and Charlotte (sixth). He could hold on for victory this Sunday and become the first driver to three wins in 2023.

Hamlin is another good choice. Darlington’s similar to WWT Raceway, and that’s Hamlin’s best track by average finish. A win would secure his spot in the playoffs and push him higher up the NASCAR standings.

Truex Jr.’s just 13 points behind Chastain in the standings in fifth. A win in Dover is an outlier for him this season. That win is just one of three podium finishes in 2023. But he’s also finished outside of the top 20 just twice, something other than the other driver in the top 10 of the standings can match. Truex Jr.’s doing what’s needed to stay in contention in a year without a dominant driver. He managed sixth last year and will likely be near the front again.

Since Logano’s win in Atlanta, he’s managed just one podium finish. He’s 14th in the Cup Series standings. Winning back-to-back events at WWT Raceway would be a surprise but a needed result to jumpstart his title defense.

Blaney’s win in Charlotte came after a ninth-place finish in Darlington. He took fourth at this event last year. He’d be the second driver to win consecutive races in 2023 after Byron did it in Las Vegas and Phoenix. It would not be a surprise and could be how he starts separating himself from the field down the second half of the regular season.

Of the Chastain, Harvick, and Reddick trio, look for Reddick to be the best bet for victory. He’s seventh in the NASCAR standings with just one win so far this season. Last year, 23XI Racing managed a third-place finish with Kurt Busch. They could do two better with Reddick behind the wheel.

Long Shot for Victory

Besides Byron, the hottest driver in the Cup Series right now is Bubba Wallace (+2500). He’s finished in the top five in the last four races (including the All-Star Race), and he’s raced well in Loudon, another track similar to WWT Raceway. He’s also Reddick’s teammate at 23XI Racing and could do well again this year.

Predictions for Enjoy Illinois 300

As one of the newer events on the NASCAR schedule, it’s hard to pick how Sunday’s race could go.

Of the favorites, Byron is the best pick. He has the best momentum of any driver on the grid. For bigger payouts, consider Blaney or Wallace. Both are in great form and the former could use this race to start a run of results.

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