Bojangles’ Southern 500 Picks
The 2017 NASCAR Monster Energy Series drives under the lights tonight with the running of the Bojangles’ Southern 500. Here are some drivers we like to contend for the victory.
According to the latest oddsmakers, Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. are co-favorites this week, as each has 7/2 odds. Other short odds to win are Kyle Larson (9/2) and Denny Hamlin (7/1). The Bojangles’ Southern 500 takes place tonight at 6PM ET from Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina.
Denny Hamlin has a lot of positive history at Darlington and he is the driver we like the most this weekend. Hamlin is a former winner at this track with an average finish of 6.3 and a driver rating of 107.9. Hamlin has had a good year at the tracks he’s traditionally done well at this year, so look for that to continue tonight. He should be the man to beat tonight.
Kevin Harvick comes into tonight’s race with 8/1 odds and he could use a little jolt in momentum after finishing outside the top 5 in his last three races. Darlington has been pretty good to Harvick. He finished second a year ago and fifth in 2015. He also is a former winner at the track. Harvick’s average finish here is only 15.6, but his driver rating is 99.6, which ranks near the best in the field. Look for Harvick to be near the front tonight.
Ryan Newman is listed with very long odds of 60/1 tonight, but we think there is great value there. Newman has already proven he can win this year when he took the checkered flag at Phoenix. He also has finished in the top 6 in three of his last five races and in back-to-back events. Now Newman comes to a track where he has a top-10 driver rating of 93.6. He also has 12 top-10 finishes in 18 attempts at Darlington. If you are looking for a big upset today, Newman seems to be your best bet.
