By Cole Cusumano, Staff Writer
Betting is almost always favorable when Las Vegas is involved, but especially if the NASCAR Cup Series returns to Sin City for the playoffs. Whether you place a prop bet through a trusted sportsbook or participate in the wide range of unique daily fantasy contests offered by GridRival, the Money Stop Podcast takes bettors on how to hit the jackpot in the opening game of the Round of 8 I am.
For those who don’t know, the “money stop” (usually the last pit stop of the race) is considered the most important stop of the day. It’s not often that a team wins a race without running a money stop. The Money Stop Podcast is a NASCAR gambling show hosted by industry journalist Cole Cusumano and his brother Stephen, who is the voice of the New York Yankees’ second-division division, the Somerset Patriots.
The Cusumano brothers debuted the Money Stop Podcast in 2021, coining the slogan “Today’s Most Important NASCAR Betting Stop.” Because bettors can’t bank out without tuning in to the shows presented by Kickin’ the Tire and GridRival. Streamed weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Before you take the plunge in Las Vegas, it’s important to provide evidence of an incredible success rate. In the past two races at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway and Charlotte (N.C.) Roval, the Cusumano brothers have been one of seven top-10 finishers in each race (four of them in the top five). It attracted attention. For the Bank of America ROVAL 400, they offered 17 prop bets, 11 of which hit at the checkered flag.
Now that you know what the Money Stop Podcast is all about, in addition to proven results, the shortest winning South Point 400 at Las Vegas (Nevada) Motor Speedway when lines open in October. Here are the top 5 odds. 15, per BetMGM:
Kyle Larson +325 William Byron +700 Tyler Reddick +800 Christopher Bell +800 Denny Hamlin +800
favorite
Unsurprisingly, Kyle Larson has been tipped as the favorite to win in Las Vegas for a variety of reasons. One factor is that the 2021 champions come looking for a series-high sixth win this season and second in the postseason. Another telling detail is that he took the checkered flag in dominant fashion in the most recent race at the 1.5-mile track in March after leading 181 laps.
Some would argue that in the next generation, there is no better player in Las Vegas than Larson. During his five starts, he has led the most laps and has won and finished second twice. In addition to averaging a series-best 9.3 laps in his career, he has finished in the top five in half of his 16 starts, posted a top 10 percentage of 75%, and led most laps with more than 620 laps. Ta.
With his performance in Las Vegas in mind, Larson established himself as one of the best drivers on the traditional 1.5-mile track in seventh-generation cars. This season alone, he has led 321 laps and won. Dating back to its introduction in 2022, he has led more than 1,200 laps each with four wins and four runners-up.
Another favorite: Unlike the Hendrick Motorsports stable, which should be considered the team to beat in Sin City, it’s impossible to ignore the strength and dominance of Christopher Bell and the No. 20 team this postseason. is.
The 29-year-old appeared in six games in the playoffs, posting a series-high 6.3 average and looks all but certain to make his third consecutive Championship Four appearance. Beyond the postseason, Bell has finished seventh or better seven times in the past eight races, his weakest being a 14th-place finish at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.
With his second runner-up finish of the season and three wins at the Roval, Bell won four races remaining to match his career best in 2024, set two years ago, in terms of top fives (12) and first place. They are already lined up. 10 seconds (20 seconds), to the truck that won runner-up last fall.
Bell has three top-10s and one top-five in Las Vegas during the Next Generation era. Perhaps even more notable is that he has won at the 1.5-mile track this season, albeit in a rain-shortened format in Charlotte. He also had two more top-10 finishes, including a seventh-place finish in his most recent race, where he led most of the laps. At Kansas Speedway.
Honestly, Las Vegas has better drivers in a statistical sense that you can bet on as favorites to win, but you can’t ignore the tear the Joe Gibbs Racing talent is currently in. Listen to The Money Stop to find out who the other two are.
sleeper & spoiler
By thinking outside the box about which drivers act as winning sleepers or spoilers, bettors can really optimize value and get the most bang for their buck. It’s also a section where Moneystop has performed well on an annual basis, including this season.
Through six playoff races, half of the winners have been spoilers, with two of the drivers being highlighted by the Cusumano brothers on the show along with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at Talladega, and the winner also being a threat to the checkered flag at Kansas. It was supposed to be. The upcoming 1.5 mile track, Ross Chastain.
Chastain surprised Kansas with his first win of the season, and there’s every reason to believe he could mess it up again in Las Vegas. Trackhouse Racing’s “Destroyer” is the only driver other than Larson to finish in the top five in all but one Next Generation start in Sin City. The difference is that the No. 1 driver happens to have a series-best average finish of 5.3 thanks to his outlier 12th-place finish, as opposed to Larson’s only DNF.
Melonman also has the third-most laps in Las Vegas in a current car, behind Larson and William Byron, with more than 150 laps, including the past March race. Chastain recorded a career-best runner-up finish in the fall 2022 tournament. The weekend opener is expected to win at +1800 and is one of the props prop bettors might want to jump on, in addition to a top-five finisher prop at +225 before odds adjustment after Saturday’s on-track action.
Another sleeper, also derived from the Hendrick stable and Bowtie Brigade, will be a hunch for Chase Elliott. The 2020 champion comes in as a gut pick, as he has only finished in the top 10 in one of his four Next Gen starts in Las Vegas and doesn’t scream “I’m betting on a win.” However, recency and vision testing are a different story.
Elliott finished fifth in the ROVAL, his fourth solid postseason performance. This allowed him to earn the third-best average finish in the series through the playoffs at 12.0. That’s roughly on par with his series-leading average finish of 11.7 in 32 games.
Consistency aside, Elliott has quietly made a case for being one of the best drivers in 2024 at the traditional 1.5-mile track. The No. 9 driver finished in the top 10 in four of his five starts, including a win at Texas Motor Speedway, and finished in a low 12th place, the highest average finish in the series for this particular configuration. Scored 6.4.
Furthermore, Elliott had success in Las Vegas just before the current car was introduced in 2022, leading all 170 laps, more than the previous five laps, and posting a second-place finish in the fall of 2021.
Despite being the most consistent driver in the sport, Elliott has been criticized for being quiet for much of the season. He entered the Round of 8 as the No. 7 driver in the rankings, nine points below the cutoff, but will have to make some noise in the semi-final set to compete for a second championship. His race win value of +1400 and top 5 prop +190 are also very attractive.
Check out our podcast, The Money Stop, later this week for two more favorites and sleepers. This article will also be updated with daily fantasy value picks and specific prop bets to consider after the contest becomes available on GridRival later this week.
GridRival is a motorsport-focused gaming platform that lets you participate in contests and predict everything from NASCAR to F1 to IndyCar using a number of unique ways not available on other apps. Download the app here (https://gridrival.onelink.me/dLVy/kickine) and use the code “KICKINTHETIRES” when you sign up to get a $100 deposit match.
