NASCAR at Charlotte 2022: Odds, Preview and Top Storylines
The NASCAR Cup Series playoff field cuts from 12 to eight drivers after Sunday's race at the Charlotte road course.
Seven of the eight spots in the next round are still up for grabs. Chase Elliott locked in his round-of-eight position with a victory at Talladega last weekend.
Elliott and his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson have been the dominant drivers on the "Roval" in the four races on that part of the Charlotte Motor Speedway track.
Larson won the last road course race on the circuit at Watkins Glen, but a few new challengers have emerged on road courses in 2022.
Tyler Reddick owns two victories on road courses. Daniel Suárez and Ross Chastain booked playoff spots with their winning drives at Circuit of the Americans and Sonoma.
Suarez begins the weekend 12 points in front of Chase Briscoe for the final spot in the round of eight.
The standings were reshuffled during the week when William Byron's points deduction from an incident at Texas was overturned. Byron is now 14 points in front of the bubble instead of being on the outside looking in.
Bank of America Roval 400 Odds
Chase Elliott (+500; bet $100 to win $500)
Tyler Reddick (+600)
Kyle Larson (+800)
A.J. Allmendinger (+1200)
William Byron (+1200)
Denny Hamlin (+1200)
Christopher Bell (+1500)
Austin Cindric (+1500)
Ryan Blaney (+1500)
Ross Chastain (+1500)
Joey Logano (+1500)
Daniel Suárez (+1500)
Chase Briscoe (+2000)
Will Hendrick Cars Continue Roval Dominance?
Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson have three of the four Cup Series wins on the Charlotte "Roval."
Larson beat out Tyler Reddick and Chris Buescher for the victory on the "Roval" last season.
Larson comes into Charlotte with a road course win at Watkins Glen under his belt. He could be the Hendrick Motorsports driver to watch on Sunday since Elliott is already into the round of eight.
Elliott should still have a competitive car, but there may be some strategy involved to get Larson in a more favorable spot throughout the race so that Hendrick guarantees at least two cars in the round of eight.
William Byron is the only other Hendrick driver with a chance of advancing through to the round of eight. Alex Bowman is out for the second straight race with concussion-like symptoms.
Byron moved back into seventh place during the week after his points deduction was altered into a larger fine for an incident that took place at Texas.
Byron has a 14-point edge on Chase Briscoe in ninth place. The driver of the No. 24 car finished in sixth and 11th in the last two seasons on the Charlotte road course.
Byron is not as skilled on road courses as Larson and Elliott, but he could be a factor in the top 10 as he chases one of the seven remaining spots in the round of eight.
Three Drivers Pushing to Get over Playoff Bubble
Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric are on the outside of the playoff bubble going into Charlotte.
Bowman is the fourth driver beyond the bubble, but he will not be racing in the No. 48 car this weekend.
Bell sits 45 points back of the bubble after awful runs at Texas and Talladega. He essentially needs a win to secure his spot in the final eight.
Briscoe and Cindric have better chances to advance on points because they have 12 points gaps between them and Daniel Suárez.
Suárez, Ross Chastain and Larson could be seen as the strongest drivers in second-through-eighth place in the standings because of their road course victories in 2022.
Suárez finished fifth at Watkins Glen and Road America. A high finish for the No. 99 car could make it even tougher for Bell, Briscoe and Cindric to advance into the next round.
Bell owns two top-10 finishes on road courses in 2022, but Cindric may be the better choice to move from below the bubble. Cindric has four top-10 finishes and a 13th-place mark on NASCAR's road courses this season. Briscoe has not landed inside the top 12 on any road course.
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