The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for Sunday’s 2022 Pennzoil 400. The green flag is set to drop a little after 3:30 p.m. ET (on FOX). Below we analyze the 2022 Pennzoil 400 odds and lines, with NASCAR picks and predictions.
Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin is the defending champion, averaging 144.643 mph en route to a victory last September. That was the fastest average speed since March 3, 2019, when Joey Logano burned up the track at a 154.849-mph clip in the fastest race at LVMS.
There have been five different winners in the past five races at the Sin City track. Hamlin is joined by Kyle Larson (2021 March), Kurt Busch (2020 September), Logano (2020 February) and Martin Truex, Jr. (2019 September) as the five.
In the past six races, all three NASCAR Cup Series manufacturers have posted two victories apiece at the Nevada tri-oval.
2022 Pennzoil 400: What you need to know
- Logano leads all active drivers with an 8.59 Average-Finish Position (AFP) in 17 races, winning two of those races with six top-5 finishes and 11 top-10 showings. He has also led 495 laps during the span.
- Brad Keselowski won three races for Penske Racing at LVMS, leading all active drivers in Las Vegas victories. He finished ninth at Daytona and 27th at Auto Club in his first two races with RFK Racing so far this season.
- Larson, the defending series champ, is coming off a win last week at Fontana. He is third among all active drivers with a 9.82 AFP in 11 career Las Vegas NASCAR Cup Series starts, leading 224 laps.
Who is going to win the 2022 Pennzoil 400?
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Saturday at 10:21 a.m. ET.
LARSON (+350) is the chalk for the second consecutive weekend. He is as good a bet as any driver. He was dominant in his Fontana victory last Sunday. As mentioned, Larson won here in the 2021 March race. He followed that up with a 10th-place showing in the fall race after winning the pole.
KYLE BUSCH (+2000), the Las Vegas native, has just one win in his 21 career Cup starts at his home track. He has back-to-back, third-place finishes here, and he was sixth in the 2020 September South Point 400.
RYAN BLANEY (+750) – tied with William Byron for the fourth shortest odds behind Larson, teammate Logano (+700) and Chase Elliott (+700) – has an 8.82 AFP in 11 career Vegas starts. While Blaney has never won at this track, he has five fifth-place finishes and eight runs of 10th or better here. He has never finished lower than 22nd in his 11 Cup LVMS races. His time is coming soon, and he is worth a roll of the dice for the victory.
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Long-shot bets for the 2022 Pennzoil 400
Like last week, AUSTIN DILLON (+3000) is a strong play. He ran well at Auto Club Speedway with a runner-up finish, improving his already good career numbers at that track. He has a tremendous 15.69 AFP in 13 career Vegas Cup starts, including two top-5 finishes. He was 12th and 13th in two stops at LVMS last season.
KESELOWSKI (+3000) has some rather long odds based upon his strong career numbers, too. He is worth playing lightly. A $5 wager nets $150 if he claims the checkered flag.
Prop bets for the 2022 Pennzoil 400
Play TOP-10 FINISH FOR AUSTIN DILLON (+175) at plus-money. He enters this race with a lot of confidence after a runner-up last weekend, and he is 13th or better in three of his past four Vegas starts, including a fourth-place run in the 2020 February race.75
CHASE BRISCOE TOP-10 FINISH (+115) is worth a look, too. He has just two Cup starts at Vegas under his belt, finishing 14th and 21st. It won’t take much improvement to get into the top 10.
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