The bad news for Chase Elliott is that he has just three races remaining to score the victory he desperately needs to qualify for the NASCAR playoffs. 

The good news is that two of those events are on road courses, where Elliott is at his best. But either way, these are nervous times for bettors who took the Hendrick driver as a +500 championship futures wager in the preseason.

Elliott missed six races after breaking his leg in a snowboarding accident in February, making it difficult if not impossible for him to make the playoffs based on points. A race win would get him in automatically—and toward that end, the seven-time road race winner is certainly circling Sunday’s event on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Of course, Elliott has looked anything like a contender the past five weeks, over which his average finish is 16.8. And while he was third (at Chicago) and fifth (at Sonoma) in his past two starts on street or road circuits, he hasn’t won a NASCAR road race in over a calendar year. 

The Nascar Odds for Sunday’s Verizon 200 at the Brickyard told the story: Elliott opened at +750 to win on the betting apps , third on the board behind +400 favorite Martin Truex Jr. and defending race winner Tyler Reddick.

NASCAR Verizon 200 At The Brickyard Odds

Odds via DraftKings and current as of publication. Check out our DraftKings Review

NASCAR Verizon 200 At The Brickyard Betting Tips

One week after pulling the biggest upset of the NASCAR season as a +6000 winner at Richmond, Chris Buescher used some late pit strategy to a earn a +5000 longshot victory in Monday’s rain-delayed race at Michigan. 

Can Buescher make it three straight as a +6500 bet to win Sunday on the Indy road course? He’s a capable road racer, with a career average finish of 14.4, which included a top-five at Sonoma earlier this season and a 10th at the Brickyard last year.

And then there’s our man Truex, whose runner-up performance at Michigan continued a red-hot summer that’s seen him notch top-10s in four straight and 10 of his last 13 starts. 

Chicago street race winner Shane Van Gisbergen returns to the same No. 91 Trackhouse car at Indy, where he’ll be joined by fellow Supercars driver Brodie Kostecki, who’ll drive a Richard Childress Racing entry. And 24 Hours of LeMans champion Kamui Kobayashi will pilot a third car for 23IX Racing.

Reddick and A.J. Allmendinger won the first two editions of the Indy race after it was switched from the oval to the road course, where Allmendinger (4.0), Austin Cindric (5.5) and Bubba Wallace (9.0) own the best average finishes among drivers who have competed in both events. 

Only Allmeninger and Cindric have been top-10 in both races. As for Elliott? He placed fourth in the maiden event in 2021, and was challenging for the lead when  he was swept up in multi-car crash in the final laps a year ago.

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NASCAR Verizon 200 At The Brickyard Best Bets

Kyle Busch to Win

Odds: +1000 at DraftKings

Yes, he’s finished deep in the field in three of his last four starts, crashing in two of them, and his best finish on the Indianapolis road course is 11th. 

But Busch is a great road racer who’s been exceptional on road layouts this season—fifth at Chicago (even after impaling his car in a tire barrier early on), second at Sonoma, and second at Circuit of the Americas. 

Busch is well overdue for his first victory in a road race since Sonoma in 2015, and his performance on road courses this season should translate to Indianapolis.

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Martin Truex Jr. Top 3

Odds: +110 at DraftKings

Truex had the fastest car at Michigan, but Buescher had the clean air out front, and that ultimately made the difference Monday. Still, the runner-up result marked another profitable finish for the championship favorite, who’s in our betting profile every week now. 

Bookmakers are catching on, and Truex’s odds don’t offer the value they did a few weeks ago. But he remains a solid choice for NASCAR picks at Indy, especially after winning the road race at Sonoma in June.

Austin Cindric Top 5

Odds: +350 at DraftKings

Cindric may be a middle-of-the-pack runner most weeks, but he’s at his best on road courses, as he showed in last year’s runner-up finish at Indianapolis. Also, he was ninth in the inaugural NASCAR event on the grand prix layout in 2021. 

He’s shown flashes this season, too, placing sixth at both the Chicago street course and COTA. Cindric may be a Daytona 500 champ, but Indy—which the son of the Penske team president has been around since he was a kid—is his best track.

NASCAR Verizon 200 At The Brickyard Time, Date And TV

When: Sunday, 2:30 p.m. EDT

Where: Indianapolis (Ind.) Motor Speedway

TV: NBC

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