It lasted for five hours and covered 619 miles, and in between 17 cars were knocked out by either accidents or mechanical failures. Last season’s Coca-Cola 600, which ended after two overtimes with Denny Hamlin in Victory Lane, showed what can still happen over the course of an afternoon-into-evening in NASCAR’s longest race.

The 600 in recent years had become almost sedate—only one car failed to finish in the 2021 edition—hardly the test of man and machine that the showpiece NASCAR betting event at Charlotte Motor Speedway was designed to be. But last year, all hell broke loose. 

There was a 13-car wreck in the middle, a seven-car wreck in overtime, 18 cautions and 13 different leaders. Now, the question for bettors: was that just one of those nights in Charlotte, or another field-leveling effect of the next-gen car?

This Sunday in Charlotte should offer some clarity. Kyle Larson, who dominated the All-Star exhibition last week at North Wilkesboro—and was our third correctly picked winner in as many weeks—opened as the NASCAR odds favorite. 

Larson is +450 on betting apps, but he'll face stiff competition. There are nine active drivers who own victories at Charlotte, and 23 who own a top-10. Drivers tend to know Charlotte very well, given how much testing is conducted there. But over five hours on Memorial Day weekend, who knows what might unfold.

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2023 Coca-Cola 600 Betting Odds

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

Coca-Cola 600 Betting Tips & Predictions

Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. lead all active drivers with three wins each at Charlotte, including a pair of 600 crowns apiece. Truex, who last won NASCAR’s longest race in 2019, had a nice run of recent finishes in halted by a crash at Darlington. 

Harvick, whose most recent 600 title came a decade ago, was runner-up in Darlington. Brad Keselowski owns a pair of Charlotte victories, including a 600 he won in 2020 in a Penske car, and has finished eighth or better in three of his last four starts in his current Roush-powered ride. 

Hamlin, Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, Larson and Joey Logano each own one Charlotte victory, with all but Logano’s coming in the 600. The active driver with the best career average finish at Charlotte is Tyler Reddick at 9.3, thanks to three top-10s in four career starts at the track—including ninth and eighth in the past two 600s. Hamlin has been top-10 in 10 of his last 13 Charlotte starts, over which he’s finished first, third, fourth, fifth, seventh and eighth in the 600.

The final laps of the 600 can occasionally be defined by fuel gambles, which in the past led to wins by Casey Mears in 2007 and Dillon in 2017. There’s always the prospect of rain, which sent David Reutimann to Victory Lane in 2009. And yes, there are longshot options like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Daniel Suarez who have had very good runs in the 600—but it typically takes something weird happening to prevent one of the sport’s elite drivers from winning NASCAR’s longest race.

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2023 Coca-Cola 600 Best Bets

Chase Elliott to Win

Odds: +1000 at DraftKings

The Hendrick driver has clearly hit his stride since returning from a broken leg that cost him six weeks. With a seventh at Kansas and a third at Darlington, Elliott is coming off his first two consecutive top-10 finishes this season. While he was caught up in one of the crashes that marred last season’s 600, before that he’d been first or second in three straight Charlotte races, a span that includes his 600 victory in 2020. And we’re going with that famed Hendrick reliability in chasing our fourth winner in as many weeks.

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Denny Hamlin Top 3

Odds: +200 at DraftKings

Perhaps it’s no surprise that Hamlin was the last driver standing in last season’s calamitous 600, given how fantastic he is at Charlotte. In 21 races there since 2010, he’s finished in the top 10 a ridiculous 17 times. In the 600 over that same span, Hamlin has been top-10 in nine of 11 starts. A minor speed bump at Darlington two weeks ago (12th place) hasn’t soured us on a driver who’s now far more consistent in his finishes than he was earlier in the season.

Brad Keselowski Top 5

Odds: +550 at DraftKings

There’s no faking a fourth-place finish at Darlington, which is what Keselowski managed in the most recent points race two weeks ago. It was the best result the former champion has recorded since joining what is now the Roush-Fenway-Keselowski outfit prior to last season, and further proof of progress that’s netted top-10s in three of his last four events. BK now aims to continue that trend at Charlotte, where he was top-10 in 10 of 21 starts as a Penske driver.

Coca-Cola 600 Betting TV Schedule

When: Sunday, 6 p.m.

Where: Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, N.C.

TV: FOX

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