Just like everybody expected, we are two races in to the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season and the winners are Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell. That sound you hear is the balloon leaking air for the drivers hoping to make the playoffs. Unless we get more than 16 race winners, McDowell and Bell have secured two of the 16 playoff spots.
It is too early for urgency, but with limited races on 1.5-mile tracks this season, a lot of teams will be aggressively looking to rack up some points and secure a victory with this week’s Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
We’ll use the odds from MyBookie Sportsbook to break this one down and give you a full race preview with some picks and predictions at the end.
With the race back on a 1.5-mile track, Kevin Harvick reassumes the position at the top of the odds board. This type of racing format is more conducive to Harvick and he’s had a good car and decent results the first couple of weeks. As usual, it is Denny Hamlin, the current points leader and winner of three of the four non-final stages, that is the second favorite. Chase Elliott is always going to be up at the top of the board these days as well.
ODDS FROM MYBOOKIE SPORTSBOOK FOR THE DIXIE VODKA 400
Denny Hamlin | +450 |
Kevin Harvick | +550 |
Chase Elliott | +550 |
Martin Truex Jr | +600 |
Kyle Busch | +800 |
Joey Logano | +1000 |
Kyle Larson | +1100 |
Brad Keselowski | +1200 |
Ryan Blaney | +1400 |
Alex Bowman | +2500 |
William Byron | +3300 |
Kurt Busch | +3300 |
Christopher Bell | +3300 |
Tyler Reddick | +4000 |
Austin Dillon | +4000 |
Aric Almirola | +4000 |
Matt DiBenedetto | +6600 |
Cole Custer | +6600 |
Chase Briscoe | +6600 |
Erik Jones | +8000 |
Bubba Wallace | +10000 |
Ryan Newman | +15000 |
Ross Chastain | +15000 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr | +25000 |
Daniel Suarez | +40000 |
Chris Buescher | +40000 |
Michael McDowell | +75000 |
Justin Haley | +75000 |
Anthony Alfredo | +75000 |
Ryan Preece | +100000 |
Josh Bilicki | +200000 |
Corey Lajoie | +200000 |
Cody Ware | +200000 |
Timmy Hill | +250000 |
Quin Houff | +250000 |
James Davison | +250000 |
Garrett Smithley | +250000 |
BJ McLeod | +250000 |
From Finale to February
Homestead-Miami used to be the championship race track with the Ford EcoBoost 400. Well, now it is the third race of the year. NASCAR now finishes the season in Arizona. It makes sense in terms of limiting travel that NASCAR would have three Florida races in succession, though, so it is nice that it worked out that way. Homestead-Miami is a standard-issue 1.5-mile track with flat straights and progressive banking in the turns ranging from 18 to 20 degrees. This race has been held here every year since 1999, but was previously in November. Last year’s race was on June 14. The weather conditions aren’t that much different in Florida from November to February, so the teams probably won’t have to make too many adjustments to the usual strategy. Last year’s race in June was a sweltering one. The drivers have to be happy to get back to cooler conditions this time around.Early Returns
Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell have the wins. Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, and Kevin Harvick have the most points. Chase Elliott was second in the Daytona 500 and then 21st last week in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 253, as he led the most laps and won Stage 1, but eventually finished outside the top 20. Hamlin is the only driver with two top-five finishes. Logano, Harvick, Bell, Elliott, McDowell, Kurt Busch, Austin Dillon, and Brad Keselowski each have one. Ryan Preece joins Hamlin, Harvick, and McDowell as the only drivers with two top-10 finishes.CLAIM YOUR WELCOME BONUS AT MYBOOKIE SPORTSBOOK