Verizon 200 at the Brickyard Betting Preview
11 August 2023
Chris Buescher (277.409) and RFK Racing ensured that Michigan remained Ford country, taking home his second-consecutive win last weekend. While Buescher is emerging as a star and could feature prominently in NASCAR's fast-approaching playoffs, he will be in tough for a three-peat at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's Road Course but has three top-ten finishes on road circuits in 2023.
Alongside NASCAR's road course specialists - like A.J. Allmendinger - jumping up the betting odds for the Verizon 200 are a few road course ringers with the Championship credentials to make their case for the race win at Indy.
The Dunkel Index gives you our favored drivers from the Cup Series regulars and places a special spotlight on the road course ringers joining the NASCAR field in Indianapolis in our Verizon 200 betting preview.
Toyota's Road Course Favorites Lead the Way
Three of NASCAR's top road course specialists drive Toyotas and sit atop the Verizon 200 betting odds, and we're featuring two of them in our betting preview.
Martin Truex Jr. - Joe Gibbs Racing
Cup Series Drivers' Championship leader Martin Truex Jr. (269.905) takes center stage as his excellent season continues and is likely to continue at Indianapolis.
Truex Jr. won at Sonoma but has two sub-15th place finishes at Circuit of the Americas (CoTA) and Chicago. However, with three top-three finishes in the last four races and eight top-ten finishes in the last ten races, Truex Jr has to be among your potential picks to win at Indianapolis.
Tyler Reddick - 23XI Racing
23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick (269.534) is one of the NASCAR Cup Series regulars who shines extremely bright on road circuits and could thrive in other racing categories, like IndyCar or potentially Formula 1. Reddick has previous success at Indianapolis' Road Course, winning the 2022 edition of this race.
He added to his road course resume earlier this season with his incredible, weekend-long performance at COTA, capped by winning the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix. However, Reddick needs to improve on his recent performances - only three top-ten finishes in the last nine races - to win back-to-back races at the Brickyard.
Chevrolet's Top Road Course Racers
While Richard Childress Racing's Kyle Busch is always a threat for a top-ten finish, he's been excellent on road circuits in 2023, having two second-place and one fifth-place finish. However, The Dunkel Index has two other Chevrolet drivers in mind who should be in the mix to win in Indianapolis.
Kyle Larson - Hendrick Motorsports
Kyle Larson (276.500) has one top-five finish at Indianapolis and has two top-ten finishes on road circuits this season: eighth in Sonomoa and fourth in Chicago.
Larson's two race wins and eight top-five finishes this season have him among our road course favorites, as he never seems too far from a race win, regardless of the track.
Ross Chastain - Trackhouse Racing
Trackhouse Racing's Ross Chastain (277.408) has quietly put together a good season, having only one win but nine top-ten finishes and five stage wins in 2023. Chastain finished seventh in Michigan, ending a five-race stint without a top-ten finish.
However, Chastain's record on road courses in 2023 makes him a contender to win, finishing fourth at CoTA and tenth at Sonoma.
Road Course Ringers to Keep an Eye on
If the Grant Park 220 was any indication, Championship road course pedigree can take you far, as reigning Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen (Trackhouse) won in Chicago on his NASCAR debut.
Three-time Supercars Champion Van Gisbergen returns to the NASCAR field at the Brickyard and is likely to contend for the race win. He's not the only road-course champion joining the field in Indy, as 2009 Formula 1 World Champion and Project 56 Le Mans driver Jenson Button returns for his third Cup Series race.
Button and Van Gisbergen are joined by two-time WEC Champion and 2021 24 Hour of Le Mans winner Kamui Kobayashi (23 XI Racing)- with Formula 1, Formula E, and Super Formula experience - who makes his NASCAR debut for 23XI Racing-Toyota and hopes to replicate Van Gisbergen's Chicago success.
The Dunkel Index's Pick to Win the NASCAR Cup Series Verizon 200 at the Brickyard
The Dunkel Index is taking 23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick (269.534) to win the Verizon 200.
Keep up with your latest NASCAR news coverage and betting pick previews at The Dunkel Index.
All Media on this page by Associated Press.
