The 2022 Food City Dirt Race Betting Preview /Prop Picks
14 April 2022
The next Cup Series race heads to Bristol, Tennessee at the Bristol Motor Speedway. This marks the second consecutive night race for the promotion and is the third straight short track.
Some favorites are expected to perform well, while one in particular is by far the biggest favorite to succeed. Below you can see which driver has the best opportunity to win on dirt.
Race Details
Date: Sun, Apr 17, 6:00 PM
Watch on: FOX
Track: Bristol Motor Speedway
Betting Overview
The races for Food City have always been on asphalt up until last year. They also changed the race length to 250 laps, so drivers should enjoy the quick turnaround.
In addition, NASCAR has decided to use regular windshields for the cars. On dirt tracks, there will be a lot of moisture created and then mud will sling onto the front of the view where you cannot see out of it.
Many drivers have even outspoken, such as Kyle Larson, who regularly drives on dirt tracks without a windshield. Those particular cars have bars welded into place as a debris screen and they use tear-aways on their helmets so they can continue driving.
Head-to-Head Matchup to Watch
William Byron (170.332) and Chase Elliott (173.197) are key drivers to watch in this race. Both recently led 397 combined in the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 400, before Byron went on to win.
Elliot eventually finished 10th, while Byron continued on to victory. The edge slightly does to Byron for his recent momentum.
Dunkel Index For This Event
The Dunkel Index is showing these top 10 drivers that could win this event. The following 10 are:
- William Byron 170.332
- Alex Bowman 171.171
- Martin Truex Jr. 171.508
- Kevin Harvick 172.212
- Chase Elliott 173.197
- Denny Hamlin 173.442
- Ross Chastain 173.687
- Brad Keselowski 174.190
- Erik Jones 174.812
- Christopher Bell 175.044
*index is subject to changes
Drivers Who Could Win
Christopher Bell (175.044) had a disappointing experience last year at Food City. He spun out Kyle Larson, which knocked them both out of the race even though they were both favorites to win.
William Byron (170.332) recently recorded his second victory of the season, which is the most out of anyone so far. In addition, he finished third at Toyota Owners 400 and 12th at EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix leading up to that victory.
Potential Winning Pick
In a race that is going to be potentially full of surprises, Martin Truex Jr (171.508) is going to be one of them. Despite not winning here last year, Truex actually led most laps with 126.
He eventually placed 19th, but it shows that he could have a chance late if he continues to find a way to steadily climb the race. He is coming off of a fourth place finish at Toyota Owners 400 and a 22nd finish at Blue Emu.
Prop Picks
Matchup: Christopher Bell (+100) OVER Kyle Larson
As the reigning Cup champion, Larson has struggled out of the gate with five finishes of 19th or worse in eight races so far, including 19th last week at Martinsville.
Following a pair of Top 10 finishes, Bell was a disappointing 20th last week at Martinsville. But he raced well at Bristol last year before spinning out on lap 52.
With Bell rated No. 10 in this week’s Dunkel Index and Larson No. 20, take the No. 20 car at plus money (+100) to have the edge in this matchup.
Matchup: Martin Truex Jr. (+120) OVER Joey Logano
After three straight finishes Top 10 finishes, Truex looked primed to dominate last week at one of his favorite tracks in Martinsville but was a non-factor at 22nd.
Logano comes in the defending champ in this event and ran 2nd last week at Martinsville. But he struggled in the two previous races with a 31st at COTA and 17th at Richmond.
With Truex rated No. 3 in this week’s Dunkel Index and Logano No. 17, take the more consistent No. 19 car at plus money (+120) to get the better of Logano.
