TSport 200 Predictions, Odds & Picks

bettingnews.com

11 August 2023

All three of NASCAR’s top three series are in the Hoosier State this week, with the Craftsman Truck Series kicking things off tonight with the TSport 200 at Lucas Oil Raceway Park in Brownsburg.

The TSport 200, which will take place on the 0.686-mile oval at the venue, is the opener of the Truck Series Playoffs, which will take place over the final seven races of the season.

Following this week’s race, there are two more races before the field is trimmed from ten to eight. Then, the following three races will determine the four drivers who will be in line for the championship at Phoenix Raceway on November 3.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs Schedule

Round of 10

TSport 200 (August 11 at Lucas Oil Raceway Park in Brownsburg, Indiana)
Clean Harbors 175 (August 27 at the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wisconsin)
Kansas Lottery 200 (September 8 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas)

Round of 8

UNOH 200 (September 14 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee)
Love’s RV Stop 250 (September 30 at Talladega Motor Speedway in Lincoln, Alabama)
Baptist Health 200 (October 21 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida)

Championship 4

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race (November 3 at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona)

While most of the attention tonight will be on the drivers who are vying for a championship, the TSport 200 will also mark the stateside return of Shane van Gisbergen.

After winning his NASCAR Cup Series debut at the Chicago street race in June, SVG will look to keep his 100% record going at Sunday’s Verizon 200 at the Brickyard.

First up, however, he will be making his NASCAR oval and Truck Series debut in the TSport 200, representing Niece Motorsports in the #41 Worldwide Express truck.

Ahead of qualifying for the race, the three-time Supercars champion has the shortest odds of any driver not in the playoffs, despite his experience level on ovals and in trucks.

Odds to Win the TSport 200

Odds are via BetUS. Drivers in bold are part of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs Round of 10.

Ty Majeski +300
Zane Smith +350
Corey Heim +400
Carson Hocevar +600
Grant Enfinger +800
Christian Eckes +1000
Ben Rhodes +1800
Shane van Gisbergen +2000
Nick Sanchez +2200
William Sawalich +2500
Layne Riggs +3000
Taylor Gray +4000
Matt DiBenedetto +4000
Stewart Friesen +4000
Matt Crafton +4000

TSport 200 Predictions and Betting Picks

Two weeks ago, the Truck Series regular season wrapped up with the Worldwide Express 250 at Richmond Raceway. Corey Heim locked up the regular season championship with a sixth-place finish, while Carson Hocevar became the first driver this season to win three races.

Ty Majeski was on pole in Richmond, won the first two stages, and led 168 laps of the 250-lap race. But Hocevar made the most of having fresher tires and passed Majeski with just a few laps remaining.

Losing out on the win at the end cost Majeski some valuable additional playoff points, which may well prove costly. But entering the TSport 200, he has been one of the most consistent drivers in the series, along with Heim and reigning Truck Series champion Zane Smith.

Majeski’s runner-up finish was his seventh top-five finish of the season, tying Heim and Hocevar. Smith, who rounded out the top three at Richmond, leads the series with eight.

It should come as no surprise then that those four drivers, three of whom make up the top three in the standings, are the top favorites for the TSport 200.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoff Standings (Entering the TSport 200)

1. Corey Heim – 2030 points
2. Zane Smith – 2022
3. Carson Hocevar – 2021
4. Christian Eckes – 2019
5. Grant Enfinger – 2017
6. Ty Majeski – 2014
7. Ben Rhodes – 2013
8. Nick Sanchez – 2005
9. Matt DiBenedetto – 2002
10. Matt Crafton – 2002

But where does the best betting value lie?

At Bovada, Smith is +100 to finish in the top three and extend his lead in top-five finishes.

Considering that all of the previous eight top fives are top threes and that he has notched three of them in his last four races, this looks like one of the strongest picks on the board no matter where he qualifies. Also, Smith finished third in last year’s TSport 200 after starting 21st.

That race last year was won by Enfinger, who owns wins at Kansas and Gateway (the site of the NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300) this season.

2022 TSport 200 Results

1. Grant Enfinger
2. Ben Rhodes
3. Ty Majeski
4. Stewart Friesen
5. Corey Heim
6. Tyler Ankrum
7. Layne Riggs
8. Ty Majeski
9. Matt Crafton
10. John Hunter Nemechek

Enfinger doesn’t have any other top-three finishes besides those two wins, but he has six top fives and nine top tens in 2023.

In head-to-head matchups at Bovada, Enfinger is -120 to finish better than Christian Eckes. That also looks like a good pick no matter where either driver qualifies, given that Enfinger has finished better than Eckes in six of the past seven races.

Another solid head-to-head matchup pick is Matt DiBenedetto (-115 at Bovada and BetUS) to finish ahead of Taylor Gray.

Gray has acquitted himself well since making the move to the Truck Series and finished third at Pocono. But prior to finishing 17th at Richmond, DiBenedetto had logged six consecutive top-ten finishes, whereas the Pocono result is Gray’s only recent top ten.

DiBenedetto is also -115 at BetUS to finish ahead of Stewart Friesen, who missed out on the playoffs by finishing 32nd and 27th in the final two regular season races. Friesen has five top-four finishes this season, but DiBenedetto has finished better than him in ten races.

Last but certainly not least, who is this week’s race winner pick? Majeski got the nod at Richmond and just missed out, but with how well he has performed throughout the season, it is worth it to go back to the well here.

Where to Bet on NASCAR

Many of the top sports betting sites offer a variety of NASCAR betting odds. Throughout the season, you can bet on races like the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600, and others.

Along with being able to bet on the winner of each Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and/or Truck Series race, sportsbooks like Bovada and BetUS offer finishing position odds (top 3, top 5, and/or top 10).

Also, odds on who will finish at the top of the championship standings are available at many reputable sportsbooks.

In addition to Bovada and BetUS, here are some of the sites that we recommend if you are interested in NASCAR betting: