This Sunday the NASCAR Cup Series visits Charlotte Motor Speedway for the 2024 Coca-Cola 600. Kyle Larson (+425) is the betting favorite. But with the points leader doubling up at the Indy 500 this weekend, history is against him. In our latest NASCAR betting picks, we tell you if Larson is worth risking to win the big race.
- What: Coca-Cola 600
- Where: Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina
- When: Sunday, May 26th, 2024
- Time: 6 pm ET
- Laps: 400
- Distance: 600 Miles
The Big Picture
This is the weekend that auto racing fans look forward to all season. In NASCAR, we have the Coca-Cola 600, in F1, it’s the Monaco Grand Prix, and this is also the weekend of the Indianapolis 500.
The Coca-Cola 600 from Charlotte is the longest race on the NASCAR roster and also one of the most unique. Starting just after 6 pm ET, the race begins in daylight, but as day turns to night, conditions change, with the drivers having to adjust to dusk and then later night conditions.
Whoever handles the conditions the best tends to win the race.
In 2023, Ryan Blaney was the winner. The Team Penske driver led the race for 163 laps, holding off the challenge of the second-placed William Byron and Martin Truex Jr. in third. Byron also started the race in Pole Position.
This season, Kyle Larson comes into the race as the points leader. Larson was fourth in last Sunday’s All-Star Race. Before that, he was 34th at the Goodyear, won AdventHealth, and was second at the Wurth 400.
The 2021 Cup Series Champion looks to be the man to beat in 2024. But Larson will have his work cut out this weekend as he is also competing in Indianapolis on the same day, where he is +700 to win the Indy 500.
Logano finally gets a win this season
Last Sunday, the 2024 All-Star Race was won by Joey Logano. The victory gave Logano his first win of the season. Sadly for the Penske driver, there were no points on offer for passing the checkered flag first, as it was merely an exhibition race.
And speaking of points, there may have been none on offer for the winner of the race, but the judges’ scorecards might have been needed to decide who won the boxing showdown between Rick Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch that took place after the on-track action.
After crashing out on lap two, Stenhouse Jr. was forced to sit and watch the remaining 198 laps. The long wait gave the JTG Daugherty Racing driver plenty of time to stew over what had happened.
The upshot was Stenhouse Jr. threw a couple of punches at Busch, leading to a melee between the two teams.
Another angle of the confrontation after the race. pic.twitter.com/JCgSZhEzwa
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 20, 2024
Judging by the standard of the punches thrown by both men, Stenhouse vs. Busch 2 isn’t likely to make it onto the undercard of the Fury vs Usyk rematch. All joking aside, we are not endorsing this kind of behavior. But it all adds to the hype ahead of this Sunday’s race in Charlotte.
Betting to win the 2024 Coca-Cola 600
Kyle Larson is always a popular bet on oval circuits. And it’s the same again this weekend.
The top sportsbooks make Larson their +425 betting favorite to win the Coca-Cola 600. Second in the betting is also a usual suspect, Denny Hamlin, at +600.
Charlotte oval-loving Tyler Reddick is the third favorite to win at +800. Reddick has had four top-10 finishes here in five starts. He has also performed well on 1.5-mile tracks elsewhere this season, with a second-place finish in Vegas and a fourth-place in Texas.
More Coca-Cola 600 betting is on our NASCAR odds table. All our odds are from the best sites for motorsports betting. Before you read our betting picks to win in Charlotte, check out the best NASCAR betting sites and our guide on how to bet on NASCAR.
2024 Coca-Cola 600 Betting Picks and Predictions
Hendrick is the most successful team in the history of the Coca-Cola 600.
The team has won this race 12 times, with their most recent victory coming courtesy of Kyle Larson’s win in 2021. A word of caution, though. Larson’s victory is the only time Hendrick has won here since Jimmy Johnson’s last victory in 2014.
Of the current drivers, only Martin Truex Jr. has won this race more than once. His two wins came in 2016 and 2019. But his form has dwindled in recent weeks.
With the bigger picture in mind, we are going to swerve Kyle Larson this weekend. It will be astonishing if he wins one of the races, never mind the two. But at the same time, if anyone can do it, Larson can. But at +425, Larson is not a good value bet.
Instead, we’re looking at his main rival, Denny Hamlin. Hamlin has a solid record in 600-mile races, and although we might have backed Larson to beat him under normal circumstances, these are not normal circumstances.
Our first pick is for Denny Hamlin to win the Coca-Cola 600.
Second, we think William Byron is due a victory. Byron had three pole positions here and was the runner-up 12 months ago. Byron is +1000 to win and +325 to finish on the podium. We would be happy to bet on either.
But for our betting pick, we are going for William Byron to finish in the top three.
See below our list of the best online sportsbooks in 2024 and choose the one that suits you best:
