Getty Joey Logano has less-than-favorable odds for the Kansas race.
The NASCAR Cup Series drivers head to Kansas Speedway on Sunday, October 24, for the second race of the Round of Eight. The goal is to win and reach the championship four, but multiple drivers below the cutline face less-than-favorable odds to win.
BetMGM released the initial odds for the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway and listed Kyle Larson (9-4) as the favorite to win and reach Victory Lane for the ninth time this season. Denny Hamlin (6-1) had the second-best odds. Joey Logano, on the other hand, has the worst odds of the remaining playoff drivers at 16-1. These numbers also place him behind Kevin Harvick (14-1) and William Byron (12-1).
Logano is no stranger to success at Kansas Speedway during his Cup Series career. He has made 24 starts at the 1.5-mile track and has reached Victory Lane three separate times. His most recent win was the 2020 playoff race that helped him secure his spot in the championship four. Now that he is 43 points below the cutline, he will have to replicate this performance to contend for a title once again.
Martin Truex Jr. Has Slightly Better Odds to Win at Kansas
Winner! Martin Truex Jr. takes the checkered flag at Kansas Speedway.
While Logano has the worst odds to win at Kansas of the playoff drivers, Martin Truex Jr. is not too far ahead of him. The driver of the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry sits at 9-1 entering the race weekend, just ahead of Logano’s teammate, Brad Keselowski (12-1), who sits 15 points below the cutline.
Like Logano, Truex has won at Kansas Speedway during his Cup Series career. He has two trips to Victory Lane, which both occurred during his championship season in 2017. Truex also locked up a second-place finish in the 2018 spring race behind winner Kevin Harvick.
While Truex has not won since the 2017 season, he has a string of top-10 finishes to his name. He finished sixth in the 2019 playoff race, third in the first 2020 race, ninth in the 2020 playoff race, and sixth in the 2021 spring race. Now he will try to win, rebound from a late crash at Texas Motor Speedway, and erase a 22-point deficit.
2 Bubble Drivers Have the Same Odds To Win at Kansas
While Logano, Keselowski, and Truex have less-than-favorable odds to win and reach the championship four, two other drivers sit in a much better position. Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott have the same odds as they fight over the final transfer spot.
The driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry will enter the race with 15-2 odds to reach Victory Lane at Kansas Speedway for the third time in his career. He is currently eight points above the cutline and in possession of the final transfer spot after an eighth-place run at Texas Motor Speedway on October 17.
Elliott also faces 15-2 odds entering the race weekend at Kansas after he finished seventh at Texas. He is eight points below the cutline and will have to leapfrog Busch in order to secure his spot in the championship four and defend his title. Elliott has only won at Kansas one time during his Cup Series career. He captured the 2018 playoff race after leading 44 laps and holding off Busch to reach the Round of Eight.
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