So we’re down to the last four drivers! Yes, this Sunday, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, and Martin Truex Jr will all battle it out for the Nascar Cup Series Championship 2021.
The final race takes place at the legendary Phoenix Raceway in Arizona, where 312 laps will decide who the champion driver is for 2021.
The top online vegas sportsbooks make Kyle Larson the Nascar betting favorite to win the title. He is +170 with BetUS to claim – if successful – the first Cup Series title of his career.
| 2021 Nascar Cup Series Betting |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Kyle Larson | +170 | +165 |
| Chase Elliott | +250 | +250 |
| Denny Hamlin | +275 | +275 |
| Martin Truex Jr | +350 | +350 |
Standing in Larson’s way is his teammate and defending champion, Chase Elliott. The Hendrick Motorsports driver won his only Cup Series title to date last year.
The sportsbooks make Elliott the second favorite at +250. Elliott is closely followed by the Joe Gibbs Racing duo of Denny Hamlin at +275 and Martin Truex Jr at +350.
The Phoenix Raceway track is a 42,000 capacity track situated in Avondale, close to Phoenix in Arizona.
The course was only awarded the Nascar championship weekend events in 2020, so it’s still in its infancy as a venue for the final.
Phoenix also hosts a regular-season Nascar race, meaning the drivers are familiar with the course ahead of the Cup Series Championship race.
The track is 1-mile long and is a traditional oval-shaped course, one of the shorter tracks on the Nascar circuit.
Quite simply, of the four drivers that qualified for the final, whoever finishes highest in the race will win the 2021 Nascar Cup Series Championship.
Now let’s have a look at the four drivers.
Sometimes in sport, the best person or team doesn’t always take the victory. Especially in events decided on the day.
Throughout the 2021 season, I think it’s fair to say Kyle Larson has been by far the best Nascar driver on the circuit, even Denny Hamlin said he deserves to be the champion.
Larson has won nine races this season. To put that into perspective, the next best is four race wins from Martin Truex Jr and Alex Bowman.
In fact, the other three drivers competing for the championship title haven’t won nine races this season between them. They have only won a combined total of eight races!
This just shows how dominant Larson has been and why it will be one of those unfair results that only sport can throw up if he fails to win on Sunday.
Larson’s dominance is also why the vegas online sportsbooks make him their favorite to win the championship.
He is +170 to win the title on Sunday with BetUS, and +165 with BetOnline.
Also a member of the Hendrick Sports team, Chase Elliott is the defending Nascar Series Cup champion, having won his first title at the age of 24 last year.
For the majority of the regular season, Elliott has been overshadowed by his Hendrick teammate, Kyle Larson.
But this is the defending champion’s chance to step into the limelight and win back-to-back championships.
Can he do it? I’m not so sure, but he clearly has the pedigree having won the championship last season, and he will be keen to show that last season wasn’t a one-off.
Just a few weeks short of his 26th birthday, Chase Elliott will have the chance to come good again, but for now, he looks like he will have to play second fiddle to Larson.
The importance of hanging in there won’t be lost on Elliott or his team, though. Even if Larson dominates the race, things can go wrong. So Elliott will need to stay focused to make sure he’s ready for any eventuality.
To win the title, Elliott is the second favorite at +250.
Onto the Joe Gibbs Racing drivers, and although he’s only had two stage wins this season, Hamlin is a major threat to Larson and the Hendrick team.
Why? You may ask. Well, look at the total laps led this season. Hamlin has led for 1502, while Larson has led for a ridiculous 2474.
Even though Hamlin is miles behind Larson, he is miles ahead of anybody else.
No one else has led for more than one thousand laps. The next highest is Chase Elliott on 858.
When it comes to laps led, Larson and Hamlin are out on their own. Hamlin is also the only one of the four who hasn’t failed to finish a race this season.
All the others have failed to finish on two occasions.
Hamlin has never won the title before but is a threat, and at +275 can’t be written off.
The veteran driver has four race wins this season and won the Nascar Cup Series in 2017.
Of the four drivers competing this year, Truex Jr is one of only two to have won the title before.
Truex Jr is that driver who sneaked into the qualifying position at the last minute.
A four-time winner on the circuit this season, Truex Jr is that dark horse who can’t be taken lightly.
He is the outsider of the four, and at odds of +350 with BetOnline is appealing to me. Truex Jr could be worth a small wager as a cover bet.
All four of the drivers have a chance, and all are well capable of winning the championship – as two already have.
But for his sheer brilliance this season, there can only be one pick to win the championship.
As I alluded to earlier, the best person might not always win on the day. But on this occasion, I think justice will be done and Kyle Larson is my pick to win the Nascar Cup Series 2021.
