While there will be a full field of drivers in Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway, only four of them are eligible to win the season-long title. Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, William Byron and Christopher Bell are alive heading into the Championship 4, with Sunday's title race set to begin at 3 p.m. ET. Larson is the +170 favorite in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship odds, sitting ahead of Blaney (+280), Byron (+325) and Bell (+450). Their teams will be trying to propel them to victory lane on Sunday, which is why every other driver in the 2023 Cup Series Championship field has double-digit odds.
Byron won a NASCAR-best six races this season, and he finished sixth at this race last year. Should you include him in your 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship bets? You'll want to check out the NASCAR at Phoenix predictions from Micah Roberts, the legendary Vegas bookmaker who pioneered wagering on racing, before locking in any 2023 Cup Series Championship Race picks of your own.
Roberts was the first to offer expanded NASCAR betting and now hands out NASCAR winners to his followers on SportsLine. Roberts is the nation's premier NASCAR betting expert, and his top pick, Hamlin, won the HighPoint.com 400 on July 23 at +500. He also predicted Truex's victory at +650 in the Crayon 301 the previous week and Ross Chastain's triumph at +1000 in the Ally 400 in June. In addition, Roberts correctly called Larson's win at +650 in the NASCAR All-Star Race in May and nailed the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix winner in March by hitting Reddick's victory at +1000.
The expert also correctly predicted Chase Elliott to win the YellaWood 500 at +1200 last October and the Jockey Made in America 250 in 2021, nailed the 2021 Coca-Cola 600 winner by hitting Larson's victory at +550 and was on point by targeting Elliott as the winner of the EchoPark Texas Grand Prix at +160 the previous week. Anyone who has followed his picks has cashed ticket after ticket.
Now, Roberts has analyzed the field and odds for Sunday's NASCAR at Phoenix 2023 race. He's only sharing his winner and leaderboard right here.
2023 Cup Series Championship Race expert predictions
One shocker: Roberts is strongly fading Blaney, even though he is the second favorite at +280. In fact, Roberts says Blaney, who has eight top-10 finishes in his last nine starts at Phoenix, does not crack the top 10.
Blaney led 143 laps and won a stage in the spring race a year ago before pit road problems kept him out of victory lane. He led another 109 laps last fall, finishing as the runner-up to teammate Joey Logano. While he has been in the top-five in four straight races at this track, Roberts has Blaney finishing outside the top 10 this time around.
"I placed him in this spot despite his strong recent past because he didn't do anything at the similar tracks of Richmond and New Hampshire this season," Roberts told SportsLine. See who else to fade here.
Another curveball: Roberts is high on Joey Logano, even though he's a 20-1 longshot in the latest Cup Series Championship Race odds. The 2018 and 2022 Cup Series champion has three top-10 finishes in his last four races, finishing fifth at Martinsville Speedway last week. He won in Phoenix from the pole last fall to win his second Cup Series title, entering that race with 4-1 odds.
Logano was the runner-up in New Hampshire and finished fourth in the second Richmond race earlier this season, and those are both similar tracks to Phoenix. He has three Phoenix victories and eight top-fives in 29 career starts, leading 908 laps. This race is expected to be won by one of the top four drivers who are still alive for the title, but Roberts thinks Logano's price warrants a wager. See who else to back here.
How to make 2023 Cup Series Championship Race picks
Roberts is also high on a longshot to win at a "nice price," with the title contenders not holding any horsepower advantage. This driver is being underestimated by oddsmakers, but anyone who backs him could hit it big. You can only see who it is here.
So who wins the 2023 Cup Series Championship Race, and which longshot stuns NASCAR? Visit SportsLine now to see the projected 2023 NASCAR at Phoenix leaderboard from the nation's premier NASCAR handicapper, and find out.
2023 Cup Series Championship Race odds, field, starting grid
See full NASCAR at Phoenix picks, best bets at SportsLine
Kyle Larson +170
Ryan Blaney +280
William Byron +325
Christopher Bell +450
Kevin Harvick +1300
Joey Logano +2000
Denny Hamlin +2200
Tyler Reddick +2500
Martin Truex Jr. +2800
Chase Elliott +4000
Brad Keselowski +5000
Chase Briscoe +5500
Kyle Busch +6000
Chris Buescher +6500
Ross Chastain +7500
Ty Gibbs +7500
Bubba Wallace +12500
Aric Almirola +12500
Daniel Suarez +20000
Alex Bowman +20000
Ryan Preece +30000
Erik Jones +30000
Austin Dillon +75000
Austin Cindric +100000
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +100000
Carson Hocevar +100000
A.J. Allmendinger +100000
Michael McDowell +150000
Justin Haley +250000
Harrison Burton +250000
Corey Lajoie +300000
Todd Gilliland +500000
Ty Dillon +500000
JJ Yeley +500000
B.J. McLeod +500000
Ryan Newman +500000
