USATSI

Kyle Busch recorded three victories last season, his highest total in the NASCAR Cup Series since notching five in 2019. The two-time series champion will try to register his first win this year in the 2024 Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday. Busch, who has posted only two top-five finishes in 14 starts this campaign, captured the checkered flag in this race last year after settling for runner-up in the first Cup Series event at the track in 2022. The 39-year-old also made three starts at the venue also known as Gateway Motorsports Park while competing in the Xfinity Series and was eighth or better in all three, including a victory in 2009.

Busch is 14-1 and Kyle Larson is the 11-2 favorite in the 2024 Enjoy Illinois 300 odds. Denny Hamlin is 6-1 and reigning Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney is 8-1. William Byron and Martin Truex Jr. round out the top 2024 NASCAR at Gateway contenders at 9-1. Sunday's race is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. ET. Before making any 2024 Enjoy Illinois 300 picks or NASCAR predictions, you need to see what NASCAR insider Steven Taranto has to say.

Taranto, who moonlights as a sim racer and has 20 career wins in iRacing, is the lead NASCAR writer for CBSSports.com, and he chronicles stock car racing with the same thoroughness and passion that he's had since becoming a full-time race fan in 2001. He has an annual NASCAR medial credential and also publishes a popular weekly NASCAR predictions column, famously calling Chastain and Daniel Suarez's breakthrough wins in 2022.

Taranto is off to a red-hot start for SportsLine in 2024, nailing eight winners in his best bets already, including 16-1 longshot Byron at the Daytona 500 and 14-1 longshot Chase Elliott at Texas three weeks ago. Anyone following his NASCAR picks has seen some huge returns.

Now, Taranto has analyzed the starting lineup and odds for Sunday's Enjoy Illinois 300. He's sharing his best bets at SportsLine.

2024 Enjoy Illinois 300 expert picks

For the 2024 Enjoy Illinois 300, Taranto is high on Christopher Bell, even though he's a longshot at 10-1. After posting just one top-10 finish in his previous six starts, the 29-year-old native of Oklahoma made his way to Victory Lane last weekend in the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. It was the second win of the NASCAR Cup Series season for Bell, tying him with Kyle Larson for second-most behind William Byron and Denny Hamlin (three each).

Prior to his recent slump, Bell reeled off four consecutive top-10 finishes, a stretch that began with a victory at Phoenix on March 10. He followed with a 10th-place showing at Bristol and was runner-up at the Circuit of the Americas before finishing sixth at Richmond. Bell was 11th in this race last year after a ninth-place performance in 2022 and captured the checkered flag at Gateway in 2016 while competing in the Truck Series.

Another surprise: Taranto is fading Tyler Reddick, even though he is among the leaders this season with eight top-10 finishes. The 28-year-old Californian opened the 2024 Cup Series season with a pair of disappointing performances but rebounded by posting top-10 finishes in seven of his next eight starts. He reeled off five in a row from March 24 to April 21, a streak that concluded with a victory at Talladega.

Reddick ended a three-start slump by finishing fourth at Charlotte last weekend, but has not fared well at Gateway over his career. He finished 16th in the first Cup Series race at the track two seasons ago and crashed out of last year's event. Reddick made three starts there while driving in the Truck Series and posted just one top-10 finish, an eighth-place in 2015. See what other NASCAR picks he likes at SportsLine.

How to make 2024 Enjoy Illinois 300 predictions

Taranto has also identified four other drivers in his 2024 NASCAR at Gateway best bets. He's also high on a huge NASCAR longshot who's going off with triple-digit odds. You can only see who they are here.

So who wins the Enjoy Illinois 300 2024, and which massive longshot could stun NASCAR? Visit SportsLine now to see the 2024 NASCAR at Gateway picks and best bets from a NASCAR insider who has already nailed a colossal eight winners this year, and find out.

2024 Enjoy Illinois 300 odds

See full NASCAR at Gateway picks at SportsLine

Kyle Larson 11-2
Denny Hamlin 6-1
Ryan Blaney 8-1
William Byron 9-1
Martin Truex Jr. 9-1
Christopher Bell 10-1
Ty Gibbs 11-1
Brad Keselowski 11-1
Tyler Reddick 11-1
Joey Logano 12-1
Kyle Busch 14-1
Chase Elliott 15-1
Chris Buescher 16-1
Ross Chastain 22-1
Bubba Wallace 35-1
Alex Bowman 40-1
Josh Berry 50-1
Chase Briscoe 60-1
Noah Gragson 60-1
Daniel Suarez 100-1
Erik Jones 150-1
Austin Cindric 200-1
Austin Dillon 200-1
Michael McDowell 200-1
Carson Hocevar 250-1
Ryan Preece 250-1
Todd Gilliland 350-1
Justin Haley 400-1
Corey LaJoie 400-1
John Hunter Nemechek 750-1
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 750-1
Harrison Burton 1000-1
Zane Smith 1000-1
Daniel Hemric 1500-1
Kaz Grala 2500-1
Derek Kraus 2500-1