The first of the two races to be held at the 1.5-mile racetrack in Nevada, Las Vegas, or in short, the Pennzoil 400 is all set to roll out on March 3 with the green flag dropping at 3:30 pm ET. With so much hype going on around the upcoming event, NASCAR has revealed the drivers who could win it and occupy the third spot in the round of 16 of the playoffs as per the odds.
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The first driver is none other than Kyle “Yung Money” Larson. And for good reason. The Elk Grove native started his stint with Hendrick Motorsports in 2021 and right in that year, he won the Pennzoil 400. He also has a top-3 finish each in the following year and also in last year’s race in March. The biggest achievement on this track is perhaps his win from last year. Despite two on-track incidents, the Hendrick Motorsports icon took a dominant victory at the South Point 400, leading 133 laps of the 267-lap-long event. And with that, he became the first driver to enter the Championship 4.
The second-most favorite driver to win is Larson’s teammate, William Byron. The #24 driver has a top 5 finish at Las Vegas back in 2022, which he backed up with a win last year in March, where he led a race-high 176 of the 271-lap race. The third driver to have the highest chances to bag the win is Denny Hamlin. Larson’s golf buddy has a pair of top-10 finishes at LVMS, in the last two seasons, with one of them being a top 5.
Who else could seal the deal at Las Vegas?
Let’s take a look at the other drivers who have made it to the top 10 best drivers to win this year’s Pennzoil 400, shall we?
Ryan Blaney
The reigning Cup champion registered a 9-1 opening odds to win this year’s first race at the Nevadan oval.
Christopher Bell
Bell has always been great with his speed. Can he flaunt his speed that had him win six poles last season? Only time will tell. Nevertheless, his opening odds to win is 9-1.
Tyler Reddick
Despite being quite young, Reddick is one of the biggest threats to everyone on the grid. This 23XI Racing driver holds the winning odds of 10-1.
Martin Truex Jr.
Next comes the 2017 Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr. He has not been luck’s favorite in last year’s playoffs. But that doesn’t change the fact that he has been the regular season champion on points and is a formidable force when he leads laps. For this year’s Las Vegas Motor Speedway race 1, his opening odds to win is 10-1, the same as Tyler Reddick.
Kyle Busch
Rowdy won three races last year, which was also his first season with his new team Richard Childress Racing. However, like Truex, the playoff rumble wasn’t too nice to the Chevy star. Nevertheless, his odds of winning the third race of the season is 12-1.
Chase Elliott
Of all the drivers who are expected to make a breakthrough this year, perhaps this man makes the top of the list. The Dawsonville native has a winning chance of 14-1 this year. Can he find his winning momentum back? Let’s wait and watch.
Ross Chastain
Last but definitely not the least, it’s the Melonman. Be it his ‘Hail Mary’ move from Martinsville or be it last year’s Grand finale race win at Phoenix, Chastain is known for pulling the most unexpected moves at the most unexpected times. Can he do it this year at Las Vegas? Maybe, or maybe not. However, his opening odds to win is a solid 15-1.
