NASCAR Picks: Your Weekly Winning Edge

Handicapping Membership

Get Free Trial

For the first full weekend of June, NASCAR will make its annual trip to the intermediate-track of Michigan International Speedway. However, this weekend’s events will only be for the Cup Series and Truck Series. The Xfinity Series will be on hiatus until June 14.

The Craftsman Truck Series will kick off the Michigan action on Saturday, June 7, with the longest race name ever – DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Powered By Precision Vehicle Logistics at Michigan. The event begins at 12pm ET on FOX.

As usual, the Cup Series will close out the weekend on Sunday, June 8, with the Firekeepers Casino 400. This event begins at 2pm ET and can be seen streaming live on Amazon Prime.

If you miss any of these Michigan races, we’ve got you covered with our weekly NASCAR results. So, without any further delay, pull those seatbelts down tight and strap in as we take a look at some of our best NASCAR picks this week.

NASCAR Picks Today

NASCAR Cup Series Picks This Week

• Race: Firekeepers Casino 400
• Race #: 15^th of the season
• Date: June 8
• Where: Michigan International Speedway

Last weekend, the Cup Series sang the right note in Nashville with the Cracker Barrel 400.

Despite two subpar weeks in a row, Kyle Larson is one of the NASCAR betting favorites for this weekend’s Michigan race. He also remains the odds-on favorite to win the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

This weekend’s race is held at Ford’s home track, so you know that the Ford drivers will bring something extra special for Sunday’s Cup event.

Will Ford win their seventh Firekeepers Casino 400 out of the last eight years or will Chevy make it two in a row?

Top Chevrolet Driver at Michigan

• Kyle Larson (+180)
• William Byron (+325)
• Chase Elliott (+600)
• Carson Hocevar (+600)
• Ross Chastain (+700)
• Kyle Busch (+900)
• Alex Bowman (+1200)

William Byron (+325) has been solid all season long, and I definitely see a Top 10 result this weekend. But three Top 10s in 10 starts doesn’t give me confidence in the #24 car finishing as the best placed Chevy.

Byron’s teammate Alex Bowman (+1200) has been wildly incontinent this season. At Michigan, he has a 24.3 average finish in 15 starts. That’s a hard pass for me.

Ross Chastain (+700) has a worse average finish at 25.9, and just one Top 10 in seven starts. He has a better shot in the Truck race this weekend.

Carson Hocevar (+600) is one of my favorite drivers due to his on-track attitude. It’s a throwback to the good old days. Yet, Hocevar will have a hard time beating out the favorites in this prop bet on Sunday.

Kyle Busch (+900) is a sleeper for this prop bet and the race itself. He has 10 Top 10s in the last 12 MIS races. However, he also has two DNFs in the last three starts for this race. Too much uncertainty for me to ride with “Rowdy” as the Top Chevy.

Chase Elliott (+600) has 10 Top 10s in 14 starts at Michigan and is one of the most consistent drivers on the season. Unfortunately, he hasn’t won at this race as of yet. I do think he offers the best value for this prop and wouldn’t blame you for taking a flier on the #9 car.

Kyle Larson (+180) has won this race twice and had three Top 5s in the last five MIS races. He was involved in a crash last year, which ended his day after being the best car in the first half of the race.

I see the #5 making his way back to the top of the ladder as the best Chevy at Michigan on Sunday.

Bet: Kyle Larson (+180)

Top Ford Driver at Michigan

• Ryan Blaney (+150)
• Joey Logano (+300)
• Chris Buescher (+350)
• Brad Keselowski (+550)
• Josh Berry (+550)
• Ryan Preece (+1400)
• Austin Cindric (+2200)

Josh Berry (+550) finished 22^nd in his lone Michigan Cup Series race. I don’t see a marked improvement this weekend. Well, not enough to finish as the Top Ford.

Ryan Preece (+1400) is a sleeper bet this weekend. A longshot pick, as well. He was 11^th in this race last year. Although I have more confidence in other Ford drivers this weekend, Preece is talented enough to pull off the upset. I’m just not going to bet that it happens.

Austin Cindric (+2200) has won this season, but never at Michigan in his career. In fact, he has a 25.6 average finish in three MIS starts and has yet to crack the Top 10. Hard pass on Cindric.

Brad Keselowski (+550) has had plenty of success at Michigan in his career including 15 Top 10s in 27 starts. His 12.0 average finish is third best among full-time Cup Series drivers. Unfortunately, he’s never won this race and I don’t see Keselowski outdueling his former Penske teammates.

Chris Buescher (+350) might have only three Top 10s in 14 starts at Michigan, but he won this race in 2023, and has the skills to win it again this year. Yet, I like the next two drivers slightly better.

Joey Logano (+300) has three wins at this track and 18 Top 10s in 28 starts. He offers better value than his teammate, but two DNFs in the last four MIS races including last year, has me taking Blaney’s side.

Ryan Blaney (+150) just won the Cracker Barrel 400 and I see the #12 car continuing its momentum into this weekend with at least a Top 5 finish and the best placing for a Ford.

Bet: Ryan Blaney (+150)

Top Toyota Driver at Michigan

• Denny Hamlin (+150)
• Tyler Reddick (+250)
• Christopher Bell (+450)
• Chase Briscoe (+700)
• Bubba Wallace (+800)
• Ty Gibbs (+1600)

Chase Briscoe (+700) has never cracked the Top 10 in four MIS starts and has a 23.3 average finish. I would skip JGR’s newest addition for this weekend’s race.

Bubba Wallace (+800) finished 2^nd in this race two years ago, but has a 22.0 average finish since then. This is not the weekend that Wallace outduels drivers like Hamlin.

Ty Gibbs (+1600) is the biggest sleeper for this prop bet and I would take him over the next two drivers. Gibbs has three Top 11 finishes in his three starts at this track. He also leads all full-time Cup drivers with an 8.0 average finish.

Christopher Bell (+450) has a 19.5 average finish at Michigan and is without a Top 10 result in six Cup starts at this track. He’ll be lucky to finish in the Top 10 this Sunday, and that won’t be good enough for this prop bet.

Tyler Reddick (+250) won this race last year. Unfortunately, I don’t see the 23XI driver repeating that success. In his five MIS starts prior to last year’s victory, Reddick had a 26.0 average finish. That’s a red flag for me and my wallet.

Denny Hamlin (+150) is my choice this weekend. Partly due to default as I like his chances more than Gibbs, but also due to his success the last handful of years. Although he hasn’t won since 2011, Hamlin has seven consecutive Top 9 results including four Top 3s over that span.

He was close to winning last weekend, and I think the #11 car will be in victory lane sooner than later. I like Hamlin as the Top Toyota this Sunday.

Bet: Denny Hamlin (+150)

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Picks This Week

• Race: DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Powered By Precision Vehicle Logistics at Michigan
• Race #: 13^th of the season
• Date: June 7
• Where: Michigan International Speedway

The Craftsman Truck Series will fill in for the Xfinity Series this weekend as it moves to Saturday afternoon, instead of its normal Friday night slot.

Last weekend, we saw Rajah Caruth fend off Corey Heim to pick up his first win of the season. However, Heim remains the large betting favorite to win the Truck Series Championship.

It should be noted that the Truck Series has not raced at Michigan International Speedway since 2020. So, some of these drivers have yet, to compile results for this venue in the Truck Series.

Can Heim win for the 5^th time this season or will we get another first-time winner this season?

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Odds

• Corey Heim (+140)
• Carson Hocevar (+450)
• Ross Chastain (+450)
• Layne Riggs (+800)
• Corey Lajoie (+1000)
• Grant Enfinger (+1800)
• Chandler Smith (+1800)
• Rajah Caruth (+2000)
• Kaden Honeycutt (+2000)
• Ty Majeski (+2500)
• Daniel Hemric (+2500)
• Tyler Ankrum (+3300)
• Jake Carcia (+5000)
• Ben Rhodes (+5000)

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Favorites

Corey Heim (+140) has yet to race at Michigan in the Truck Series. Yet, the top driver has won 1/3^rd of the races so far this season and is the clear-cut favorite to win on Saturday. He finished 2^nd last weekend in Nashville and has plenty of momentum coming into this Saturday’s race.

Carson Hocevar (+450) was 10^th in the Cup Series Michigan race last year and is making his third Truck start of the season. He won in his last Truck appearance, which came in Kansas last month. Hocevar is definitely a real threat to win on Saturday.

Ross Chastain (+450) has yet to crack the Top 10 in his two Truck Series starts at this venue. However, Chastain has a 6^th and a 2^nd in his two Truck appearances this season. His runner-up came at Charlotte two weeks ago. As long as he stays out of trouble, and has a decent truck, Chastain could compete for a checkered flag this weekend.

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Betting Value

Layne Riggs (+800) will make his first Michigan start this weekend. He’s scored three straight Top 4 finishes and has come close to picking up his first checkered flag of the year. Although, I do see him winning this season, I don’t believe it will be this weekend. But another Top 5 finish looks very doable.

Grant Enfinger (+1800) has four Top 10s in five MIS starts and a 12.6 average finish. He also sits 5^th in the standings with nine Top 10s in 12 races so far. I see another Top 10 this weekend and possibly even flirt with a Top 5 result.

Tyler Ankrum (+3300) finished 4^th the last time that the Truck Series races at Michigan. He offers value with his race winning odds, but is more suitable for a Top 5 or Top 10 wager.

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Longhshot

Ben Rhodes (+5000) sits 13^th in the driver standings and has four Top 10s in 12 races. However, at Michigan, Rhodes has two Top 10s and four Top 11s in five starts. He sports an 11.4 average finish, which puts him squarely in the longshot category and possibly even a flier on his Top 10 odds.

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Predictions

I see this race coming down to Heim, Hocevar, Chastain and possibly Riggs. I would love to see Hocevar and Riggs bump and bang each other for the final laps with one of them winning or another driver stealing the checkered flag due those two drivers wrecking each other.

With that said, Heim has never won at this track and that’s more than enough motivation to win on Saturday. Plus, he has eight Top 3 finishes including two races in a row.

As much as I would like to see Hocevar win, Heim is the most impressive driver in the Truck Series and he will back up that statement with a victory on Saturday.

Bet: Corey Heim (+140)

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Top 5 Finish

• Corey Heim (-600)
• Carson Hocevar (-160)
• Ross Chastain (-160)
• Layne Riggs (+100)
• Corey Lajoie (+140)
• Chandler Smith (+225)
• Grant Enfinger (+275)
• Rajah Caruth (+300)

I feel like getting a little greedy with this prop bet by taking a swing at a 7X payout. Yes, I’m looking at you Ben Rhodes and your +750 odds to finish in the Top 5.

Rhodes is my longshot pick this week, and I couldn’t resist these long odds to finish in the Top 5. As you saw above, Rhodes has solid numbers at Michigan.

Four out of his five MIS starts have resulted in finishing 11^th or higher. With a little luck, and lack of experience by some of the other drivers, I think that Rhodes could sneak into the Top 5 this weekend. This pick warrants only a small flier and is risky.

Bet: Ben Rhodes (+750)

DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 Head-To-Head Matchup

• Daniel Hemric (-200)
• Jake Garcia (+160)

Jake Garcia has zero experience at MIS, so we can’t compare how these two drivers have fared in Michigan races. However, we can look at their seasons to date. And, when doing so, it’s clear who the better driver is.

On the season, Jake Garcia sits 8^th in the standings, while Daniel Hemric sits 2^nd overall. Hemric has more wins, Top 5s, and Top 10s than Garcia does.

Additionally, Hemric (7.2) has a better average finish than Garcia (10.8) over the first half of the season so far.

When looking at their last four races, Garcia has a 10.5 average finish with just one Top 10 over that span. Hemric has a 6.75 average finish with two Top 5s and all four starts resulting in a Top 10 finish.

I think Hemric is a sleeper to win the championship this year. Yet, I think he’s a massive favorite to win this head-to-head Truck Series matchup in Michigan this weekend.

Bet: Daniel Hemric (-200)