This week the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. Atlanta is known for high speeds, tire wear, and white knuckle driving due to the worn track surface. WAIT! All of that has changed! Soon after the Checkered Flag flew at the ATL Speedway last season construction began on a massive overhaul. So toss out all of your notes from years past including Kevin Harvick as being the favorite at Atlanta!
This weekend’s favorite drivers to win outright are Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson. Both come in at +1000 according to oddsmakers. Harvick is at +1400, not far away from Blaney and Larson, but noticeably not riding the top.
The new look for Atlanta includes the new surface, higher banking in the turns, and a narrowed front tri- oval. It’s been compared to a bigger and faster version of Bristol by some fans! The new look to the track, combined with the new NextGen cars, and how drivers have fared this season seems to be one of the main factors oddsmakers at looking to.
But, in a weird twist – they are giving more consideration to Fords this week than we’ve seen in the last few races. This week a Ford driver, Blaney, is a top favorite with a Chevrolet and a few Toyota drivers.
Here are the favorites to win the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 outright:
Ryan Blaney +1000
Kyle Larson +1000
Joey Logano +1200
Denny Hamlin +1200
Chase Elliott +1200
Kyle Busch +1200
2022 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 Preview
Time: Sunday, March 20 – 3:00 PM Eastern
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway / Hampton, Georgia
Type: 1.54-mile banked Quad-Oval
Race Distance: 325 laps / 500.5 miles (805.476 km)
Defending race winner: Ryan Blaney – Spring Race/Fold of Honor
Defending track winner: Kurt Busch – Fall Race
TV/Radio: Fox / MRN
2022 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 Predictions
Ryan Blaney +1000
Even with the changes to Atlanta, I think the Ford’s are due a win. Ryan Blaney has been one of the best Ford drivers this season and that’s taking into consideration a few rough outings. He started the season with a 4th place run at Daytona followed by an 18th place finish at Fontana. Then he crashed the following week at Las Vegas before finishing 4th last week at Phoenix. During the Las Vegas race where his day ended with the crash, he was still one of the leaders and one of the strongest cars on the track.
Kevin Harvick +1400
This may be a sentimental pick which I know I should not do. But it seems that Kevin Harvick is due a win and Atlanta has been kind to him over the years. He seems to be in the battle for the ATL win every season and the fact that other Fords are a few of the favorites is a plus for me. In his last ten Atlanta races, he’s won twice and finished 10th or better nine times. In the past, he’s had issues with pit stops and fuel towards the end. Avoid those issues, learn the new track on the run, win the milage contest, and Harvick’s an ATL winner again.
Kurt Busch +2000
Kurt Busch is the defending track winner and he’s had a slew of top ten finishes at Atlanta. Busch is with a new team this season and jumped from Chevrolet to Toyota with 23Xl Racing. He’s now teammates with Bubba Wallace. So far this season, Busch has never finished outside of 19th place and he’s finished 13th or better in three of four races this season.
Others to Consider: I like Kyle Larson (+1000) as he has looked strong at Atlanta in the past. But he’s been knocked out of two of the four races of the 2022 season including one expired engine. The only reason he didn’t win was due to poor decisions by his team when it came to fuel mileage. Martin Truex Jr. (+1600) is in the same situation as Kevin Harvick in my opinion. He would have been listed above if he had a few better runs this year as he has only one top ten finish to date this season.
Statistics to Track for NASCAR Handicappers
2022 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 Betting Lines
Ryan Blaney +1000
Kyle Larson +1000
Joey Logano +1200
Denny Hamlin +1200
Chase Elliott +1200
Kyle Busch +1200
Alex Bowman +1400
William Byron +1400
Kevin Harvick +1400
Tyler Reddick +1600
Martin Truex Jr +1600
Chase Briscoe +1800
Austin Cindric +2000
Kurt Busch +2000
Brad Keselowski +2000
Darrell Wallace Jr. +2200
Aric Almirola +2500
Ross Chastain +2500
Austin Dillon +3000
Christopher Bell +3500
Ricky Stenhouse Jr +4000
Erik Jones +4500
Daniel Suarez +5000
Michael McDowell +6000
Chris Buescher +6000
Justin Haley +8000
Cole Custer +8000
Harrison Burton +9000
Ty Dillon +9000
Noah Gragson +9000
Todd Gilliland +10000
Corey Lajoie +17500
David Ragan +25000
Cody Ware +30000
Greg Biffle +30000
BJ McLeod +50000
Josh Bilicki +50000
