After heading to the dirt for the first time in decades, the NASCAR Cup Series moves to the first paved short track of 2021, as the Martinsville Speedway is set to host the Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 on Saturday. Martinsville is a difficult track, featuring curbs at the apron, low banking and a paper clip design. The younger drivers in NASCAR have a difficult time taking control here; the last “newbie” to win here was Morgan Shepherd, who won here in 1981 in just his 15th start in the Cup Series, although he was 40 years old at the time. So far this season, seven different drivers have won the first seven races. Will it become eight in eight?
Check out the NASCAR betting odds along with our thoughts about some of the contenders.
NASCAR News: Cup Series Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 Preview
| Driver | Odds |
| Martin Truex Jr | +350 |
| Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott | +500 |
| Joey Logano | +700 |
| Denny Hamlin | +800 |
| Kyle Busch | +1000 |
| Kyle Larson, Kevin Harvick | +1800 |
| Kurt Busch | +3000 |
| Alex Bowman, William Byron | +4000 |
| Matt DiBenedetto, Aric Almirola, Christopher Bell, Bubba Wallace | +6000 |
| Ryan Newman, Chris Buescher, Austin Dillon, Cole Custer, Tyler Reddick | +20000 |
| Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Ross Chastain, Chase Briscoe | +30000 |
| Michael McDowell, Ryan Preece | +100000 |
| Justin Haley, Anthony Alfredo | +500000 |
| Corey LaJoie, Quin Houff, B.J. McLeod, J.J. Yeley, Cody Ware, Josh Bilicki, James Davison | +1000000 |
Martin Truex Jr is the favorite for a reason, as he has four top-five finishes in four of his last six starts at Martinsville. If he hadn’t had a loose wheel in the waning minutes of the fall 2020 race here, he could very easily have a three-race winning streak here.
Chase Elliott had his championship season saved at Martinsville in the fall race last year, after a bizarre ruling on pit road nullified a penalty in Stage 3 and kept his chances alive. He did have the best car that day — but without that ruling and Truex’s bum wheel, it’s unlikely Elliott would have won. Can he win more legitimately this time?
Joey Logano does better here in nighttime races — and this is slotted as a nighttime race, weather permitting. He got 61 points here in the fall race — but he got 128 points in the spring race, which was an evening affair.
Ryan Blaney ended up a lap down in the early going after missing the spring setup, but he still rallied to finish second a year ago. He also came in second at the fall 2020 race. After a while, knocking on the door should pay off with a victory.
Brad Keselowski has top-five finishes in five straight Martinsville races. However, the other two Team Penske drivers have done better than he have in outcomes here, so he might not quite be worth the low value that he’s getting.
Denny Hamlin struggled here last spring because of the unique pit strategies that his competitors used, keeping wave arounds from happening. So this time, he and the rest of his team need to pay closer attention to the setup.
Kyle Busch was one of the top drivers at Martinsville in 2018, running with a low downforce package. He struggled at both Martinsville races in 2020, though, and he is not off to a great start in 2021 yet either.
Kevin Harvick was yet another driver who missed the setup at Martinsville, and he also had a flat tire. Eventually, Harvick’s luck will turn, but I’m not sure it will be this week.
Aric Almirola will start in the rear once again. He and Bowyer dumped each other at the fall race here last year, but Almirola still charged back to grab a top-ten finish. This has not been the best year for Almirola to hope that things come together, though.
NASCAR Betting Odds
Love betting on the NASCAR races? | Xbet Sportsbook offers up to date NASCAR races
