The battle for the final playoff spot will take place Saturday when the NASCAR Cup Series regular season concludes with the 2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Ryan Blaney enters with a 25-point lead over Martin Truex Jr. for the 16th playoff berth, but one of 13 other drivers can capture the spot by recording his first win of the campaign. The 28-year-old Blaney has performed well at Daytona, winning this race last year while finishing fourth in the Daytona 500 in February.
Blaney is one of seven 12-1 co-favorites in the latest 2022 NASCAR at Daytona odds from Caesars Sportsbook. Ross Chastain, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, reigning Cup Series champion Kyle Larson, Joey Logano and Bubba Wallace round out the top 2022 Daytona Night Race contenders, also at 12-1. You’ll want to check out the NASCAR at Daytona predictions from Micah Roberts, the legendary Vegas bookmaker who pioneered wagering on racing, before locking in any 2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400 picks of your own.
Roberts, a former Vegas bookmaker, was the first to offer expanded NASCAR betting, and now hands out NASCAR winners to his followers on SportsLine. Roberts is the nation’s premier NASCAR betting expert, and his top pick, Elliott, won the Jockey Made in America 250 last season.
He also correctly predicted the 2021 Coca-Cola 600 winner, hitting Larson’s victory at 11-2 odds, and was on point by targeting Elliott as the winner of the EchoPark Texas Grand Prix at 8-5 odds the previous week. In addition, Roberts nailed last year’s GEICO 500 when he predicted Brad Keselowski to win at 14-1 odds. Anyone who has followed his picks has cashed tickets.
Now, Roberts has analyzed the field and odds for Saturday’s NASCAR at Daytona 2022 race. He’s sharing his winner and projected leaderboard only at SportsLine.
2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400 expert picks
One shocker: Roberts is low on Elliott, even though he’s one of the top 2022 NASCAR at Daytona contenders. In fact, Roberts says Elliott, who has posted top-10 finishes in four straight starts at Daytona and top-fives in seven of his last nine overall races, barely even cracks the top 15.
“This placement may be a bit out of line considering what he’s shown while using the superspeedway package,” Roberts told SportsLine. “(But) Elliott has yet to win in 13 starts at Daytona, recording a 20th-place average finish.”
Another curveball: Roberts is high on Aric Almirola, even though he’s a 25-1 long shot in the latest 2022 NASCAR at Daytona odds. The 38-year-old Floridian, who reportedly will put his retirement plans on hold and return to the Cup Series for one more season, needs a victory on Saturday to qualify for the playoffs. Almirola is capable of accomplishing the feat, as he won this race in 2014 and also captured a checkered flag in an Xfinity Series race two years later.
“His best tracks over his career have been at Daytona and Talladega. His first two Cup Series wins came on them,” Roberts told SportsLine. “He had a 2018 Daytona 500 victory in sight on the last lap with one turn to go before (Austin) Dillon punted him.” You can see who else to back here.
How to make 2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400 predictions
Roberts is high on a massive long shot who is “desperate to make the playoffs.” This driver is being underestimated by oddsmakers, and anyone who backs him could hit it big. You can only see who it is here.
So who wins the 2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400? And which long shot stuns NASCAR? Visit SportsLine now to see the 2022 NASCAR at Daytona leaderboard from the nation’s premier NASCAR handicapper, and find out.
2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400 odds, field, top contenders, starting lineup
See full NASCAR at Watkins Glen picks, predictions, best bets here.
Ryan Blaney 12-1
Ross Chastain 12-1
Chase Elliott 12-1
Denny Hamlin 12-1
Kyle Larson 12-1
Joey Logano 12-1
Bubba Wallace 12-1
William Byron 14-1
Kyle Busch 15-1
Martin Truex Jr. 17-1
Kevin Harvick 20-1
Brad Keselowski 20-1
Tyler Reddick 20-1
Christopher Bell 22-1
Austin Cindric 22-1
Aric Almirola 25-1
Alex Bowman 25-1
Chase Briscoe 25-1
Daniel Suarez 25-1
Chris Buescher 30-1
Austin Dillon 30-1
Ty Gibbs 30-1
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 30-1
Erik Jones 35-1
Michael McDowell 40-1
Justin Haley 50-1
Corey LaJoie 50-1
Cole Custer 75-1
Harrison Burton 125-1
Ty Dillon 150-1
Todd Gilliland 150-1
Noah Gragson 150-1
Daniel Hemric 200-1
David Ragan 250-1
Landon Cassill 1000-1
BJ McLeod 1000-1
Cody Ware 1000-1
