How to Bet on NASCAR – A Beginners Introduction

NASCAR is growing in popularity among bettors as the 2020 season has started up again following the COVID-19 hiatus. And, according to some – wagering on NASCAR is a perfect place to get your feet wet if you are a beginner!

There are a limited number of drivers, 38 per Cup Series Race, as opposed to wagering on team sports where 50 plus players (depending on the sport) can affect the outcome of a game. Plus, NASCAR stats are a breeze to research on NASCAR’s website or reference sites like Racing-reference.info.

The first thing to know as a beginner when it comes to betting on NASCAR is that Fantasy NASCAR and placing wagers on NASCAR are two completely different things.

Difference Between Betting and Fantasy

Fantasy NASCAR, in general, involves being part of a league where each player selects a set number of drivers including an alternate. Points are awarded in many ways during a race. This vary’s depending on where you play. Every Fantasy league is different.

Points can be awarded for wins, top-five and top-ten finishes, number of laps led, number of passes, and more. And, if one if your drivers doing poorly, or is involved in a wreck, then you dump them! You can pull your alternate driver out of the “garage” and use their points. Again, this vary’s on where you play.

In the end, points are counted up and the player who garnishes the most points off of their stable drivers wins! Sometimes it’s for a payout or free goods like shirts and caps, or just bragging rights at the end of the season.

Again, it depends on where you play. Here’s the difference between that and betting on NASCAR.

When you bet on NASCAR – you are betting on the outcome of one thing. – Done!

Ok, it’s a bit broader than that. There are several ways to place wagers but you don’t have to assemble a team, or pick an alternate driver, or keep tabs on what the people in your Fantasy league are doing.

Here’s the thing about the “outcome of one thing” that I mentioned above… there are several things.

Five Ways to Bet on NASCAR

Wagering on anything is a risk. You can win and you can lose. The good news with betting on NASCAR is that there are a few things you can do to get your feet wet aside from just picking the winner of a race… which is number one. Note: these options may vary depending on where you wager.

ONE: Pick a Winner!

Sounds simple! Pick the winner of the race and haul in the payoff. The good news is that in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series there are only 38 cars in a race. It used to be 43. Further, there are a limited number of high-end teams with the money behind their cars that are generally in the hunt for a win during a race.

A quick look at the wins this season shows that the majority of races have been won by drivers from Joe Gibbs Racing, Stewart – Haas Racing, and Richard Childress Racing.

Then there are mid-level teams that are associated with the teams mentioned above. These drivers tend to run in the middle of the pack with the occasional up-front finish. Then there are “back-marker” teams which are often start-up organizations with older equipment and limited schedules.

Higher-end teams have money, new equipment, a bunch of engineers, and fresh engines. Teams at the other end of the spectrum are most often racing in used cars bought from other teams.

Here’s the good news! You can wipe a whole bunch of drivers off your list and concentrate on the elite teams.

Here’s the bad news – unless you hit on a long shot! Drivers from smaller teams can still manage a win. Just ask Justin Hailey. He won at Daytona last year as a part-time driver running a limited schedule because he was in the front when the lead drivers pitted. Then it rained!

TWO: Hit in the Top Three

This one is similar to picking a winner. Instead, you are picking a driver to finish in the top three. The payoffs will not be a big as if picking the winner but this option allows you to widen your window of success. And, it’s how many “experts” claim victory on sports shows the day after a race.

“Yep, I picked him – he didn’t win due to that late shuffle after the restart – but he did finish third. If there were a few more laps…” You get the idea!

You may be familiar with this option when it comes to horse racing. In horse racing, the terms are win, place, or show. “Win” means the winner, “place” means coming in second, and “show” refers to the horse and rider finishing third.

When betting on NASCAR, you don’t care if the driver finishes “Win, Place, or Show” as long as he’s in the top-three!

THREE: Head to Head

This option varies and is great for placing wagers with friends. Here’s an easy example. “Hey man, a cold beverage says my driver beats your driver this weekend!”

IN a nutshell, that’s what Head to Head or Driver vs driver wagering is. 

These types of bets are very popular for races like the Daytona 500, Talladega, or some of the bigger races. If you picked Denny Hamlin to finish higher than Kevin Harvick and Hamlin finishes 5th and Harvick finishes anywhere after the five-spot – you win!

And, depending on where you wager, some of the drivers from the second tier teams may be pitted against each other. A wager here can build some excitement for viewing cars other than the leaders.

FOUR: The Fun Stuff – Props!

Prop bets in NASCAR are similar to the fun style of wagering you see for the Super Bowl. How long with the National Anthem take, will it be heads or tails on the toss, how many sacks will there be, etc? You may be able to bet on things such as which manufacturer wins. Pick from Ford, Toyota, or Chevrolet. How many cautions flags come during the race, odd or even number car as the winner, and more.

FIVE: Future Betting

This is the simple one. Look into the future at the beginning of the season and pick the next NASCAR Cup Series Champion. 

That’s the basics of starting to bet on NASCAR. One suggestion, start slow with small wagers, learn how odds work, and take advantage of free stats from NASCAR. They show every stat for every driver and loop data from every past race. But, most of all – have fun and enjoy the race!