NASCAR Preview: 2020 Season Finale 500 Picks

The 2020 NASCAR Cup Season comes down to one race to determine the Championship. The NASCAR Season Finale 500 is set for this weekend at Phoenix Raceway with only four Championship eligible drivers remaining.

That means there are two sets of odds to dive into! One for winning the race outright and one for which of the four drivers is crowned as the next Cup Series Champion!

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Bet on the Season Finale 500 at the Best NASCAR Sportsbooks

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First, here are the betting odds to win the Championship according to Intertops. Full race odds are listed below.

Odds to Win the Cup Series Championship

Denny Hamlin +240

Chase Elliott +240

Joey Logano +260

Brad Keselowski +300

This is the last race of the 2020 season and only four of sixteen Championship eligible drivers remain. However, there are 39 drivers in the race. Meaning, this is not a winner-take-all situation. Any of the 39 drivers can win on Sunday. The Cup Season Champion may not win the race. Kevin Harvick is the favorite to win the race outright and he was eliminated last week.

The Championship battle between the four drivers, Hamlin, Elliott, Logano, and Keselowski, may be determined by who finishes best and has the least mistakes on the track and in the pits.

Because the betting odds are tight between the four drivers (+240 to +300) the play may be sticking to making picks on winning the race outright.

Check out the NASCAR race highlights from last week:

Odds to Win the NASCAR Championship Finale 500

One note before saying Truex has won the last two races at the famed short track in Virginia. A win this weekend will push him over the cutline and onto the list of the final for drivers racing for the Cup Series Championship next week at Phoenix.

Following behind Truex is a nice group of drivers representing all three manufactures in the Series. Chase Elliott is the lone Chevrolet driver (at +850 and below) favored to win with the rest being Toyotas and Fords.

As mentioned above, Kyle Busch won at Texas but he was eliminated from the Championship Playoffs during the last round. But the win did help move Busch back up the favorites list as he’s bunched in with Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano at +850. Here are the favorites according to Intertops.

Harvick, Kevin +275

Denny Hamlin +500

Chase Elliott +500

Kyle Busch +550

Joey Logano +700

2020 NASCAR Season Finale 500 Preview

Track: Phoneix Raceway, Avondale, Arizona

Type: Dogleg Oval, 1.0 miles, asphalt

Turns: 4

Banking: Start / Finish Straightaway: 3°; Dogleg: 10–11°; Straightaway from Dogleg to Turn 1: 10°; Turn 1: 8°, Turn 2: 8–9° (Progressive); Backstretch: 3°; Turns 3 & 4: 10–11° (Progressive)

Race Distance: 312 miles, 312 laps (499.2 km)

Defending Track Winner: Joey Logano

TV/Radio: NBCSN / MRN

Start Time: Sunday, November 8, at 3:00 PM Eastern

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Read Our PPH Reviews and Expert Handicapper Reviews

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One note about the race – the title of the event is the NASCAR Season Finale 500 is not a 500-mile race. The race name is based on kilometers which are 499.2 –close to being 500 for naming purposes. You made need to consider that when making NASCAR picks. The race at Phoenix this weekend will go by fast compared to a 500-mile event which means any mistakes or penalties could be devastating.

2020 Season Finale 500 NASCAR Predictions

Kevin Harvick +275

Kevin Harvick rolled through the regular Cup Series season and into the playoffs with eight wins. Then, he hit a roadblock and finished with an average finish of 12th for the majority of Playoff races. That eliminated him from the Championship run but he can still win the last race of the season at Phoenix. In his Cup Series career, he has 9 wins at the track, 18 top-five, and 24 top-ten finishes. He’s also led 1,662 laps at Phoenix.

Denny Hamlin +500

Denny Hamlin won the 2019 Fall race at Phoenix giving him his second career victory at the track. Earlier this summer he finished 20th but over the last five races he’s finished 5th or better three times. Over the last ten races, he’s finished in the top-ten seven times.

Joey Logano +700

Joey Logano has quietly racked up some impressive numbers at Phoenix over the last ten races at the track. In those ten events, he’s won twice and finished five times inside the top-ten. His only sore spot during those ten races are two DNFs.

Others I Like

Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson: Kyle Busch (+500) has almost the same stats at Phoenix as Harvick. My only issue with Busch is his inconsistent season. But, Phoenix is one of his better tracks over the last ten races. As for Jimmie Johnson (+5000), this is a sentimental pick backed by some decent stats. His last few races have not been great at Phoenix. But overall in his Cup Series career, Johnson has racked up four wins, 15 top-fives, and 21 top-ten runs.

One Fantasy Driver

Here’s the guy I have to have on my fantasy team with this week – Kevin Harvick! I don’t want to repeat everything I mentioned above. But the stats for Harvick at Phoenix are mind-numbing. Even if he does not win he still racks up a ton of fantasy points.

Season Finale 500 Odds to Win Outright (Not to win Championship)

Harvick, Kevin +275

Denny Hamlin +500

Chase Elliott +500

Kyle Busch +550

Joey Logano +700

Brad Keselowski +750

Ryan Blaney +800

Martin Truex Jr +1000

Kurt Busch +2500

Alex Bowman +2800

Aric Almirola +2800

William Byron +4000

Erik Jones +4000

Clint Bowyer +5000

Jimmie Johnson +5000

Cole Custer +6600

Matt Dibenedetto +6600

Christopher Bell +7500

Matt Kenseth +8000

Tyler Reddick +8000

Ryan Newman +12500

Austin Dillon +12500

Ricky Stenhouse Jr +20000

Chris Buescher +30000

Bubba Wallace +40000

Ty Dillon +40000

Ryan Preece +50000

John Hunter Nemechek +75000

Michael McDowell +75000

Daniel Suarez +100000

Joey Gase +200000

Brennan Poole +200000

Corey Lajoie +200000

Cody Ware +300000

Timmy Hill +300000

Quinn Houff +300000

Garrett Smithley +300000

James Davison +300000