This past week, the NASCAR Cup Series had its lone in-season off week, as the series took a break for Father's Day and to take some much needed time away from the track after 17 straight weekends spent at race tracks across the U.S. Following that brief break, the series returns to action this week in the Nashville area, which is the site of the Ally 400.
The third edition of this race, which began in 2021, will be televised on NBC, and we are set for some nighttime racing at Nashville Superspeedway, with the race set for a 7:00 pm ET start time.
Each of the previous two years, a Hendrick Motorsports driver has taken the checkered flag in the Ally 400.
On the way to claiming the NASCAR Cup Series championship in 2021, Kyle Larson picked up one of his ten wins that season in this race. Last year, Chase Elliott crossed the finish line first, beginning a stretch in which he finished first or second in five consecutive races.
Larson and Elliott are among the leading favorites to land in Victory Lane on Sunday, as is Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron. Who else is a top contender to take the win? Let's take a look at the latest Ally 400 odds.
Odds to Win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Ally 400
Kyle Larson +500
Martin Truex Jr. +600
Denny Hamlin +750
Kyle Busch +800
Chase Elliott +800
William Byron +900
Ryan Blaney +900
Ross Chastain +1100
Christopher Bell +1200
Joey Logano +1800
Tyler Reddick +1800
Kevin Harvick +2000
Bubba Wallace +2500
Ty Gibbs +3300
Alex Bowman +3300
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +4000
Brad Keselowski +5000
Daniel Suarez +5000
Chris Buescher +8000
Chase Briscoe +10000
Aric Almirola +10000
Austin Dillon +10000
Ryan Preece +15000
Austin Cindric +15000
Erik Jones +15000
A.J. Allmendinger +25000
Michael McDowell +30000
Justin Haley +30000
Harrison Burton +30000
Corey Lajoie +50000
Noah Gragson +50000
Todd Gilliland +100000
Ty Dillon +100000
J.J. Yeley +100000
Josh Bilicki +100000
Brennan Poole +100000
Ally 400 Predictions and Picks
Prior to last week's break, the most recent stop on the circuit was Sonoma, where Martin Truex Jr. won the Toyota/Save Mart 350 for the fourth time.
That win put him second behind Jeff Gordon for Toyota/Save Mart 350 wins, and it propelled him to the top of the NASCAR Cup Series standings.
NASCAR Cup Series 2023 Standings (Following 16 of 36 Races)
Martin Truex Jr. – 525 points
William Byron – 512
Ryan Blaney – 501
Ross Chastain – 501
Kevin Harvick – 500
Kyle Busch – 496
Christopher Bell – 493
Denny Hamlin – 462
Joey Logano – 444
Kyle Larson – 440
Chris Buescher – 430
Brad Keselowski – 424
Tyler Reddick – 420
Ricky Stenhouse – 400
Bubba Wallace – 354
Alex Bowman – 331
Entering the Ally 400, Byron remains the only driver this season to win back-to-back races. Will that continue to be the case?
Truex had only one top-ten finish in his first seven races this season, but in nine races since, he has two wins, three more finishes in the top five, and two other finishes in the top ten. In his last three races, he has finished third, fifth, and first.
It won't take much for Truex to better his previous Ally 400 finishes, as he finished 22nd in 2021 and repeated that finish in last year's race.
With the run that he has been on, Truex should be a popular pick in top-five and top-ten finishing position bets.
If previous success at Nashville Superspeedway is of importance in addition to what they have done recently, so should Larson. Along with his 2021 win, he finished fourth in last year's Ally 400. Larson has finished 29th or worse in six races this season, but he has finished inside the top four six times, including two wins.
Will we see Ross Chastain have a good weekend? After finishing 29th, 22nd, and 22nd in consecutive races, Chastain finished 10th at Sonoma, and he has finished second and fifth in the first two editions of the Ally 400.
I will have my eye on all three of these drivers this weekend, along with Ryan Blaney, who finished third in last year's Ally 400, has been a solid qualifier throughout this season, and had finished in the top ten in six of seven points-paying races before a 31st-place finish at Sonoma.
But ahead of qualifying, I'm inclined to keep riding on the Hendrick bus. Sure, that decision didn't pan out in the three previous races. But with previous success at Nashville Superspeedway to his name and the potential to win anywhere at any time, I like the prospect of a winning weekend for Larson.
Eddie Griffin
Eddie Griffin has been writing about and betting on sports for over a decade and has been with Betting News since 2021. For more of his thoughts on sports and sports betting, you can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This site contains commercial content. We may be compensated for the links provided on this page. The content on this page is for informational purposes only. Betting News makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the information given or the outcome of any game or event.