NASCAR betting has surged in popularity in recent years, and races at these five top tracks are the most compelling on the circuit.
Massachusetts Sports Betting has been legalized and will soon be operational in the Commonwealth. Kansas recently launched legal sports betting, and Ohio will be up and running on January 1, 2023.
For bettors in all three states, make sure to wager on events at these tracks to enhance your viewing of NASCAR races.
NASCAR’s Top-5 Most Exciting Racetracks
Daytona International Speedway
NASCAR is different from other sports in the fact that its biggest race — the Daytona 500 — is the first event of the season. Daytona also hosts a night race during the July 4 holiday weekend.
Daytona is a 2.5-mile superspeedway where restrictor plates are used to slow cars down and prevent airborne wrecks. Restrictor-plate racing tasks teammates to work together in an aerodynamic draft.
This type of racing often produces “The Big One” with multiple cars wrecking at the same time. It also produces some fantastic finishes.
This year, rookie driver Austin Cindric used drafting help from Penske teammate Ryan Blaney to beat Bubba Wallace by .036 seconds at the finish line.
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega is the second of two superspeedways on the NASCAR circuit. The same brand of restrictor-plate racing is used to produce some harrowing wrecks and tight finishes at this 2.66-mile track in Alabama.
I was traveling with the NASCAR circus in 2000 when Dale Earnhardt Sr. won what would be his final Cup race at Talladega. Earnhardt craftily moved from 17th-place with four laps left to win in thrilling fashion. Check it out here:
Earnhardt died early the next year after a last-lap wreck in the Daytona 500. NASCAR redoubled its efforts to create safer racing conditions at restrictor-plate tracks. It’s one of the many racing legacies left behind by Earnhardt.
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol’s a little half-mile bullring located in the Tennessee mountains, and it’s historically put on some of the best short-track shows in NASCAR history. Bristol’s night race is a true spectacle in this Coliseum-like complex. Tempers often flare at Bristol, as they did at the finish of last year’s night race.
Watkins Glen International
We go from a short track to a road course for more excitement on the NASCAR circuit. Watkins Glen hosts its annual Cup race during the summer in the Finger Lakes region of New York State.
Dig this last-lap excitement from arguably the best-ever finish at the Glen in 2012.
Darlington Raceway
Darlington is quintessential NASCAR. It’s known as “The Track Too Tough to Tame.” The annual Labor Day weekend race is one of the most anticipated night races of the season. Here are some of the best finishes in the Southern 500 at Darlington.
