NASCAR is one of the most popular sports in the United States and North America. Every week, millions tune in to watch some of the most talented drivers on the planet go head-to-head. Watching these incredibly skilled drivers zoom across speedways around the country is an experience that can be augmented by wagering on the events. Many bettors worldwide love placing bets on NASCAR races as the sport has an exciting simplicity for bettors.
But whether you are sports betting in Quebec or Tallahassee, you need to familiarize yourself with the different NASCAR markets before you can win big. These markets are the different outcomes sportsbooks allow bettors to wager on within a NASCAR race or the league overall. Let’s look at the top markets to know when NASCAR betting.
Futures
The NASCAR Cup Series features 36 races, and eventually, when it is all said and done, there will be one driver that has collected the most points in the standings. That driver is the NASCAR Cup Series champion. Futures is a form of betting where gamblers wager on long-term outcomes within a league. For NASCAR, this would mean wagering on which driver will end the season as the overall champion.
Outright Betting
As we’ve mentioned, there are 36 races on the calendar in a typical NASCAR season. These highly competitive, hotly contested races will end with one driver in front. Outright betting is wagering on which driver will end up winning the race. For bettors watching an event, this is the most common form of betting. Each driver will have odds to win before the race begins, and typically, the outright market will have large payouts for gamblers.
Place Betting
Outright betting can be a little risky because, ultimately, only one driver is going to end up winning the race. That is why the payouts tend to be high. But if you want to be slightly more conservative, try place betting. Place betting is wagering on bettors to place rather than win. Bettors can choose to bet on several different kinds of place markets. The most common option is podium betting, where bettors wager on whether a driver will finish top three, but there is also top-five betting.
Head-to-Head Betting
The typical NASCAR race will feature 40 entrants, so there aren’t too many individual rivalries. However, some sportsbooks will manufacture these rivalries by creating a market centered around pitting two drivers against each other. Before the race begins, some sportsbooks offer head-to-head markets, where they will pick two drivers that are at similar positions in the standings and allow bettors to wager on which one will place higher in the race. This market is completely manufactured but adds a fun element to a race.
Prop Betting
A lot goes on in a typical race. For many bettors, the fun isn’t just about wagering on which bettor will win or place; it is about wagering on the many different unique outcomes that will transpire in a typical NASCAR event. Prop betting is a form of wagering where bettors can place bets on outcomes that go beyond the typical. These can include things like betting on which bettor will have the fastest lap and so on. Prop bets are essentially outcomes within the race that may not define who wins overall.
Live Race Betting
If you forget to get your wagers in before the race begins, it can be frustrating. But just about every sportsbook will allow bettors to place their bets on live events even after they are underway. Most sportsbooks have an odds algorithm that adjusts according to what is happening live, so bettors can continue to bet on NASCAR races even after the drivers have roared out of the gates.
