NASCAR Quaker State 400 odds, favorites for Atlanta Motor Speedway

This weekend is the second date of the season at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The Quaker State 400 should be another fun race. Atlanta is now a superspeedway race and we will see lots of drafting and high speeds this weekend from the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series.

Earlier this season, we saw Joey Logano get to Victory Lane in Atlanta. He was great all race and while we didn’t get the excitement of last season’s races, this second offering might live up to the hype.

Coming into this one, surprisingly, Logano is not the favorite. Kyle Busch is the Bet MGM favorite heading into the weekend at 10-1 odds. Busch finished P10 at the first race this season. However, he hasn’t finished outside of the top-10 since May 7th at Kansas when he was a DNF.

That hot streak has Rowdy as the favorite this week.

Chase Elliott follows Busch at 11-1 odds. Elliott did not race the first Atlanta event this year since he was out with his leg injury. However, he has been on a top-5 streak that could break through to a win, especially at the race he won last season.

To round out the top-5 in the odds this week, we have Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano at 12-1. The Team Penske teammates each have a win on the year and would very much like a second. Finally, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, and Brad Keselowski all come in at 14-1 odds.

Can Chase Elliott repeat at Quaker State 400?

Last summer, Chase Elliott came away with the summer race win in Atlanta. This week’s Quaker State 400 could be the place he punches his ticket to the playoffs. Last season, it was part of a nice run he had in the summer that propelled him to a series-leading five wins in 2022.

There is good reason to believe that Elliott could win this weekend. He is coming off his best string of performances of the entire year. It does seem that he has gotten comfortable in the car and his team is delivering fast cars as well. Now he just has to do that extra bit to get the No. 9 in Victory Lane.

Elliott was perfect in Atlanta last summer. He won the pole, swept the stages, and went home with the checkered flag. It was a close finish with Ross Chastain coming in P2. However, it was one of the most complete performances that Elliott has had.

If it doesn’t happen in the Quaker State 400, it is going to be that much more difficult to win a race this season. Elliott needs to finish every race for the rest of the regular season if he hopes to point his way into the playoffs, but without a checkered flag, he likely won’t be much of a threat anyway.

Is it now or never for Chase Elliott?