The next race in this helter-skelter 2020 NASCAR Cup Series calendar is set for Wednesday night at Martinsville Speedway, a half-mile oval in Virginia called “The Paperclip.” This will be the first time Martinsville has hosted a nighttime race, and the track is unique, featuring concrete on the turns but asphalt on the straightaways. The turns only carry 12 degrees of banking, and the straightaways are flat, which makes things tricky at times for the drivers. Richard Petty picked up 15 wins in 67 starts at Martinsville. Who will emerge as the winner on Wednesday night? We have NASCAR betting odds on the drivers as well as suggestions for your wager cards. The Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 is set for 7:00 pm Eastern time on Wednesday, and you can catch the broadcast on FS1.
2020 Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 Odds & Preview – June 10
NASCAR Driver Odds
- Kyle Busch +450
- Martin Truex Jr +550
- Brad Keselowski +600
- Chase Elliott +750
- Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano +900
- Kevin Harvick +1000
- Ryan Blaney +1100
- Alex Bowman, Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson +2000
- William Byron +3300
- Aric Almirola, Erik Jones, Matt Kenseth +4000
- Matt DiBenedetto +5000
- Austin Dillon, Tyler Reddick +6600
- Ryan Newman, Ricky Stenhouse Jr +8000
- Christopher Bell +10000
- Chris Buescher, Cole Custer +15000
- John Hunter Nemechek, Bubba Wallace +25000
- Ty Dillon, Michael McDowell, Ryan Preece +50000
- Corey LaJoie, Daniel Suarez +75000
- Joey Gase, Timmy Hill, Quin Houff, BJ McLeod, JJ Yeley, Brennan Poole, Garrett Smithley, Reed Sorenson +150000
Kyle Busch settled for second place on Sunday, finishing just behind Kevin Harvick at the 2020 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. Martinsville has been a great track for Busch in the past, as he has 11 starts here since 2015 and has only failed to crack the top five once in that span. In the spring race at Martinsville, he has finished first, second, second and then third in the years since 2016. In his last six races in 2020, he has cracked the top five each time, including three runner-up finishes.
Martin Truex Jr won the autumn race at Martinsville Speedway back in 2019. He won both of the races in Richmond last year as well, which means he has won each of the last three NASCAR Cup Series races in Virginia. In his last 11 starts at Martinville, he has posted nine top-ten finishes. In his last five, he has come in second, fourth, third, eight and first. On Sunday, he came in third at the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500, giving him his first top-five finish of what had been a bit of a puzzling season to this point, but now he seems to be back on track.
Brad Keselowski has finished five straight races in the top ten and had won two straight Sunday races in a row before the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. At Martinsville, he has cracked the top ten in eight straight races. In the March race here last year, he led 446 of the 500 laps.
Ryan Blaney is an interesting sleeper pick here. In the spring race at Martinsville, he came in third in 2018 and fourth last year. In his last five starts here, he has four top-ten finishes, three of those in the top five. In the last four races overall this season, he has been right there at the end, with three finishes in the top five.
Jimmie Johnson has been heating up as well. At the Coca-Cola 600, he turned back the clock to finish second and came in third at Bristol two Sundays again. At Martinsville, he has had terrific results, with nine wins, 19 finishes in the top five and 24 in the top ten, in 36 starts. While he has only one top five in his last 11 starts here, he is showing speed again — an he offers a lot of value.
Clint Bowyer won this event two years ago and came in seventh in both 2017 and 2019, and he offers a lot of value as well.
