{"id":3461,"date":"2026-07-19T10:07:33","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T10:07:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3461"},"modified":"2026-07-19T10:07:33","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T10:07:33","slug":"a-guide-to-nascar-cup-race-at-north-wilkesboro-who-will-win-predictions-odds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3461","title":{"rendered":"A guide to NASCAR Cup race at North Wilkesboro: Who will win? Predictions, odds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sunday night will usher in the first NASCAR Cup Series points-paying race at North Wilkesboro Speedway for the first time in 30 years<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read more NASCAR is expected to up its on-track practice time. Drivers have mixed reviews<\/a><\/p>\n

But ask the drivers, and that\u2019s old news.<\/p>\n

The vaunted venue in North Carolina \u2014 the same one that was left in virtually abandoned disrepair in 1996 and then was resurrected in 2023<\/a> \u2014 has been the site of the NASCAR All-Star Race for the last three years. The track\u2019s been repaved. The three All-Star Races featured sellout crowds, and on Saturday, NASCAR announced a fourth consecutive sellout at the 0.625-mile oval.<\/p>\n

So it\u2019s here. And it\u2019s here to stay, the industry acknowledges.<\/p>\n

But what is it that keeps drivers excited to run here?<\/p>\n

The track, simply, is fun to run on.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt moves around a lot,\u201d Carson Hocevar said of North Wilkesboro. \u201cYou can run right against the fence, or you go on the bottom and move around. Place tends to rubber up too. I just like how there are so many different ways to go about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf your car\u2019s not very good, there are probably like four or five different options where you can make your stuff a little bit better. There are just so many ways to attack the track.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not to say drivers don\u2019t acknowledge how different Sunday might be to years past. The All-Star Race, after all, is a winner-take-all sort of exhibition where $1 million is on the line; finishing second and dead last mean the same thing. There will also be more cars on the track than before, and that\u2019ll present a few more agents of chaos \u2014 from more rubber being laid down (increased grip) and more lapped traffic (the bane of race leaders\u2019 existence).<\/p>\n

\u201cRacing for the lead in the All-Star, I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve experienced anything more intense than that,\u201d Christopher Bell, last year\u2019s winner at North Wilkesboro, told The Charlotte Observer<\/a>. \u201cBut whenever you\u2019re in the back of the pack, and you\u2019re not racing for the lead, your effort level dwindles. \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cWhereas this year, you still have everything to race for. So while the race for the lead will change, I think the racing through the pack will be much more intense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018Stop ICE terror\u2019: Protesters rally in uptown Charlotte after fatal shootings<\/a><\/p>\n

With this in mind, here\u2019s everything you should know heading into the racing this weekend, including two Observer reporters\u2019 picks.<\/p>\n

Here are the Top 10 driver odds to win the race at North Carolina\u2019s vaunted short track, according to CBS Sports as of Saturday evening: Ryan Blaney (+480), Denny Hamlin (+500), Christopher Bell (+500), Kyle Larson (+900), Tyler Reddick (+1000), Joey Logano (+1100), Chase Elliott (+1400), William Byron (+1500), Chase Briscoe (+1600), Ty Gibbs (+1800).<\/p>\n

Scott Fowler: Chase Elliott.<\/b> First of all, I\u2019m really happy to see North Wilkesboro host this race. Absolutely cool in so many ways. To see NASCAR embrace its history \u2014 after a period where it seemed to be driving fast away from it \u2014 is heartening. Secondly, give me Chase Elliott in this one. He\u2019s a fine short-track racer and just won at Martinsville in March. I\u2019m figuring on a wide-open race, with Chase coming through at the end.<\/p>\n

Alex Zietlow: Kyle Larson.<\/b> Y\u2019all remember what happened the last time North Wilkesboro Speedway experienced a \u201cfirst\u201d? As in three years ago, when NASCAR returned to the hallowed N.C. venue and put on the first of three annual All-Star Races here \u2014 the first NASCAR racing of any kind at North Wilkesboro since 1996? Kyle Larson does. That\u2019s because he won here that weekend. He swept it, actually, winning the Truck Series race and the Cup race. And I think he\u2019ll experience success here again. The defending Cup Series champion is one of the best short-track racers on the circuit \u2014 one of the best racers in the world, period \u2014 and is looking to get his first win of the season here. It\u2019s a cop-out answer, maybe, because Larson is so talented. But sometimes what\u2019s safe is also what\u2019s right.<\/p>\n

Cup qualifying was washed out Saturday, and thus the starting grid was set by the rule book. Here\u2019s the starting lineup.<\/p>\n

Some penalty housekeeping: Austin Hill and Connor Zilish each failed pre-race inspection twice and thus will not be able to make pit selections Sunday. Ross Chastain failed inspection three times and thus will be required to serve a drive-through penalty at the start of the race in addition to losing pit selection and a team member for the race.<\/p>\n

Read more NC won\u2019t let Carowinds Fury 325 reopen until after new state safety inspection<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Who will NASCAR race at North Wilkesboro Speedway? Our predictions, betting advice, green flag time, starting lineup ahead of historic North Carolina race.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3460,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3461","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nA guide to NASCAR Cup race at North Wilkesboro: Who will win? 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