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NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race: Chase Briscoe Chasing History, Denny Hamlin’s Top Odds, Predictions & Best Bets At Phoenix Raceway

Jeff Hawkins Written by Sports EditorJeff Hawkins
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NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race: Chase Briscoe Chasing History, Denny Hamlin’s Top Odds, Predictions & Best Bets At Phoenix Raceway

NASCAR Cup Series driver Chase Briscoe made history at Phoenix Raceway previously. 

In 2022, Briscoe claimed his first win, edging Ross Chastain by 0.771 seconds after mastering three late-race restarts. Then, a driver for the now-defunct Stewart-Haas Racing, Briscoe, became the circuit’s 200th different driver to visit Victory Lane. 

Entering Sunday’s Championship 4 race, Briscoe, now with Joe Gibbs Racing, ranks No. 1 in the drivers’ standings after 35 points races. 

Can he create more history with his first series title? 

Below, we’ll preview the top storylines heading into Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race, go over the odds, and give our best bets for the 36th race on the 2025 NASCAR schedule.

NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race Storylines

  • Hendrick Motorsports faced a scenario of getting shut out of the Championship 4 race, but ended up placing three teams in the top five. William Byron eliminated that prospect by winning at Martinsville, and Kyle Larson advanced via playoff points. Chase Elliott finished fifth in the standings.
  • Blaney may have been eliminated during last Sunday’s Round of 8 finale, but he rallied from a No. 31 qualifying effort and paced the field for 177 rotations. The 2023 circuit titleholder couldn’t counter Byron’s aggressive move. Blaney said he would have done the same.
  • After claiming the past two drivers’ championships, including Joey Logano’s title last season, Team Penske failed to qualify a team for the final four for the first time since 2021.

NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race Driver Odds  

Here is an early look at the drivers’ odds for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway, according to FanDuel Sportsbook:

Driver NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race Odds
Denny Hamlin +340
William Byron +430
Kyle Larson +500
Chase Briscoe +650
Ryan Blaney +700
Christopher Bell +900
Joey Logano +1200
Chase Elliott +1500
Tyler Reddick +2700
Ross Chastain +3000
 Bubba Wallace +3500
Austin Cindric +4500
Chris Buescher +4500
Alex Bowman +4500
Kyle Busch +4500
Josh Berry +4500
Carson Hocevar +5000
Brad Keselowski +6000
Ty Gibbs +6000
Austin Dillon +6000
Ryan Preece +7500
Erik Jones +10000
Michael McDowell +17500
Zane Smith +17500
Noah Gragson +17500
AJ Allmendinger +30000
Shane van Gisbergen +30000
Justin Haley +30000
John Hunter Nemechek +30000
Casey Mears +50000
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +50000
Cole Custer +50000
JJ Yeley +50000
Riley Herbst +50000
Cody Ware +50000
Todd Gilliland +50000

*-Odds current at time of publication

NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race Predictions, Picks

Here are our best NASCAR Cup Series bets for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway:

Denny Hamlin (+340)

Hamlin is a future NASCAR Hall of Famer, but he wants – needs – a drivers’ title to cement his legacy. The veteran remains the event favorite, posting three top-10 finishes at the 1-mile track since 2022. Is this the year?

William Byron (+430)

Byron dominated at Martinsville, leading 304 of 500 laps, capturing both stages and the checkered flag. He’s won at Phoenix before. Can he repeat performances?

Kyle Larson (+500)

The 2021 Cup champion has not won at Phoenix over his past seven starts, but he posted four top-fives and led 9.9 percent of the laps. Is this Larson’s best shot at a repeat?

Jeff Hawkins Written by Sports EditorJeff Hawkins
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry, in both print and digital media. He joined the Sportscasting team in 2021 following a decade of freelancing. He spent his early career as a reporter for various newspapers in Illinois, New York, Florida, North Carolina, and Michigan, with a particular emphasis as a beat reporter for the Chicago Blackhawks. Jeff earned his bachelor's degree in journalism from Oakland University. Over the course of his career he earned several sports writing awards, including two national awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors for column writing and news reporting. One of the five prized columns included a commentary on NASCAR's increasing corporate influences, particularly in northern racetracks — commentary which you might find Jeff building on as part of the Motorsports writing team at Sportscasting now.  
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