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NASCAR Cup Series Shriners Children’s 500: Christopher Bell Gets Top Odds, Predictions & Best Bets At Phoenix Raceway

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By
Jeff Hawkins
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Jeff Hawkins Sports Editor

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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Published04 Mar 2025

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cup second katherine legge making debut at phoenix (1)

Poised to make her debut at Phoenix Raceway next Sunday, Katherine Legge will become the first female to compete in a NASCAR Cup Series race since Danica Patrick started the 2018 Daytona 500. 

Signed by Live Fast Motorsports, Legge will pilot the No. 78 Chevrolet for owners BJ and Jessica McLeod. The 44-year-old driver started five Xfinity Series events and compiled a 28.6 average finish. 

The Guilford, England, native competed the ARCA Menards Series’ season-opening event at Daytona and completed just three laps before crashing out, placing 39th. Legge, who made 19 IndyCar stars, collected four checkered flags and 11 podiums during 94 starts on the WeatherTech Sportscar Championship Series.

Back-to-back winner Christopher Bell (+500) received the top sports-betting odds to capture Sunday’s Shriners Children’s 500. At +50000, Legge was tied with Ty Dillon and Cody Ware as the biggest longshots.

Below, we’ll preview the top storylines heading into the race, go over the odds, and give our best bets for the fourth race on the 2025 NASCAR schedule.

 Shriners Children’s 500 Storylines

  • The wind during last Sunday’s race at Circuit of The Americas was so strong at the start Austin Dillon complained on his team radio: “It’s a windstorm right now. Insane wind. I’m on the scissor lift. I think I’m going to blow off this thing.” 
  • After placing 33rd and 31st during the opening two stages at COTA, Noah Gragson rallied for his first top-10 finish of the season. In his past two starts at Phoenix, the driver of the No. 4 Ford earned consecutive P12s. 
  • Chris Buescher continues to pull away from the road-course competitors. He placed seventh at COTA after a slow start. In 18 right-and-left turn tracks, the No. 17 Ford driver compiled 15 top 10s. In 18 starts at Phoenix’s 1-mile oval, he has just four top 10s.  

 Shriners Children’s 500 Driver Odds

Here is an early look at the drivers’ odds for the Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway, according to FanDuel Sportsbook:  

Driver NASCAR Cup Series Shriners Children’s 500 Odds
Christopher Bell +500
Ryan Blaney +550
Kyle Larson +850
Chase Elliott +1000
William Byron +1000
Denny Hamlin +1100
Joey Logano +1200
Chase Briscoe +1300
Ross Chastain +1500
Tyler Reddick +1500
Chris Buescher +2200
Ty Gibbs +2800
Kyle Busch  +2800
Josh Berry +3200
Brad Keselowski  +3700
Bubba Wallace +5500
Alex Bowman  +6500
Austin Cindric +6500
Daniel Suarez +7500
Carson Hocevar +10000
Ryan Preece +13000
Cole Custer +13000
Noah Gragson +13000
AJ Allmendinger +15000
Shane van Gisbergen  +15000
Michael McDowell +15000
Erik Jones +15000
Justin Haley +24000
Riley Herbst +24000
Austin Dillon +24000
Todd Gilliland +28000
Zane Smith +34000
John Hunter Nemechek +45000
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +45000
Katherine Legge +50000
Cody Ware +50000
Ty Dillon +50000

*-Odds current at time of publication

Shriners Children’s 500 Predictions and Picks  

Here are our best NASCAR Cup Series bets for the Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway:

Christopher Bell (+500) 

In the past two weeks, Bell, the race favorite, has won on a drafting track (Atlanta) and road course (COTA). Will he pull off the trifecta by winning on a short track?

Ryan Blaney (+550) 

The 2023 Cup champion’s team seems to rise at Phoenix, compiling six top-five finishes in his past six outings in the desert. Blaney enters the weekend second in points standings, two behind Byron.

William Byron (+1000) 

Since 2022, Byron has collected one win, three top-five finishes, and four top-10s. Plus, the No. 24 Chevrolet driver qualifies well at the 1-mile oval, averaging a start of 4.7 over his past six outings.