IndyCar heads to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Following a spectacular race at Road America, IndyCar heads over to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Sunday, where the world’s top drivers will compete for crucial points ahead before the season tips into the second half.
However, as always, there are a couple of drivers who are in the mix to win, yet only a couple we would consider as solid betting picks at the IndyCar odds today.
Let’s check the latest motor sports news, stats, reports and motor sports odds for IndyCar. We’ve plenty of predictions for you to consider.
Newgarden Chasing Fourth W
Josef Newgarden won at Road America in Round 8 of the 2022 IndyCar Series season and collected his third victory of the year. But even though he has won more races than any other driver in the field, Newgarden is only third in the standings with 261 points.
That might sound strange but it’s completely fair, considering Newgarden has managed just one top-five finish besides the three Ws. Elsewhere, he has placed 13th or worse, with his worst performance coming from GMR Grand Prix, where he placed 25th.
But despite his up-and-down results, Newgarden is an appealing name for anyone who wants to bet online on this weekend’s race. And that is mainly because he won here last year and has claimed the Grand Prix at Road America alongside a $1 million bonus, half of which he donated to charity.
“To finally get it done and most importantly to give that money to charity, half of that money is going to charity with SeriousFun Network and Wags and Walks Nashville,” said Newgarden.
Moreover, Newgarden is one of the most consistent drivers of the last decade, which might sound silly given his results this year. He has not finished lower than 14th in the overall standings, and he has not finished worse than top-four since 2016, including two championships in 2017 and 2019.
And if that’s not enough, he has a strong record on the Mid-Ohio track, where he has two career wins (2017, 2021) and a runner-up finish in 2020. Does that guarantee him success this time out? Not necessarily, but don’t be surprised if he wins.
Class of his Own
The IndyCar Series field consists of many exceptional drivers, but one stands out from the rest. Marcus Ericsson heads to the Mid-Ohio race as the current front-runner and a driver who has proven that he can deliver on any track.
Ericsson has won just one race in 2022, yet he still leads the standings (293 points), largely thanks to his consistency. In that way, he is the complete opposite of Newgarden. The Swede has won just one race but has placed worse than 12th only once.
His worst performance came in Long Beach (22nd) while the only other race where Ericsson placed outside of the top-10 came in Alabama. Meanwhile, he has not finished worse than seventh across the last four races, including a victory at the Indy 500 and a runner-up finish at Road America.
Much of that is thanks to Ericsson’s exceptional pit crew, which has proven instrumental to his success this year. So as a driver with enough talent to compete on any track and a strong team around him, Ericsson is hard to ignore.
2022 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Information
- Race: 2022 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
- Location: Mid-Ohio Race Sports Car Course, in Lexington, Ohio.
- Day/Time: Sunday, 12:30 p.m. ET
- 2022 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio LiveStream: indycar.com
2022 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Betting Lines
Josef Newgarden +350
Colton Herta +600
Patricio O’Ward +600
Alex Palou +650
Alexander Rossi +750
Scott Dixon +1000
Will Power +1000
Marcus Ericsson +1200
Romain Grosjean +1600
Scott McLaughlin +1600
Simon Pagenaud +2000
Felix Rosenqvist +2500
Rinus Veekay +2500
Graham Rahal +3300
Helio Castroneves +6600
Christian Lundgaard +7500
David Malukas +7500
Takuma Sato +7500
Conor Daly +8000
Callum Ilott +10000
Jack Harvey +10000
Kyle Kirkwood +15000
Devlin Defrancesco +25000
2022 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Prediction
Any driver in the field has a chance to win the upcoming race, but realistically, there are just two who have a very good chance to come out on top. Newgarden is the defending champion and definitely a serious candidate to repeat. Meanwhile, Ericsson is the most consistent driver of the season and a threat to Newgarden.
It’s hard to pick between the two. Newgarden won here 12 months ago and has just recently added his third W. However, Ericsson did not disappoint in the previous round either, placing second at Road America, and he was also runner-up at Mid-Ohio in 2021.
But even though you can’t go wrong picking either of them, we have to side with Ericsson for our main sports betting pick for the 2022 Honda Indy 200.
Newgarden has shown that he has a higher ceiling, but his lack of consistency makes him a far less appealing pick, whereas Ericsson is always a threat and seems to be the main candidate for each race.
