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2025 NASCAR Cup Predictions: Bet Blaney to Win Series Title
- Ryan Blaney (+700) is the early pick to win the 2025 NASCAR Cup series title.
- Steer clear of co-favorite Joey Logano (+1200) winning the Daytona 500
The NASCAR offseason is over as Cup Series cars will be hitting the track for the Clash at Bowman Gray, which means we are a mere two weeks away from the Daytona 500. It’s never too late to look ahead, so today, we will assess the available NASCAR futures odds, such as the winner of the Great American Race, the Cup Series Championship and what is shaping up to be a stacked field in the Xfinity Series.
Continue reading for some of our NASCAR predictions for the 2025 season, beginning with the Great American Race on Feb. 16.
3 NASCAR Best Bets in 2025
1. Searching for the Daytona 500 Longshot
The draft at Daytona International Speedway means nearly anyone in the field can compete for the win. We have seen longshot upsets from the likes of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Michael McDowell and Austin Cindric in recent years.
The BetUS Sportsbook currently has odds for the 36 chartered drivers, though nine others are expected to vie for four open spots on the grid. Be on the lookout for odds of Cup champions Martin Truex Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, as well as IndyCar star Helio Castroneves, among others.
Of these 36 drivers, who do we think will be at the front of the field when the checkered flag waves? The biggest storyline is Kyle Busch still vying for his first 500 win in his 20th attempt, mirroring the storyline of Dale Earnhardt. Busch is generally not a great superspeedway driver — his win at Talladega in 2023 was his first since 2008.
The oddsmakers have jumped on this narrative as Busch is a co-favorite (+1200) alongside Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. While it would be a great story, we are staying away from Busch when making our NASCAR picks for Daytona
Blaney is viewed as one of the best superspeedway drivers, falling just short of the Harley J. Earl trophy on multiple occasions. The same goes for former teammate Keselowski, who has won twice at Daytona in the summer, though never in the season opener. It has been nearly a decade since recently crowned three-time NASCAR Cup champion Logano won the 500.
Who outside of the favorites might win? Who could be the Cinderella story that clinches a playoff spot? A fun longshot is rookie Riley Herbst, who is joining Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace at 23XI Racing.
Herbst scored a top-10 at the 500 in his Cup debut in 2019 and followed it up with a 10th at Talladega. He was then driving for backmarker Rick Ware Racing. With 23XI equipment and experienced Toyota drafting partners, Herbst could be the playoff spoiler at +4000 in NASCAR betting lines.
2. Bet Blaney To Win Cup
In rare fashion, defending Series Cup champion Logano is not the online betting favorite to win the Cup Championship to start the season – nor is he particularly close. While one could point to the fact it is an odd-numbered year, Logano was simply not very good in 2024.
Logano owned the lowest average finish of a champion in series history. He simply exploited an exploitable playoff system. We are staying far away from the future Hall of Famer at +875 odds.
The Cup Series favorite is Kyle Larson, who seemed to be in the driver’s seat for much of 2024 before being plagued by playoff misfortune. Christopher Bell (+550) and Tyler Reddick (+900) both appeared as threats and made the championship race last year.
William Byron (+700) is still vying for his first Cup championship, but for a mere fraction of the time that Denny Hamlin, who has the same odds, has been trying. Hamlin’s 2024 NASCAR stats are lacking context: His three wins were all before May, failing to visit victory lane the last 23 races. Denny just never seems to be able to get it done when it matters and we believe this year will be more of the same.
Also sitting at +700 is 2023 champ Ryan Blaney, who nearly pulled off a repeat at Phoenix in November. Blaney was the flag-bearer for Team Penske all season, outperforming teammates Logano and Austin Cindric. Penske has shown its affinity for performing in the clutch, winning the last three championships, two of them with underwhelming seasons from Logano.
Per NASCAR betting trends, Blaney has won three races in back-to-back seasons and three of the last four, establishing himself as the top Ford driver week in and week out. If Penske can maintain its unprecedented playoff performance, we think that come November, we could be looking at Ryan Blaney as a two-time Cup Series champion.
Bet this pick: Ryan Blaney +700 to win the NASCAR Cup Series Championship
3. Pick Zilisch as Xfinity Champ
The hype for this year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series might be just as high as the Cup Series. There is a remarkable rookie class featuring phenoms Connor Zilisch, Carson Kvapil, Taylor Gray, Christian Eckes, William Sawalich and Nick Sanchez, who could all be contending for wins on a weekly basis.
This is on top of series regulars Justin Allgaier, Austin Hill, Sam Mayer, Sheldon Creed and Jesse Love. This could be shaping up to be the most contentious playoff battle since adopting the new format. But who will win the championship when it’s all said and done?
We will go with the prodigy in Zilisch, who is running for one of the best teams in the series is JR Motorsports and is even making his Cup debut at COTA. While still having to compete with now teammate Shane Van Gisbergen, Zilisch could win multiple road courses, though does need to show improvement on ovals.
While not a longshot, our NASCAR pick will go with Zilisch at +700 to win the Xfinity championship in his first full-time NASCAR campaign.
Bet this pick: Connor Zilisch +700 to win the Xfinity Series Championship
Odds and information are accurate at the time of writing. Please check with official sources for the latest updates before placing any bets
Question Of The Day
What are defending Daytona 500 winner William Byron’s odds to win again?
+1400
