NASCAR 2023: Preview and odds for NOCO 400 at Martinsville Speedway

The NOCO 400 marks the ninth race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season. The green flag is set to drop on Sunday, April 16, at 3:00 pm ET at Martinsville Speedway.

A total of 37 drivers will be competing for over 250 laps in this week’s Cup Series race. This will be the 74th annual NOCO 400 hosted by Martinsville Speedway in the history of the NASCAR Cup Series. NASCAR’s shortest track on the calendar features 12 degrees of banking in turn and zero degrees of banking on the straightaways.

The 0.526-mile (0.847 km) paperclip-shaped short track was one of the first paved oval tracks in the sport and the only remaining race track on the NASCAR circuit since its beginning in 1948.

Heading to Ridgeway, Virginia, four drivers are favorites to win this weekend’s race according to CBS Sports. Kyle Larson, William Byron (the defending champion of the event), Martin Truex Jr., and Christopher Bell stand at the top of the odds at 6-1 to win Sunday’s Cup race.

Apart from Truex Jr., all three drivers have secured their playoff spots. However, Truex Jr. won this event in 2021 and 2020.

Meanwhile, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin holds the second-highest odds at 7-1, followed by Team Penske drivers – Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano at 10-1 in the odds table. Kyle Busch (12-1) and Ross Chastain (15-1) have the top-five highest odds.

Daytona 500 winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has the 15th-highest odds at 200-1 to win in Richmond, Virginia.

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Opening odds for 2023 NASCAR NOCO 400

Here are the odds for all 36 NASCAR Cup drivers competing at Martinsville Speedway:

1. Kyle Larson 6-1
2. Martin Truex Jr. 6-1
3. William Byron 6-1
4. Christopher Bell 6-1
5. Denny Hamlin 7-1
6. Ryan Blaney 10-1
7. Joey Logano 10-1
8. Kyle Busch 12-1
9. Ross Chastain 15-1
10. Brad Keselowski 18-1
11. Alex Bowman 18-1
12. Kevin Harvick 20-1
13. Tyler Reddick 25-1
14. Josh Berry 25-1
15. Chase Briscoe 30-1
16. Ryan Preece 40-1
17. Bubba Wallace 40-1
18. Aric Almirola 40-1
19. Daniel Suarez 40-1
20. Chris Buescher 40-1
21. Austin Dillon 50-1
22. Ty Gibbs 60-1
23. Austin Cindric 60-1
24. A.J. Allmendinger 110-1
25. Erik Jones 125-1
26. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 200-1
27. Justin Haley 250-1
28. Michael McDowell 300-1
29. Harrison Burton 300-1
30. Noah Gragson 500-1
31. Todd Gilliland 500-1
32. Corey Lajoie 1000-1
33. Ty Dillon 1500-1
34. Anthony Alfredo 2500-1
35. JJ Yeley 2500-1

The live telecast of Sunday’s NOCO 400 can be viewed on FS1 and MRN.