Coke Zero Sugar 400 Preview and Best Bet

Top sportsbooks have released their odds for this weekend's NASCAR Cup Series action. Because this upcoming race is the regular season finale, there are a lot of scenarios to be cognizant of as we assess driver motivation for this race.

Here is a breakdown of all the info that you'll want to have for this race as well as analysis on how you should approach this race as a bettor. Be careful when you place your bets because this race will take place on Saturday, not on Sunday like previous races.

NASCAR Cup Series: Coke Zero Sugar 400 

Saturday, August 28, 2021 - 7:00 PM ET at Daytona International Speedway

Race Info

NASCAR's Cup Series resumes on Saturday with the Coke Zero Sugar 400. This race will be the regular season finale, the final event before the playoffs begin. For this racing event, drivers must complete a total of 160 laps.

As we've seen in almost every race this season, there will be three stages for this event. Stage 1 will require drivers to complete 50 laps. Stage 2 also consists in 50 laps. Stage 3 requires 60 more laps.

As has been the case every week, an entry list has been published for this event. The entry list is already full: there are 40 drivers/teams listed out of 40 possible drivers/teams. So, barring any unforeseen events, we will already know who will compete in this race.

Conventionally, the starting lineup gets posted for the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series race on Wednesday morning. Because drivers are historically already quite familiar with this track, there will neither be qualifying nor a practice session for this race.

Instead, a predetermined formula will establish who will start in what position.

Carmen Mandato/Getty Images/AFP

Track Info 

One cool thing about this race is that it takes place on the prestigious Daytona International Speedway, which is, of course, also the home of the legendary Daytona 500. Know for your sports betting that this track is shaped as a tri-oval that routinely encourages very high speeds.

Speed is encouraged by, among other things, uniquely high banking. The turns are banked at an absurd 31 degrees. The tri-oval is banked at 18 degrees and the back straightaway is banked at two degrees.

Banking allows drivers to collect more momentum and so reach greater speeds. Specifically, each lap is 2.5 miles long on an asphalt surface. So in completing 160 laps, drivers will have completed 400 miles.

Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Snickers Toyota. Sean Gardner/Getty Images/AFP

Drivers To Avoid

Because this is the regular season finale, certain drivers have more to compete for while others have less to compete for. In the NASCAR Cup Series, there are 16 playoff spots. 15 have already been determined.

Not all 15 drivers, though, are worth overlooking for Saturday's race simply because they have already clinched a playoff spot. The two exceptions are Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin. Both are in the playoffs, but both will be motivated to win the Regular Season Championship by accruing more points.

So forget, then, about Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, as well as other big names like Kevin Harvick. They don't have anything or as much to gain from performing well in Saturday's race. Keep this in mind for your best bets.

Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet. Sean Gardner/Getty Images/AFP

My Guy 

Motivation is an insufficient reason, by itself, to bet on a driver. There are a lot of different drivers who could clinch that 16th playoff spot by winning Saturday's race. They will all be especially motivated to do just that. But we can't bet on all of those drivers, nor would it make sense to do so.

Austin Dillon is on the cusp of 16th place. But he is too hit-or-miss at this track based on his history here.

Larson is so easy to back this year. But this is not the venue to back him in because he has a comparatively awful history here. He has finished stronger than 10th three times in 14 tries in Daytona and has zero top-five finishes.

Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Freight Toyota. Logan Riely/Getty Images/AFP

Instead, my guy is Denny Hamlin. He has won three times at this track with one of those wins coming in 2020 and another in 2019.

This driver has been consistently solid here as he's finished top-five in four of his last five tries at Daytona. He'll look to build off of his fifth-place finish last week in order to become Regular Season Champion.

For the above reasons, invest in Hamlin with your NASCAR picks.

NASCAR Pick: (visit our Sportsbook Review)

*The pick reflects the line at the moment the writer made the play, the odds at the beginning of this article show the live line movement. Since the lines might vary, don’t forget to refer back to our live odds.