Toyota/Save Mart 350 Preview and Best Bet
NASCAR Cup Series: Toyota/Save Mart 350
Sunday, June 6, 2021 at 4 p.m. ET (FS1) at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California
Race Info
NASCAR’s Cup Series will resume on this upcoming Sunday when the Toyota/Save Mart 350 takes place at the Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California.
For this racing event, drivers must complete a total of 90 laps.
This event has three stages, which had been the norm before last week’s marathon racing event.
For this race, Stage 1 has 20 laps. Stage 2 consists in the next 20 laps.
Stage 3 requires the next and last 50 laps.
Just like in previous weeks, an entry list has been released for this event.
So barring any unforeseen occurrences, we already know of the teams and drivers that will participate in this race.
As for the starting lineup, most recent races had featured qualifying in order to establish who would start in what position.
For this Sunday’s race, starting position is established on Wednesday morning by a predetermined formula that replaces qualifying.
So for this event, there is no qualifying and there is no practice.
While there was practice for the road course in Austin, that was the first time that the NASCAR Cup Series staged a race there.
Sonoma, in contrast, is a well-known track for NASCAR drivers.
Track Info
Sonoma Raceway, the race track that will host his event, is 2.52 miles long.
So in completing 90 laps, drivers will have accumulated 226 miles, just over 350 kilometers.
This is a road course, composed of asphalt. It consists in 12 turns.
But keep an eye on the 11th turn especially.
This turn has been a prominent source of crashes and other kinds of drama for active NASCAR drivers.
There is no banking, as you expect there to be on NASCAR tracks that aren’t road courses
Its elevation involves a 160-foot ascent.
Drivers To Avoid
Be sure to avoid Brad Keselowski.
Overall, he demonstrates poor racing form as he’s finished outside the top 10 in four consecutive races.
This streak includes the course at Charlotte, where Keselowski has enjoyed more success in previous years than at most other tracks.
Even overlooking his current racing form, we have to recognize that Keselowski is regularly awful at Sonoma.
His average finishing position at this course is 16.80.
He’s finished 10th or worse in nine of 10 tries here and often worse than 15th.
Avoid Joey Logano for similar reasons.
He’s been hit-or-miss in recent NASCAR races, alternating between top-five finishes and finishes outside of the top 10.
Logano’s recent history at Sonoma has been more consistent but in a negative sense.
He has finished outside the top 10 at Sonoma in each of his last three attempts.
Also avoid Chase Elliott on Sunday.
Elliott is overrated because he has a reputation for thriving at road courses.
But his career numbers at Sonoma do not bear out his reputation.
In four races at Sonoma, he finished in 21st, 8th, 4th, and 37th.
His average finishing position at this track is nearly 10 spots worse than his average starting position.
My Guy
I am most interested in investing in Kyle Busch.
Busch shows strong overall racing form, having finished top-three in three of his last five races.
While he laid an absolute egg a couple weeks ago at Dover, Dover is historically one of his worst racing tracks.
Conversely, Sonoma is his second-best racing venue to compete in as measured by average finishing position. It’s also one of his best in terms of average driving rating.
His recent history at Sonoma shows that he has things figured out: he’s finished top-five in each of his last three races here.
Given what we know about Kyle Busch, his odds to win look very attractive.
Best Bet: Kyle Busch To Win at +1000 at Bovada
NASCAR Cup Series: Toyota/Save Mart 350
Sunday, June 6, 2021 at 4 p.m. ET (FS1) at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California
Race Info
NASCAR’s Cup Series will resume on this upcoming Sunday when the Toyota/Save Mart 350 takes place at the Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California.
For this racing event, drivers must complete a total of 90 laps.
This event has three stages, which had been the norm before last week’s marathon racing event.
For this race, Stage 1 has 20 laps. Stage 2 consists in the next 20 laps.
Stage 3 requires the next and last 50 laps.
Just like in previous weeks, an entry list has been released for this event.
So barring any unforeseen occurrences, we already know of the teams and drivers that will participate in this race.
As for the starting lineup, most recent races had featured qualifying in order to establish who would start in what position.
For this Sunday’s race, starting position is established on Wednesday morning by a predetermined formula that replaces qualifying.
So for this event, there is no qualifying and there is no practice.
While there was practice for the road course in Austin, that was the first time that the NASCAR Cup Series staged a race there.
Sonoma, in contrast, is a well-known track for NASCAR drivers.
Track Info
Sonoma Raceway, the race track that will host his event, is 2.52 miles long.
So in completing 90 laps, drivers will have accumulated 226 miles, just over 350 kilometers.
This is a road course, composed of asphalt. It consists in 12 turns.
But keep an eye on the 11th turn especially.
This turn has been a prominent source of crashes and other kinds of drama for active NASCAR drivers.
There is no banking, as you expect there to be on NASCAR tracks that aren’t road courses
Its elevation involves a 160-foot ascent.
Drivers To Avoid
Be sure to avoid Brad Keselowski.
Overall, he demonstrates poor racing form as he’s finished outside the top 10 in four consecutive races.
This streak includes the course at Charlotte, where Keselowski has enjoyed more success in previous years than at most other tracks.
Even overlooking his current racing form, we have to recognize that Keselowski is regularly awful at Sonoma.
His average finishing position at this course is 16.80.
He’s finished 10th or worse in nine of 10 tries here and often worse than 15th.
Avoid Joey Logano for similar reasons.
He’s been hit-or-miss in recent NASCAR races, alternating between top-five finishes and finishes outside of the top 10.
Logano’s recent history at Sonoma has been more consistent but in a negative sense.
He has finished outside the top 10 at Sonoma in each of his last three attempts.
Also avoid Chase Elliott on Sunday.
Elliott is overrated because he has a reputation for thriving at road courses.
But his career numbers at Sonoma do not bear out his reputation.
In four races at Sonoma, he finished in 21st, 8th, 4th, and 37th.
His average finishing position at this track is nearly 10 spots worse than his average starting position.
My Guy
I am most interested in investing in Kyle Busch.
Busch shows strong overall racing form, having finished top-three in three of his last five races.
While he laid an absolute egg a couple weeks ago at Dover, Dover is historically one of his worst racing tracks.
Conversely, Sonoma is his second-best racing venue to compete in as measured by average finishing position. It’s also one of his best in terms of average driving rating.
His recent history at Sonoma shows that he has things figured out: he’s finished top-five in each of his last three races here.
Given what we know about Kyle Busch, his odds to win look very attractive.
Best Bet: Kyle Busch To Win at +1000 at Bovada
