2023 NASCAR Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum Best Odds, Bets & Picks

Feb 3, 2023 - 12:33 PM

Somewhere between the USC scholars and Marina Del Ray’s beach bums, there’s a rumble as the NASCAR Cup Series returns to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum this weekend. America’s premier stock car series kicks off its season Sunday, Feb. 5, with its annual preseason event, the Busch Light Clash.

A racing-filled evening begins at 5:00 p.m. ET  with four heat races, followed by two last-chance qualifiers. The green flag drops on the 150-lap main event at 8:00 p.m. ET on Fox, where the field of now 27 drivers will race for an overall purse of $2,085,000.

Volatility will be high in this race due to projected bumping and banging on the quarter-mile track and NASCAR testing new additions to the next-gen stock cars like mufflers. The books are aware of this, releasing limited markets across most major platforms. Gamblers should also consider this volatility when wagering on this unicorn event.

Below are my best bets for the Clash and a cheers to the dawn of a new NASCAR season.

2023 NASCAR Busch Light Clash Best Bets

(Odds courtesy of Barstool Sportsbook)

Top 3: Kyle Busch (+250)

Kyle Busch led all drivers in laps led at last year’s inaugural race at the Coliseum with 64. The next closest? Tyler Reddick with 51 in Busch’s new No. 8 car. Though he was eventually passed by 2022 Clash winner and eventual Cup Series Champion Joey Logano, Busch had the highest driver rating (134.3) in Los Angeles, according to DriverAverages.com.

This will be Busch’s first career race with Richard Childress Racing (RCR) since Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) didn’t resign him last season. However, Busch proved with a win a Bristol Dirt and top-10 finishes at Martinsville, Richmond and Phoenix that he remains one of the most-feared short-track specialists in stock car racing. With more motivation than ever after being replaced by Gibbs’ grandson, I’m backing Rowdy here at the Clash.

Matchup: Kevin Harvick (-125) vs. Martin Truex Jr. (-104)

After finishing more races than any of his JGR teammates, but failing to capture a win in 2022, I’m fading Martin Truex Jr. to begin this season. A three-time winner at Martinsville – the Coliseum’s closest comparison – Truex Jr. was a trendy pick for last year’s Clash. However, he was a non-factor in the main event, barely scraping out a top-15 finish.

Meanwhile, Kevin Harvick finished second in the first last-chance qualifier and 10th in the main event. Additionally, Harvick’s had a better starting position at our comp track of Martinsville (8.0) compared to Truex Jr. (10.8) since 2020. This means that Harvick should have a higher chance of getting better track position early than the No. 19 car.

Truex Jr. is now the low man on the totem pole at JGR, while Harvick remains the top dog for Stewart-Haas Racing amidst his farewell tour. I’ll ride with the Busch Light-backed Harvick in this one.

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Seth Woolcock is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more sports betting and fantasy sports analysis with a hint of feel-good lifestyle advice from Seth, check out In-Between Media and follow him @Between_SethFF.

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