2016 Pocono Mountains 150 Race Predictions

2016 Pocono Mountains 150 Race Predictions
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Betting Preview
Saturday July 30th, 1:20PM (EST) at Pocono Raceway
by Jay Horne of NASCARWagers.com, NASCAR Handicapping Service

NASCAR will have double duty today as both the Camping World Truck and Xfinity Series’ will be in action. The Truck Series will kick off the festivities with the running of the Pocono Mountains 150 at Pocono Raceway with the green flag scheduled to wave shortly after 1:00PM (EST). Then when the dust settles on the Truck Series race in the Poconos, the Xfinity Series will cap off the night with short track racing at Iowa Speedway. So get ready for a full day of racing and several betting opportunities as we prepare for an exciting double header. Take a look as we start things off with our 2016 Pocono Mountains 150 race predictions!

Despite the fact the Sprint Cup Series is also in Pocono this weekend, there will not be any Sprint Cup Series drivers participating in today’s event. Instead it will be solely Truck Series regulars and part time drivers that will make up the 31 trucks in today’s field. With that being the case, William Byron enters today’s race as the overwhelming favorite to capture the checkered flag. As most are aware, the 18 year old has had a sensational season thus far with 4 victories in just 11 races.

On Friday, Byron appeared to have a truck that is very capable of returning to victory lane this afternoon. Byron posted the fastest lap in practice 1 and was 3rd best in final practice. The #9 truck stood out from the rest of the competition with nearly every circuit that he took in practice and I would give the youngster the clear advantage for today’s race. Byron raced in the ARCA Series at Pocono last June in effort to get some extra seat time in preparation for when the Truck Series returned to Pocono this weekend. So if you were worried about the rookie struggling in his first start at the Tricky Triangle, I think he has had enough laps here to be sharp once the green flag waves.

As far as the rest of the field is concerned, it is a guessing game behind Byron. I originally thought guys like Tyler Reddick and Matt Crafton would be threats for today’s race simply based on their talent levels combined with both drivers experience factors being a key role. Reddick finished 3rd in this race last year and has posted top 5 finishes in 4 of his last 6 races. However neither Reddick nor Crafton looked very good in practices on Friday. Reddick was not far off but the #29 team definitely had some ground to make up in terms of speed. Crafton on the other hand was not even in the ballpark as the #88 truck struggled severely throughout both practices. Crafton has not been running very well in recent weeks and I think the #88 team could be fade material this afternoon.

If you are looking for a few drivers that could possibly steal the show, I believe Christopher Bell and Cameron Hayley are both solid dark horses for today’s race. Hayley may be the bigger dark horse but he has proved that he can race well at Pocono in the past if you go by last year’s 4th place finish. Hayley also looked pretty decent on speed in both of Friday’s practices. Christopher Bell also looked strong from a practices standpoint. Bell was the only driver outside of Byron that was in the top 5 in both practices. However, it is not just because of practice that I find Bell appealing. The youngster has been very strong in recent weeks in the Truck Series on every surface with finishes of 2nd, 4th, and 1st in his last 3 starts. We know the KBM trucks are really strong in terms of speed and I believe Bell will be the biggest threats outside of Byron to win today’s race.

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2016 Pocono Mountains 150 Race Predictions

William Byron +175 (5 units): 4 wins already this season, fastest in practice 1, easily looked like the truck to beat from Friday’s sessions
Christopher Bell +700 (1.25 units): running really strong in recent weeks, 3rd fastest in practice 1, expect his odds to drop after qualifying

H2H Matchups

Cameron Hayley -105 over Ben Rhodes (2 units)