2016 UNOH 175 Race Predictions

2016 UNOH 175 Race Predictions
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Betting Preview
Saturday September 24th, 1:19PM (EST) at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
by Jay Horne of NASCARWagers.com, NASCAR Handicapping Service

The inaugural Camping World Truck Series Chase will kick off later this afternoon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with the running of the UNOH 175. Currently 8 drivers are in the hunt for the Camping World Truck Series Championship and two drivers will be eliminated in each of the next two rounds which consist of 3 races each before the race for championship with the final 4 drivers at Homestead. Therefore, the racing and competition amongst the Camping World Truck Series is going to be fierce over the next several weeks as every race holds significant weight towards the championship. Take a look as we kick off the Chase in the Truck Series and provide our 2016 UNOH 175 race predictions!

The Camping World Truck Series only visits New Hampshire Motor Speedway once per year and honestly this is the only track of it’s kind on the Truck Series circuit. Only 1 driver that is participating in today’s field has previously scored a win at New Hampshire and ironically it is one of the youngest drivers in the field in Cole Custer. Custer scored the first win of his career in 2014 in Loudon by becoming the youngest winner in NASCAR history at just 16 years old. I have always considered short tracks and flat surfaces to be a strength for Custer. Unfortunately, there is just not many of those tracks on the schedule in the Truck Series for Custer to display his talent on those track types. However, today will be the exception for Custer to let his talent shine and perhaps get a little revenge on failing to miss the Chase.

Custer was decent in both practices on Friday but he is never very flashy on the speed charts. I expect the #00 to race well once the green flag is waved. While Custer is a solid dark horse, the two favorites for today’s race are William Byron and Matt Crafton. Both drivers are the two favorites for the Chase and they have both been strong since unloading on Friday. Byron made his mark on the season in blazing fashion scoring 5 wins in his rookie campaign which is the most by any rookie in the history of the series. He has proved he can win on all track types and he posted a very fast 10 lap average in the first practice to solidify his chances of scoring another win this afternoon. I would point out the fact that Byron does not have any experience in Loudon but that has not stopped him from winning in his first track appearance at other stops on the schedule this year.

Crafton on the other hand does have some Loudon experience under his belt. In fact, he has 13 starts at New Hampshire to be exact. Despite not having any wins, Crafton has been very close in recent years with 5 straight finishes of 6th or better including a runner-up showing in this race last year. I thought Crafton may fly a little under the radar this week because he does not always practice extremely well but he topped the speed charts in final practice which killed the possibility of his odds improving much more unless he has a bad qualifying effort. Still, the #88 truck should be in contention for the victory this afternoon despite where they may qualify.

A few other guys that I believe should be on everyone’s radar include Christopher Bell, Johnny Sauter, and John Hunter Nemechek. Nemechek did not practice overly well but he has a knack for the short tracks and we jumped on him early in the week at 11-1 odds. Bell was very fast in practice which was the case for all the KBM trucks. However, I do like Bell’s short track skills and ability to get back to the throttle early for a place like New Hampshire. Sauter is another guy that deserves some attention. This #21 team has been running very well despite the fact that they have not won since the opening race at Daytona. Since Kansas, Sauter has finished in the top 10 in 11 of 12 races including 7 top 5 finishes. At New Hampshire, Sauter has only finishes outside the top 5 once (7th) in his 5 career starts. Unlike some of the practice demons like Ben Rhodes and Cameron Hayley who usually fall back when the green flag drops, I expect Sauter to race forward.

2016 UNOH 175 Race Predictions

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Johnny Sauter +800 (1.25 units)
John Hunter Nemecheck +1100 (1 unit)

Two Team Parlay

William Byron +145 wins UNOH 175
Team 2 – Open
Risking 1.5 units to win: TBD

Matt Crafton +320 wins UNOH 175
Team 2 – Open
Risking .5 units to win: TBD

H2H Matchups

Johnny Sauter -115 over Timothy Peters (3 units)
Cole Custer +150 over Daniel Hemric (1 unit)