2017 Drivin for Linemen 200 Race Predictions

2017 Drivin for Linemen 200 Race Predictions
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Betting Preview
Saturday June 17th, 8:48PM (EST) at Gateway Motorsports Park
by Jay Horne of NASCARWagers.com, NASCAR Handicapping Service

While Xfinity Series racing is currently underway at Michigan, the Camping World Truck Series will take over the spotlight later tonight when the green flag is waved for the Drivin for Linemen 200 at Gateway Motorsports Park. The Truck Series is the only top series in NASCAR that currently has Gateway on the schedule. Therefore this track may be unfamiliar for most fans but it has provided some great racing in recent years in the Truck Series. Tonight we anticipate another promising race highlighted by a strong crop of upcoming young talent. Take a look as we preview tonight’s racing and provide our 2017 Drivin for LInemen 200 race predictions at Gateway!

Last week points leader Christopher Bell scored his 2nd victory of the season at Texas Motor Speedway in somewhat dominating fashion by leading 92 of the 167 scheduled laps. Bell has been the most consistent frontrunner in the Truck Series this season and tonight’s race should be another great opportunity for the #4 team. Bell is the defending winner of the Drivin for Linemen 200 as he scored his only win in 2016 at Gateway. After a pair of relatively strong practices earlier this morning, Bell appears to be the guy to beat heading into tonight’s 160 lap race.

While I am sure that most people could identify Bell as the favorite giving last year’s win and his momentum this season in the Truck Series, I would like to warn everyone that the gap between the #4 truck and the rest of the competition is not very big. In fact, I think we could have several different drivers that could have a chance to compete for the win later this evening. Matt Crafton, Ben Rhodes, and John Hunter Nemechek are a few guys that I think deserve some attention tonight after going 1-3 in final practice. I am a fan of Rhodes and took him early in the week at +1150. I think everyone is aware that Rhodes has posted a few quality runs this year most noticeably the near win at Kansas before a late race engine failure. Even with Kansas in the rearview, Rhodes has still been running well in recent weeks with top 5 finishes in his last two starts. He was also 2nd to Bell in this race a year ago in a #41 truck that was underfunded. The #27 team has been pretty strong in recent weeks and I think that bodes well for Rhodes’ chances later this evening.

Crafton and John Hunter Nemechek also deserve some consideration for tonight’s race. Crafton has been solid this year but they just have not had race winning speed. In fact, Crafton has just 1 top 5 finishes on the season back in week 2 at Atlanta. However, I still list Crafton as a guy to watch tonight considering he looked strong in both practices this morning. I still would recommend avoiding the #88 until the team can show some more speed but they are worth keeping on your radar. John Hunter Nemechek is a guy that I think could be a dark horse this evening. JHN has had horrific luck in recent weeks with several bad finishes to show for it. However, the team has speed and Gateway is a place where Nemechek has run well with finishes of 4th and 6th over the last two years. Therefore if they can avoid the misfortunate and stay out of trouble, they should be able to run towards the front of the field later this evening.

If dark horses is something that you want to look for, I would also consider Chase Briscoe and Todd Gilliland. I warned everyone that Gilliland would be the next superstar in the Truck Series several weeks ago when he made his first career start at Dover. Unfortunately, Gilliland suffered mechanical failure in that race and never really was able to showcase his talent. I think that will change tonight because Gateway is not necessarily a difficult track to learn and we have seen young guys excel at this racetrack in the past (Cole Custer and Christopher Bell). Therefore, I think Gilliland could have a somewhat breakout performance tonight behind the wheel of a fast #51 truck. Briscoe is in a similar situation in the #29 truck. To be honest, Briscoe was robbed of a victory last week as controversy surrounding the timing of the caution lights. Either way Briscoe proved that he has the talent to get the job done. I do not think Briscoe looked quite as strong as some of the others from a practice standpoint but he is still a developing talent that could be a weekly threat in the near future.

2017 Drivin for Linemen 200 Race Predictions

Get in on today’s betting action with Bovada!

John Hunter Nemechek +850 (1.25 units)
Chase Briscoe +950 (1.25 units)
Ben Rhodes +1150 (1.25 units)
Todd Gilliland +4000 (.5 unit)

Two Team Parlay

Christopher Bell +200 wins Drivin for Linemen 200
Team 2 – Open
Risking .75 units to win: TBD

H2H Matchups