To Win The Race:
Chase Elliott Leads the Pack
Chase Elliott (+350) holds the second-best odds, piloting the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in a surprise one-off entry, announced at the beginning of the week, pairing the Dawsonville, Georgia native up with Adam Wall on the pit box once more.
Elliott’s runner-up finish at Darlington in April and 2024 win at Charlotte show his Xfinity Series prowess, having won the 2014 series championship for JR Motorsports and his 2022 Pocono Cup Series win (finished third, but pair of JGR cars DQ’d) proves he can tame the Tricky Triangle’s unique three-turn layout.
Elliott outshines Justin Allgaier (+280), a consistent front-runner with a third-place finish at Pocono in 2024. Allgaier, the reigning series champion, always has a fast Chevrolet Camaro at any race track, but has been marred with bad luck for much of the season. Allgaier, with a fast hot rod, is a strong contender but faces a tough challenge from Elliott’s experience. I like to play one favorite per race weekend to minimize risk and the way the board sets up this week, I like Elliott over Allgaier in doing so.
Take Elliott (+350) over Allgaier (+280) if you want a ‘to win the race’ pick worth multiple units. Remember, Elliott ran this Xfinity Series race back in 2023 and finished third after a late-race restart.
Allgaier’s Xfinity experience over the field is usually a strong suit, but Elliott also has plenty, in addition to several Cup starts at Pocono.
Often referred to as a driver’s track, Pocono is a superspeedway that drives like a road course or a flat oval short track at times.
It truly is a wonder of its own, with the size of Daytona and Talladega, mixed with a 90’s style vintage draft, a short track drivability and the turns of a road course for handling.
Elliott’s road course mastery, specifically in the old Gen 6 era car, which drives more like the Xfinity Series car than the NextGen car, is notable here.
Every time Chase Elliott steps into an Xfinity Car, it’s almost like turning back the clock to his magical 2020 season with Hendrick Motorsports in Cup.
Elliott is the play to win this weekend. I truly believe the Georgia native is finding his form at the right time, coming off a P3 in the Cup race at Mexico City and putting together strong runs in the NextGen.
I am a big believer in momentum for race picks.
Elliott finds victory lane at Pocono, on Saturday at least.
Let’s look at some Top 3’s now. Top 3 pick analysis is up next!
