2017 VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 Race Predictions

2017 VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 Race Predictions
NASCAR Xfinity Series Betting Preview
Saturday September 23rd, 1:17PM (EST) at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
by Jay Horne of NASCARWagers.com, NASCAR Handicapping Service

The Xfinity Series’ Chase will kick off tonight at Kentucky Speedway when the green flag is waved for the VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300. Last week Justin Allgaier scored a somewhat surprising victory at Chicagoland Speedway to build momentum heading into the Chase. Allgaier and William Byron (3) are the only two full-time Xfinity Series drivers with multiple wins and they are the favorites to bring home a title. Today the journey towards a championship begins with 300 miles at Kentucky Speedway under the lights. Take a look as we preview tonight’s race and provide our 2017 VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 race predictions!

Last week’s race at Chicagoland was the first time the Xfinity Series visited a 1.5 mile track since their last trip to Kentucky back in July. Cup Series veteran Kyle Busch won that race and was followed by fellow Cup Series’ drivers Ryan Blaney and Erik Jones. The good news for the drivers this afternoon is that there will not be any Cup Series drivers participating as they are stationed in New Hampshire awaiting Sunday’s ISM Connect 300. Therefore part-time drivers like Sam Hornish Jr (#22), Ryan Preece (#20), and Kyle Benjamin (#18) will be fulfilling some of those important rides this afternoon. Both Hornish and Preece have scored wins this year in part-time rides at Mid-Ohio and Iowa against Xfinity Series competition in races that lacked Cup Series talent. Therefore, the part-time talents must be respected over the next few weeks as well considering the amount of Cup Series entries will be limited during the Xfinity Series Chase.

From practices, Ryan Preece and Justin Allgaier appeared to have the fastest cars. For Allgaier that may not be surprising following last week’s win at Chicagoland. To have Preece in that same conversation among the leaders may be surprising to some. However, I have been completely impressed with Preece’s raw driving talent this year in his first opportunity in top notch equipment. Preece finished in the 2nd position at Loudon and then backed it up with a winning effort at Iowa. We have yet to see Preece race at one of the 1.5 mile tracks this year to gauge driving style because Iowa and New Hampshire are similar flat tracks. However, we do know that #20 has been very strong everywhere this year so I am a believer in both driver and equipment.

Staying on the topic of practices, I did not see anyone that looked overly dominant in terms of speed. Outside of Allgaier and Preece, things seemed pretty tamed. I am sure Elliott Sadler will be decent because the #1 team is always competitive. However, I have also observed Sadler fade in the latter stages of races in recent weeks which makes me not want to take him. Guys like Kyle Benjamin, Cole Custer, and Sam Hornish Jr simply looked off in terms of lap times. Hornish made some improvements in the final practice on Friday but I still believe they were pretty off in comparison to what the leaders were running.

Despite the practice speeds, remember track conditions will be much different under the lights later this evening. In these last 7 races for the Xfinity Series Chase, I will have a lot of focus on rookie William Byron who leads the series with 3 victories. All of Byron’s victories come within a 5 race stretch and you could make the argument that he has not contended for a win since that stretch. However, I still believe Byron is the best driver among the full-time Xfinity Series participants. If you look back at the last few races in recent weeks, Byron has consistently been among the top finishers for full-time drivers and I think that will continue throughout the Chase. Therefore, I would not rule out Byron in any races over the next several weeks.

If you are looking for a potential long shot or driver that may bring H2H value, I would suggest focusing on Tyler Reddick. Reddick has historically run well at 1.5 mile tracks throughout his career and he posted a relatively solid performance at Kentucky in July with a 10th place showing in a field full of Cup Series drivers. I think it would be a stretch to consider Reddick for the outright victory. However, if you can find him in some lower tier matchups he could bring some serious value.