2026 NC Education Lottery 200 Betting Race Picks

Date/Time: Friday May 22nd, 2026. 7:30PM (EST)
Where: Charlotte Motor Speedway
TV: FS1

Yesterday afternoon, the racing world experienced one of the most gut-wrenching tragedies since 2001 with the sudden passing of Cup Series superstar Kyle Busch. Just a week ago, Busch earned his 69th career victory in Truck Series competition, in true Rowdy fashion, by dominating the ECOSAVE 200 at Dover Motor Speedway. Unbeknownst to everyone, that victory will now be known as the last victory in Busch’s historic career. Busch was scheduled to compete again tonight at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the running of the NC Education Lottery 200 but unfortunately that will not be how things unfold. As a result, this preview for the NC Education Lottery 200 is dedicated to one of the greatest drivers of our generation, RIP Rowdy!

Connor Zilisch, Ross Chastain, Shane Van Gisbergen, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr are among the Cup Series names that will be competing tonight along with the Truck Series regulars. Additionally, Corey Day will fill the seat in the #7 truck for Kyle Busch and Brandon Jones will return for another start in the #1 truck at TRICON Garage. Carson Hocevar was originally scheduled to drive the #77 truck for Spire Motorsports. Hocevar won earlier this year at Texas and was expected to be among the heavy favorites tonight. Instead, Connor Zilisch has been named the replacement and will pilot the #77 later this afternoon.

While the big betting favorites have won the majority of the races this season in the Truck Series, I think tonight’s race could be more competitive than most expect. I don’t think anyone is going to completely run away with this race and there should be some Truck Series’ regulars that are able to contend for a victory as well. While I typically preach for bettors to remain conservative and to protect overall risks, I think Friday’s NC Education Lottery 200 is one that we can be cautiously aggressive given current betting odds. While the Cup Series drivers in this race will be tough to beat, I believe there are enough potential contenders to have a more diverse betting lineup as well.

Truck Notes – Charlotte

Kyle Busch owns the most wins (8) all-time at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Ross Chastain (2022) and Ben Rhodes (2023) are also former winners at Charlotte.
Ross Chastain has finished 1st or 2nd in his last two starts at Charlotte.
Carson Hocevar has finished 4th and 2nd in 2 of 3 career starts at Charlotte.
Ben Rhodes has finished in the Top 5 in 5 of the last 8 races at Charlotte.
Kaden Honeycutt has finished 7th or better in two career starts at Charlotte.
Christian Eckes has finished in the Top 10 in his last 3 starts at Charlotte.
Tyler Ankrum has finished 12th or worse in all 7 career starts at Charlotte.
Ty Majeski has finished 13th or worse in 3 of the last 4 races at Charlotte.
Tanner Gray has finished 17th or worse in 5 of 6 career starts at Charlotte.
There have been 5 cautions or less in the last 6 races at Charlotte.
The eventual race winner has started outside the Top 15 in 3 of the last 5 races at Charlotte.

Betting Targets

So far this season, we have established the fact that the TRICON Garage and Spire Motorsports trucks have shown the best speed. I will give TRICON Garage the overall edge in the speed department because Spire Motorsports typically has Cup Series talent behind the wheel of their machines. As a result, Kaden Honeycutt and Connor Zilisch stand out as the most likely threats to win tonight’s NC Education Lottery 200. With that being said, I believe there is sharp value surrounding Ross Chastain. Chastain has been very good at Charlotte in his career and Niece Motorsports has been surprisingly strong in recent years at Charlotte as well. For that reason, I believe Chastain may be the true sharp pick tonight despite the fact that his betting odds have been falling.

Giovanni Ruggiero continues to be one of my favorite dark horses on a near weekly basis. Ruggiero has shown great speed throughout the year despite the fact that he has not always gotten the finishes to show for it. For tonight’s race at Charlotte, I believe Ruggiero is an ideal H2H target based on current betting odds. Meanwhile, drivers like Brandon Jones and Ben Rhodes are getting absolutely disrespected from an odds perspective. Rhodes’ resume at Charlotte is phenomenal and Thorsport Racing has been gaining speed in recent weeks. Meanwhile, Jones is in top-rated equipment and has been showing strong speed in recent appearances as well. Both drivers are worthy of deep H2H, prop, and/or fantasy consideration.

2026 Draftkings NC Education Lottery 200 Optimal Lineup

***TBD after Qualifying***

2026 NC Education Lottery 200 Race Picks

*More picks may be added. Check back until “FINAL” status is displayed.* Ross Chastain +500 (1 unit)
Gio Ruggiero +1000 (.5 unit)
Brandon Jones +2800 (.5 unit)