After three years on the road course, NASCAR finally makes its return to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway – the most iconic circuit in all of motorsports. The 2024 Brickyard 400 will see drivers attempt to etch their names into the record books and join past legends who have won at these sacred grounds.
There was no way @rileyherbst was lifting. pic.twitter.com/r3pzUih8Jv
— NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) July 20, 2024
Ryan Blaney will look to build on his momentum from a strong win at Pocono last week while the rest of the field will hope to find a win at Indy. After the incredible finish from yesterday’s Xfinity Series race, the buzz surrounding the return of the Brickyard 400 is permeating throughout the field and I can’t wait to see who kisses the bricks at the end of this one.
2024 Brickyard 400 Entry List
For the first time since the Coca-Cola 600, seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson will be behind the wheel of the #84 Toyota for Legacy Motor Club. Ty Dillon makes a start in the #33 for Richard Childress Racing marking the only other significant change for today’s lineup.
NASCAR has not run on the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 2020. With that in mind, we really don’t know how these NASCAR NextGen cars will handle the high speeds and tight corners of Indy. How will the tires fare? How important will the draft be? These questions and more will need to be answered.
Sleep tight. Tomorrow’s a big one. 😴
— Indianapolis Motor Speedway (@IMS) July 21, 2024
🎟️ >>> https://t.co/DSXiEMoZOA#NASCAR | #Brickyard400 pic.twitter.com/C2HPJbdYl2
The unknown adds an element of excitement here but the track that Indianapolis runs most closely to is Pocono. This means that passing will likely be difficult and pit road strategy will play a huge role in the winner of this race. I think you’ll see a lot of pushing on the straights to generate runs and a ton of scrambling on restarts to pick up as many positions as possible.
2024 Brickyard 400 Race Odds and Predictions
Denny Hamlin ranks as the favorite to win at +400. Both Kyle Larson and Tyler Reddick follow close behind at +450. Ryan Blaney ranks as the top Ford from the oddsmakers at +1300. Each of these drivers makes a compelling case as a possible pick for the race winner.
Chase Elliott also deserves a mention as the driver of the #9 seemed to hold a lot of speed in qualifying. Elliott comes in at +750. Brad Keselowski starts well back in the field as he’ll roll off 26th. However, given his speed at Pocono, I’d expect Keselowski to run well if the #6 can find some track position. Kes comes in at +1400 to win.
If you want an extremely long shot – AJ Allmendinger ran well in the Xfinity Series race yesterday and qualified pretty well for today’s race. The #16 rolls off from 15th place and holds +13000 odds to win.
For my official race winner pick, I’m rolling with William Byron at +800. Byron ran well at Pocono last week and the #24 car possesses a strong history at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. All four of the Hendrick Motorsports cars have found their way to Victory Lane at this point of the season. I think Willy B adds another one this afternoon.
Every single racer wants to go out and kiss those bricks.#Brickyard400 | Today at 2:30ET on NBC pic.twitter.com/rfZi7S1X1n
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 21, 2024
The Brickyard 400 is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. CT today on NBC!
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