Wise Power 200 (Camping World Truck Series) Predictions, Odds & Picks

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• Toyota has a monopoly on the Truck Series this season. Will it hold at Kansas?  
• Starting position means everything at the 1.5-mile intermediate speedway. 
• It’s Round 4 between the Boss (Kyle Busch) and his protégé (John Hunter Nemechek).

Wise Power 200 Odds

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After racing on dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway and competing on the short track at Richmond Raceway, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series pays a visit this weekend to Kansas Speedway, a 1.5-mile intermediate track. Saturday’s Wise Power 200 will be the 24th Truck Series event at the track. The late Ricky Hendrick, son of NASCAR Cup Series team owner Rick Hendrick, won the inaugural Kansas event in 2001.

Saturday’s race is scheduled for 134 laps (201 miles), with stage breaks coming after 30 and 60 laps. Matt Crafton is the defending winner of this event. Brett Moffitt is the most recent Truck Series winner at Kansas Speedway.

How to Watch Wise Power 200

Toyota Has a Great Chance to Maintain Truck Series Dominance at Kansas

ThorSport Racing’s switch from Ford to Toyota between NASCAR Camping World Truck Series seasons has been a windfall for the Japanese manufacturer. ThorSport driver Ben Rhodes won the season opener at Daytona International Speedway and followed up with a win at the Daytona Road Course a week later.

Then Kyle Busch Motorsports took over. John Hunter Nemechek took the checkered flag at Las Vegas, and owner/driver Kyle Busch went to Victory Lane at Atlanta. Martin Truex Jr. triumphed on the Bristol Dirt Track in a one-off for KBM, and Nemechek took the most recent Truck Series at Richmond, joining Rhodes as multiple winners this season.

In Saturday’s Wise Power 200, Toyota drivers hold the top three spots among oddsmakers’ choices, with Busch at -110, Nemechek at +450 and Austin Hill of Hattori Racing Enterprises at +1000. Reigning series champion Sheldon Creed is tied for the fourth choice with GMS Racing teammate and fellow Chevrolet driver Zane Smith at +1300. But those two drivers will have to find an uptick in performance to stall the Toyota juggernaut.

Starting Position Is Critical to Success in Truck Races at Kansas Speedway

In 23 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events at Kansas Speedway, only once has the eventual winner started outside the top 10. That happened to be ThorSport Racing’s Matt Crafton, who took the checkered flag in last year’s first race at the track race after starting 12th.

On three occasions, the pole winner has claimed victory in a Kansas Truck race. The second starting spot is twice as prolific, having produced six winners. That’s more than 25 percent of all previous events at the track.

With the field set by Metric Qualifying as opposed to competitive time trials, there’s no guarantee that the fastest truck will start from the pole. But with John Hunter Nemechek in the top starting spot and team owner Kyle Busch beside him on the front row, there’s even more incentive to put your hard-earned money down on the KBM pair.

Kyle Busch and John Hunter Nemechek All Set for Round No. 4

Doubtless, there will come a day when Kyle Busch is not favored to win every NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race he enters. That day, however, is probably years away. Busch has posted a series-record 60 victories in 158 career starts for a remarkable winning percentage of 37.97.

This year, though, Busch’s stiffest competition has come from within his own Kyle Busch Motorsports organization. The hiring of John Hunter Nemechek to drive the No. 4 Toyota has produced two wins. The only problem? The highly competitive Busch finished second both times. Busch did win at Atlanta, where Nemechek ran third, but John Hunter still has the edge on his boss.

On Saturday at Kansas, the truck owner and his protégé will race against each other for the fourth time this season, with Busch (-110) still the heavy favorite. The best strategy here is to bet on both drivers—with Busch as the hedge—and hope that Nemechek (+450) wins the internecine battle once again.