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via Imago

via Imago

South Point 400 winner Kyle Larson is having one of his best seasons yet. Raking in 4 wins and an early spot in the Championship 4, he looks poised to give migraines to other championship favorites like Denny Hamlin. On the other corner of the Round of 8 spectrum is Michael Jordan’s best driver, Tyler Reddick. Though not in quite a sweet spot as Larson, the #45 driver has been enjoying his best season yet too.

Going to the Homestead-Miami Speedway, both the drivers will undoubtedly be driving for the win. But their causes differ. While Larson has reason to ease off his throttle, his 23XI Racing counterpart doesn’t. The only question right now is, come the sunset at the Magic City, which driver will get to visit the victory lane?

The upcoming battle between the 2023 NASCAR championship favorites

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The Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami will mark the 34th race of the ongoing season. The 1.5-mile intermediate track is all the more crucial for its time of arrival. One of the three tracks that will decide the contenders for Phoenix Raceway, it is the penultimate hurdle in the path of the Round of 8 contenders. With his win at Vegas, Hendrick Motorsports’s #5 driver has already secured his way to the season finale. But that little means he will watch the battle from afar at Miami and the later-to-come Martinsville.

Revealing in a Vegas post-race presser his intent to kill, Larson said, “You know, I put a lot of pressure on myself going to Homestead. I want to have a great run there and I want to dominate. Honestly, I want to win both stages by 15 seconds and win the race by 30. So, that’s that’s my goal.”

As intimidating as that sounds, Reddick does have more purpose than Larson at the end of the day. Unable to impress at Vegas with his top-10 finish, Jordan’s sole champion will look to put some smiles in the 23XI garage at least this weekend. But whom should you put your money on for glory at Miami? According to seasoned betting expert and bookmaker Micah Roberts, Larson is the +250 favorite in the 2023 4EVER 400 odds for the NASCAR Championship, and Tyler Reddick is +600.

Do these numbers translate to the odds of the drivers’ successes this weekend? Let’s take a look at what the record books say.

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In the aftermath of last weekend’s race, Reddick promised, “We can learn from our mistakes and certain things we didn’t really like that our car did at Vegas as we approach Homestead. It was a tough day, for sure. Hopefully, on the other side of it, when we get to Homestead, we’ll be better.” Though he is not yet quite in a must-win situation, he will want to put the fiasco behind him at the earliest. Homestead-Miami being a favorable track for him only makes that want more appealing.

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Rolling back a few years, we can see a young Reddick lifting his consecutive Xfinity Series Championship with the win at the track. He has conquered the intermediate on two different Xfinity occasions and has an excellent Cup Series track record of two top-5 finishes in three starts. These stats reflect that Sunday will be his best shot at grabbing that ticket to Phoenix.

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The mammoth that is Larson, on the other hand, won this race in 2022 and has 4 other top-5 finishes in his Cup Series career. In its entirety, the verdict that can be deciphered from the books doesn’t play sport in deciding the winner. Having already been crowned champion once, Rick Hendrick‘s driver is hungry for more. Having never been at this stage of the tournament, Reddick will strive to get his name up on the board too. With just a few more days to witness these two talented drivers battle it out, let us know whom your money is going to be on!

Read More: “He Might Kill Us This Week” – Bubba Wallace Insider Reveals Hendrick Motorsports Is 23XI’s Biggest Threat at Homestead Miami