Tyler Reddick Eyes Historic NASCAR Win at COTA as Experts Offer Prop Picks
Tyler Reddick is aiming for a historic third consecutive victory to start the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season as the series heads to the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas. Reddick, who won the season-opening Daytona 500 and the Autotrader 400 at Atlanta, will start from the pole position on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
Reddick’s Pursuit of History
A win at COTA would make Reddick the first driver in NASCAR history to win the first three races of a season. He won the pole for Sunday’s race after a qualifying session on Saturday. “It helps the chances, ” Reddick said. “I think starting up front is huge. It certainly helps. If things kind of receive off sequence and things get busy, that first choice [pit stall] is nice to have in the race.”
Reddick currently leads the Cup Series points standings, holding a 40-point lead over his 23XI Racing teammate, Bubba Wallace.
The Competition at COTA
Despite Reddick’s strong start to the season, he faces stiff competition at COTA, particularly from road course specialists. Shane van Gisbergen and rookie Connor Zilisch are expected to be contenders, though they qualified 13th and 25th, respectively. Chase Briscoe, Ryan Blaney, and Chase Elliott also qualified in the top five.
Michael McDowell was fastest in Saturday morning’s practice session, but Reddick had the eighth-best 10-lap average among cars that ran 10 consecutive laps, demonstrating his pace on the track.
Expert Picks and Betting Odds
According to FanDuel, Shane van Gisbergen is the race favorite at +115. Other favorites include Connor Zilisch (+380), Christopher Bell (+1100), William Byron (+1200), Reddick (+1600), and Chase Elliott (+2000).
Elite auto racing handicappers Phil Bobbitt and Steve Greco, who have generated over $28,000 in profits for their followers on NASCAR bets over the past four years, are sharing their insights. They correctly predicted Daniel Suarez’s victory in Atlanta at +3500 in 2024 and have consistently identified value in the odds.
Bobbitt and Greco’s Top Pick
Bobbitt and Greco are backing Chase Elliott to beat William Byron in a head-to-head prop bet, which currently returns +155. They project Elliott at 7.5 and Byron at 5.1 but believe the price difference is too significant given the minimal statistical separation between the two drivers. “This matchup is far closer than the +155 implies,” Bobbitt told SportsLine. “When the statistical separation is thin and the market stretches the number this far, we are obligated to take a position.”
2026 DuraMax Texas Grand Prix Odds
Here’s a gaze at the full odds for the 2026 NASCAR DuraMax Texas Grand Prix:
- Shane Van Gisbergen +115
- Connor Zilisch +380
- Christopher Bell +1100
- William Byron +1200
- Tyler Reddick +1600
- Chase Elliott +2000
- Chase Briscoe +2200
- Kyle Larson +2200
- Ross Chastain +2700
- Alex Bowman +2700
- Chris Buescher +2700
- AJ Allmendinger +2700
- Michael McDowell +3000
- Ty Gibbs +3500
- Kyle Busch +3500
- Ryan Blaney +4500
- Bubba Wallace +5000
- Daniel Suarez +5500
- Austin Cindric +6000
- Ryan Preece +6000
- Carson Hocevar +7500
- Joey Logano +7500
- Denny Hamlin +8000
- Todd Gilliland +20000
- Zane Smith +30000
- Brad Keselowski +30000
- Austin Dillon +30000
- John Hunter Nemechek +50000
- Noah Gragson +50000
- Cody Ware +50000
- Jesse Love +50000
- Cole Custer +50000
- Ty Dillon +50000
- Riley Herbst +50000
- Josh Berry +50000
- Erik Jones +50000
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +50000
The 2026 DuraMax Texas Grand Prix is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.