NASCAR Truck Series heads to Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee, for the 2022 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt. The race is scheduled for Saturday, April 16, and will mark the sixth event of the 2022 season and the first dirt race of the year. Let’s take a look at this Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Betting Picks.
It will mark only the second iteration of the event that will be held on a 0.553 miles (0.890 km) oval-shaped short track in what promises to be one of the most exciting and unpredictable races of the season.
As a dirt race, the 2022 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt will produce a completely new set of challenges for the drivers as they compete for the victory, so as many sports betting guides will tell you, most of the results so far can be taken with a grain of salt.
However, while drivers’ success in other races doesn’t necessarily indicate how they’ll do this weekend, their performance in Bristol in 2021 might. So it’s wise to make our NASCAR picks based on which driver has delivered here last year.
Last races records
The 2022 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt will mark only the second running of the event, which got introduced in 2021 and is back on the NASCAR 2022 schedule. Last year, the race happened on March 29, just over two weeks sooner than this year, so we can expect the weather to be mostly the same.
Moreover, there were no changes to the track over the last 12 months, meaning we can take last year’s results as a solid form guide to how this weekend’s race will play out.
The 2021 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt was won by Martin Truex Jr., who finished the race ahead of Bren Rhodes, and Raphaël Lessard, who landed in third.
Interestingly, Truex Jr. also led all three stages and was a clear cut above the competition despite starting the race from 15th. Unfortunately, John Hunter Nemechek, who claimed the pole position, couldn’t show up in the race as he had an accident and ended with a DNF.
Race Information
- Time, day: Saturday, April 16, 8 pm EDT
- Location of the race: Bristol, Tennessee
- Track: Bristol Motor Speedway
Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Betting Picks
Pick 1: John Hunter Nemechek
You won’t be able to find Martin Truex Jr. on the NASCAR odds markets for Truck Series races since he will not race in the NASCAR Truck Series this season.
Had he been confirmed for this race, we would definitely look towards Truex Jr. as a potential repeat winner and put him on our betting guides list, but since he is out of the picture, it’s only wise to shift our attention to John Hunter Nemechek, who had a solid performance here in 2021 but fell flat in the end.
Admittedly, Hunter Nemechek got caught in an accident here in 2021, which is disappointing knowing that he started the race from the pole, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Hunter Nemechek would have been in the mix to win it all.
Even though we shouldn’t overvalue the driver’s results up to this race, it’s worth noting that Hunter Nemechek has been in great form. He had a bit of a shaky start to the season with two 24th and one 25th-place finish, but since Atlanta, he has locked in a runner-up finish at COTA and a fourth-place finish last weekend.
Pick 2: Ben Rhodes
If you’re looking for the best NASCAR betting pick for this weekend’s race, it’s hard to ignore Ben Rhodes, who has been phenomenal so far this season. The 25-year-old has been on a tear lately and is rightly the current Truck Series leader.
His worst performance of 2022 was a 31st-place finish at Las Vegas, which is far from great. But he has placed inside the top-5 in all other four races. That included two runner-up finishes at Daytona and Atlanta, a fourth-place finish at COTA, and a fifth-place finish from last weekend.
Moreover, Rhodes had a solid showing in Bristol in 2021. He started the race from ninth place, climbed his way up to seventh in Stage 1, and was the second driver throughout stages two and three. He couldn’t pass Truex Jr., but finishing second was still an impressive achievement for Rhodes.
We must note that Rhodes was the clear second-best driver at the 2021 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt, behind Truex Jr., and could only manage to lead three laps. But since Truex Jr. is no longer here, there doesn’t seem to be any driver who can stop Rhodes as he chases his first victory of the season.
Pick 3: Zane Smith
Zane Smith heads to Bristol as the third driver in the standings and the only NASCAR Truck Series driver with two wins. But even though he is third in the standings, his results are a bit misleading.
Smith kicked off the season with a victory at Daytona and finished the Las Vegas race in second but was disqualified due to a lug nut violation. Since then, he had placed fifth in Atlanta, won at COTA, and finished last weekend’s race in ninth.
Had he not been disqualified, Smith would be the current Truck Series leader, so this is definitely something to consider ahead of this race.
Admittedly, his past results don’t mean as much, considering the next race will be entirely different. Still, Smith drove well here last year and placed seventh with the sixth-best average rating of the day.
Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Betting Trends
- Toyota was the best manufacturer of 2021 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt, claiming the top two spots
- GMS Racing did well in Bristol in 2021, with its drivers finishing third. Seventh, 16th, and 18th
- Raphaël Lessard was the only Chevrolet driver of the 2021 race to finish the race inside the top six.
- Martin Truex Jr., who was by far the best driver of the last race (won and led for 105 laps), won’t compete in the Truck Series this season
- Ben Rhodes is the only driver who finished last year’s race inside the top five that is returning to race this year
Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Predictions
Many great drivers will attend the 2022 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Betting, but we’re most excited about Ben Rhodes out of all competitors.
He has been phenomenal this season and drove well here last year when he placed second. Moreover, he is the only returning driver to end the race inside the top five, so past results-wise, Rhodes is a class above everyone else.
Zane Smith has shown enough for us to consider him a threat, and we wouldn’t ignore John Hunter Nemechek either. But if we have to pick one driver that is the best bet at the offered NASCAR odds, it’s Rhodes, who looks set to claim his first W of the season this weekend.
Prediction: Ben Rhodes to win
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