Pacific Office Automation 147 Predictions, Odds, Picks (Xfinity Series)

• There’s only one obvious choice to win Saturday’s Xfinity debut race at Portland
• Ty Gibbs just might find the edge he’s lost on a road course like Portland
• There are some potential contenders within the JR Motorsports juggernaut

Pacific Office Automation 147 Odds

Odds are taken from DraftKings Sportsbook

A new race track on a split weekend has the NASCAR Xfinity Series running for the first time at Portland International Raceway, a 1.967-mile, 12-turn road course. NASCAR’s only history at the track consists of two Camping World Truck Series races in 1999 and 2000.

Saturday’s Pacific Office Automation 147 will be contested over 75 laps (147.5 miles), with stage breaks scheduled after 25 and 50 laps.

If you are unsure about how to bet on NASCAR, take a look at our guide.

AJ Allmendinger Is Obvious Choice to Win Inaugural Portland Xfinity Race

Ask any other competitor in the NASCAR Xfinity garage who the best road course racer in the series is, and the overwhelming consensus will boil down to one name: AJ Allmendinger.

Seven of Allmendinger’s 11 Xfinity victories—and both his NASCAR Cup Series wins—have come on road courses. So when the Xfinity Series goes to the Portland International Raceway for the first time this weekend, Allmendinger is the obvious favorite.

The Dinger also has an edge in experience at Portland, albeit in a different class of car. In 2006, he won his first ChampCar race at the 1.967-mile layout, which unlike most NASCAR tracks, runs in a clockwise direction.

Allmendinger triumphed in the only other Xfinity Series road course race so far this season (Austin, Texas), and we like him to win again at Portland. He doesn’t pay much at +250 via DraftKings Sportsbook, but that’s the price of being so talented.

That’s not to say there aren’t complications. Rain wiped out the second round of qualifying on Friday, leaving Allmendinger in the 10th starting spot. But because of mechanical gremlins in his No. 16 Chevrolet, AJ may have to start from the rear.

If that’s the case, it will just make his victory more dramatic.

Ty Gibbs Looks to a Road Course for a Jump-Start to His Xfinity Season

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Ty Gibbs hasn’t won in the last six NASCAR Xfinity Series races, matching the longest “drought” of his fledgling career.

Surprisingly, Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota hasn’t shown the speed necessary to run at the front of the field during that stretch, though he did finish second through attrition last week at Charlotte.

But Gibbs has shown an inherent knack for racing on road courses, and Saturday presents a chance for the 19-year-old phenom to show those skills.

Don’t forget that Gibbs got the first of his seven Xfinity Series victories last year on the Daytona International Speedway Road Course. He also won at Watkins Glen and finished third at Mid-Ohio in his abbreviated maiden season in the series.

He’s posted at +400 via DraftKings, and though he should be a contender, we like Allmendinger’s chances better.

JR Motorsports Might Be Able to Gang Up on the Opposition

Justin Allgaier is no slouch when it comes to road course performance, and neither is JR Motorsports teammate Noah Gragson.

In fact, Gragson ran fourth in the first Xfinity Series road course event of the season at Austin, Texas. Right behind him was another JRM teammate, Sam Mayer.

The four JR Motorsports drivers have been so successful lately that it’s unreasonable to discount their chances at any type of venue.

At Portland, we’ll give the nod to Allgaier (+800 via DraftKings), who has scored victories at Road America, Mid-Ohio and Montreal. And Mayer, who starts fourth, isn’t a bad bet at +1200.

As for Gragson (+800), he’ll have to start from the rear in a backup car after wrecking in practice. That’s a tall order for a short race on a road course—for anyone but Allmendinger.

How to Watch Pacific Office Automation 147