FlurrySports gives picks and NASCAR betting odds for the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International.
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The NASCAR Cup Series heads to the beautiful Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York this weekend. Watkins Glen International will host the Go Bowling at The Glen on Sunday afternoon, the second road course race of the 2026 season.
NASCAR has a lengthy history at Watkins Glen, and while the series has expanded to other road and street courses in recent years, The Glen stands apart. It runs faster than most road venues on the schedule, but several heavy braking zones keep strategy and car control firmly in play. NASCAR will not be running “the boot” section of the track, making the total lap length 2.45 miles.
Historical stats and trends are a major component of road course handicapping. With additional road course specialists now entering the sport, the most recent road races in the Next Gen Car should carry the heaviest weight when breaking down the field.
Speaking of stats, this column has hit the outright winner in each of the last two weeks — so save yourself some leg work and follow along as we look to extend our streak! Below, we break down the NASCAR betting odds to win the Go Bowling at The Glen — including our picks from favorites to long shots worth a closer look.
Go Bowling at The Glen NASCAR Race at Watkins Glen International
Go Bowling at The Glen
Date: Sunday, May 10, 2026
Start Time: 3 p.m. EST
Coverage: FS1
Distance: 245 miles (100 laps)
Stages: Three (20 laps, 30 laps, 50 laps)
Pole Sitter: TBD
Defending Champion: Shane van Gisbergen
Go Bowling at The Glen NASCAR Betting Odds to Win
Road course racing reshapes the NASCAR betting board in a way few other race types can. Several drivers in the field are genuinely elite on this surface, which pushes some familiar faces down the board and elevates a handful of names bettors don’t typically see near the top.
If the oddsmakers have it right, the Go Bowling at The Glen is Shane van Gisbergen’s race to lose. The defending Watkins Glen winner is the most technically accomplished road racer in the Cup Series today — and it isn’t particularly close.
The only driver in the same neighborhood on the midweek board is Cup Series rookie Connor Zilisch. Trackhouse Racing will be hoping for a strong weekend as the organization looks to gain some momentum in 2026.
Further down the board sits the Hendrick Motorsports trio of Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, and William Byron — a group that accounted for five consecutive Watkins Glen wins from 2018 to 2023.
The table below lists the latest pre-qualifying odds for the full field.
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Go Bowling at the Glen betting odds are taken from BetUS Sportsbook.
| Driver | Odds to Win | Go Bowling at The Glen | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shane van Gisbergen | +125 | Joey Logano | +6000 |
| Connor Zilisch | +285 | Denny Hamlin | +7000 |
| Tyler Reddick | +750 | Austin Cindric | +9000 |
| Christopher Bell | +1000 | Ryan Preece | +9000 |
| William Byron | +1400 | Todd Gilliland | +12000 |
| Chase Elliott | +1600 | Bubba Wallace | +13000 |
| Kyle Larson | +1800 | Zane Smith | +15000 |
| Chris Buescher | +1800 | Brad Keselowski | +20000 |
| Chase Briscoe | +1900 | Austin Dillon | +30000 |
| Ryan Blaney | +2000 | Noah Gragson | +30000 |
| Michael McDowell | +2000 | John Hunter Nemechek | +30000 |
| Ty Gibbs | +2100 | Ty Dillon | +40000 |
| AJ Allmendinger | +2200 | Erik Jones | +40000 |
| Ross Chastain | +3000 | Cole Custer | +40000 |
| Daniel Suarez | +3500 | Riley Herbst | +50000 |
| Alex Bowman | +4000 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | +50000 |
| Carson Hocevar | +5000 | Josh Berry | +50000 |
| Kyle Busch | +5000 |
NASCAR Betting Picks and Predictions: Who Will Win the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International?
Favorite: Shane van Gisbergen (+125)
In most contexts, +125 is a head-to-head price. Backing a driver at that number to win a race outright might seem ludicrous — but that’s simply the market rate for Shane van Gisbergen on a road course.
The numbers tell the story. Since joining NASCAR in 2023, van Gisbergen has competed in 13 road and street course starts in the Cup Series. He has won six of them, finished top-five in two others, and cracked the top-10 in all but two. His average driver rating across those 13 starts sits at an astounding 121.8.
At Watkins Glen specifically, he was runner-up in his first NASCAR attempt before taking the outright win last year. He is so dominant on this surface that he’ll be pulling triple duty this weekend, competing in both the Craftsman Truck Series and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races in addition to Sunday’s Cup event.
Barring a mechanical issue or on-track incident, the only credible threat to SVG on Sunday may be fatigue from his own packed Watkins Glen schedule.
Value Pick: Christopher Bell (+1100)
While the presence of such a heavy favorite looms large, the goal with outright NASCAR betting picks this weekend remains similar to any other race. Bettors should prioritize finding drivers at worthwhile price points relative to their road course track records. If van Gisbergen runs into trouble, a ticket on Christopher Bell at 11-1 odds could prove to be a smart investment.
Bell has just one road and street course victory in 18 starts since 2023, but he has been knocking on the door consistently. He’s batting .500 on top-five finishes over that span with nine such results, and he’s the only driver not named van Gisbergen to carry an average driver rating north of 100 across that sample.
As for Watkins Glen, Bell owns an impressive 6.8 average finish across five Cup Series starts. His best showing came a year ago when he was runner-up to van Gisbergen.
The No. 20 team has dealt with its share of bad luck recently, consistently bringing fast cars to the track without the results to show for it. Watkins Glen looks like a prime opportunity for Bell to right the ship.
Long Shot Hopeful: AJ Allmendinger (+2200)
Before SVG arrived in NASCAR, it wasn’t uncommon to see AJ Allmendinger priced around 10-1 for road course events. At 22-1 this week, bettors should be happy to include him in their Go Bowling at The Glen portfolios — this price point is practically a discount by comparison.
To be fair, Allmendinger isn’t priced this long without reason. He has just one outright victory and one additional top-five finish across 18 road and street course Cup starts since 2023 — not exactly the elite production you’d expect from a road course specialist.
That said, he has posted top-10 results in half of those starts, and his Watkins Glen history offers some encouragement. He came home second and fourth here in 2022 and 2023 respectively, though he has failed to crack the top-10 in each of the last two years.
If the No. 16 team finds a little more speed and catches a break or two, “The Dinger” remains a legitimate threat at this number.
