Three to watch, one to avoid for NASCAR's All-Star Race

There won't be any points awarded when the NASCAR Cup Series competes at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Sunday, but there is a $1M payout on the line for the winner of the series' All-Star Race.

Seventeen drivers are locked into the event as it stands, and three more will join them by earning their way in through the All-Star Open or, for the final slot, a fan vote. Here's three names to watch — a favorite, a contender and a dark horse — for the main event, as well as one to stay away from.

Favorite: Tyler Reddick (+900, per DraftKings as of Friday afternoon)

Reddick should be extra motivated this week after a mistake in the late laps at Darlington last Sunday cost him a win despite dominating the event. He's not exactly known as a star short track racer, but he did finish third in the All-Star Race a year ago, which is the only sample size that any active driver has at North Wilkesboro (and the track has been repaved since, adding an entirely new variable). His odds are tied for fourth-best, so he seems like a solid bet.

Contender: Ryan Blaney (+1100)

This feels like a great chance for the reigning Cup Series champion to get his season back on track. He's a former All-Star Race winner, albeit when the event was ran at Texas Motor Speedway in 2022, and he and Team Penske have excelled at short tracks in recent years. Everyone will be expecting the Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing cars to be the class of the field, so there's some decent value with Blaney at +1100.

Dark horse: Chris Buescher (+1400)

It's hard to find a legitimate dark horse who could be a realistic threat, given that only 17 drivers are currently locked into the event. So we'll count Buescher, despite being tied for the 10th-best odds, in this category as it feels like +1400 is vastly underestimating him. His team is red-hot right now, having barely missed out on wins in the past two weeks, and Buescher is an excellent short track racer. The No. 17 could be a factor.

Avoid: Kyle Larson (+700)

Normally, Larson would be considered the favorite for this event given his dominant performance in it a year ago and the fact that he is the best overall driver in the field. However, he will be missing practice and qualifying as he is in Indianapolis for Indy 500 festivities, so he'll be jumping into the car on Sunday with no idea of what to expect on a track that has been repaved since the last time he drove on it. In a short track race that's only 200 laps, he won't have much time to figure it out.