(Photo credit: tequilamike via Remodel Blog / CC BY)
Going into qualifying, Will Power was favoured to win his second Indy Toronto title this weekend.
Sports Interaction listed the Australia native and 2010 Toronto Indy champion at a little less than 3:1 to win the 30th edition of the IndyCar race, which takes place Sunday (you can catch the race on Sportsnet 360).
Canada’s top hopeful was James Hinchcliffe, who grew up half an hour away in Oakville, Ont. Hinchcliffe pays 24:1 to take his first checkered flag of the season Sunday.
Toronto Indy Betting Odds 2016
Toronto Indy Betting Picks
First, a couple of disclaimers:
- We’re not IndyCar experts. We’re just looking for some value bets to make Sunday’s race more exciting, so don’t let us talk you out of any bets you really like.
- These Toronto Indy betting odds will change after Saturday’s qualifiers.
Alright, on to our analysis.
Will Power comes into Sunday’s race with plenty of momentum, posting two victories and a second-place finish in his past three IndyCar outings. However, he’s struggled in Toronto in recent years, placing 24th, 15th, 15th, 9th and 4th in his last five visits to the CNE. At +276 odds, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of value on Power.
8:1 odds on Josef Newgarden looks really attractive when you consider he’s the defending champion and also won last weekend in Iowa. But he is still recovering from a serious crash a month ago and there’s concern that the bumpy Toronto track – combined with the fact no drugs are allowed in systems of race car drivers – could be a bit too much for him to handle. We’ll avoid Newgarden for that reason.
Ryan Hunter-Reay has drawn a lot of media attention this week. He’s had six top-10 finishes this season and has performed well on street courses in Detroit and St. Petersburg, which are similar tracks to Toronto. He’s a past Honda Indy Toronto champion (2012) and also won the Indy 500 two years ago, so you know the potential is there. Hunter-Reay appears to be worth a shot at 21:1.
Finally, James Hinchcliffe winning this weekend would be the storybook finish. He nearly died from blood loss following a horrible accident at last year’s Indy 500 and has inspired many by returning for the start of this season. Hinchcliffe has also made no secret of the fact that a win in Toronto would be nearly as special to him as winning the Indy 500. It’s possible that Hinchcliffe puts too much pressure on himself to win in his hometown (he’s finished 14th, 22nd, 8th and 8th in his four races in Toronto) but we’ll be rooting for him and sprinkling a bit on Hinchcliffe at 24:1 will make things even more exciting.
Who will you be betting on, and why? Let us know below.