Check out our best bets to win the 2022 Indianapolis 500.
You know summer is right around the corner when odds on the Indy 500 start dominating the motorsports discourse. And, well, we've officially reached that point. This, naturally, can mean only one thing: We have to drop our best 2022 Indy 500 bets while answering all the biggest questions surrounding the primetime race. Among those questions, we need to determine who from the quartet of Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden, Colton Herta, and Alex Palou should actually be the favorite to win it all.
This year's Indianapolis 500 will take place on Saturday, May 29, at the usual location: The Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Rather than waste any more time, let's have a look at the latest odds to win the 2022 Indy 500, courtesy of the fine folks over at Bovada:
Driver to Win 
Scott Dixon +850 Josef Newgarden +850 Colton Herta +850 Alex Palou +850 Patricio O'Ward +1000 Scott McLaughlin +1000 Will Power +1300 Helio Castroneves +1800 Alexander Rossi +2000 Tony Kanaan +2200 Graham Rahal +2200 Takuma Sato +2200 Jimmie Johnson +2400 Marcus Ericsson +2800 Felix Rosenqvist +2800 Simon Pagenaud +2800 Romain Grosjean +3000 Rinus Veekay +3000 Juan Pablo Montoya +3000 Ed Carpenter +5000 Kyle Kirkwood +5000 Conor Daly +5000 Marco Andretti +5000 Jack Harvey +7000 Santino Ferrucci +7000 Devlin Defrancesco +7000
Please note our Indy 500 betting odds are accurate as of Friday, May 20. Make sure you recheck them before settling on your official prediction, as these betting odds are liable to shift right up until the opening lap.
You should likewise make an effort to check out our reviews of the top online sportsbooks. They have all the information you need to determine the best Indy 500 betting sites in 2022. Not sure whether official motorsports wagers can be made in your area? That's fine! Go ahead and look at all the places that have legal sports betting in the United States, so you can see if your region will allow you to bet on the Indianapolis 500.
Who is the REAL Favorite to Win the 2022 Indy 500?
Scott Dixon (+850), Josef Newgarden (+850), Colton Herta (+850) and Alex Palou (+850) all currently register as co-favorites to win this late-May extravaganza. That almost never happens. Usually one driver, if not two drivers, separate themselves from the field by the opening gun. That could still happen. The Indianapolis 500 odds are changing almost daily. Select sportsbooks have shown some favor to Dixon and Herta, specifically. Both have ranked as singular favorites at one point or another.
Right now, though, we have a whopping four drivers offering 8.5-to-1 payouts as odds-on favorites. We need to winnow that field down to the best bet, even if all four are quality options.
Dixon is immediately out for us. He has done a good job hovering around the top 10 in most races this season, but he has yet to turn in a flat-out victory, and it has been more than a decade since he last won this race in 2008. Somewhat reluctantly, we're bouncing Alex Palou from consideration, as well. He may be second in the current Indy Series racing standings, but he also hasn't churned out a first-place win this year.
From there, we're inclined to roll with Colton Herta over Josef Newgarden. Newgarden is the only racer on the circuit with multiple victories so far, but he hasn't fared well at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in years past and continues to employ a very boom-or-bust driving style. Colton Herta, to be fair, isn't exactly a billboard for success on this track. But he's shown signs of breaking through previously, and his driving this season has been top-notch, to the point that he seems severely underrated not just in this discussion but the larger Indy Series Championship debate.
Can Helio Castroneves Repeat as Champion?
The most recent winners of this race are typically given a favor by oddsmakers. That isn't happening this time around. The reigning champion Helio Castroneves (+1800) is barely laying top-10 odds to win. It is one of the more egregious drop-offs in recent memory.
That doesn't mean the linemakers are wrong. Castroneves hasn't given anyone much reason to be confident in him this season. To this point, he ranks 18th in the IndyCar series, has no first-place or top-five finishes and has only one top-10 ribbon. His maneuvering midway through races has been all over the place, so it's tough to fully trust him.
Still, if you're looking for long-shot odds on someone who has historically proven his mettle at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Castroneves is clearly your guy.
Is Will Power Undervalued?
Someone call the authorities. We need to report a crime: The odds on Will Power (+1300) to win the 2022 Indy 500.
This isn't merely about Power having won the event back in 2018. He's currently pacing the entire IndyCar Series standings, and it isn't particularly close. His 170 total points tower over the 156 that Alex Palou has in second.
Many will be scared off knowing that Power has yet to secure an actual victory. We're not worried. He's going to get that gold star eventually. He already has 10 combined top-five and top-10 finishes to go along with his singular pole placement (aka top-three finish).
Better Bet: Tony Kanaan, Graham Rahal or Takuma Sato?
The answer to this question is a no-brainer.
Tony Kanaan (+2200) shouldn't even be laying top-25 odds. Graham Rahal (+2200) is somewhat enticing, but he has yet to crack the top five in any one race this year.
Go with Takuma Sato (+2200) as the best bet from this group of 22-to-1 payouts. Indeed, he has fewer top-10 finishes than Rahal, but we value his experience in Indianapolis. Sato has won the Indy 500 twice over the past half-decade, first in 2017 and then again in 2020.
Official 2022 Indy 500 Winner Prediction
And our winner of the 2022 Indy 500 is...Colton Herta.
He may be young, but Herta has quickly grown into one of the most consistent drivers on tour. And he's continued to flex that muscle this season, only with some added power coming around the outside on turns. Pounce on him at 22-to-1 while you can.
OSB Prediction: Colton Herta (+2200)
Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can decide which one is the best fit for all of your Indianapolis 500 betting:
Online Sports Betting © 2024