We continue to list the biggest events you can’t miss this year
Indy 500 – Indianapolis Motor Speedway – 28 May
The 500-mile race is one of the most prestigious in all of the motorsports. Together with the Monaco Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it forms the Triple Crown of Motorsport.
For the fourth consecutive year, 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon is the favorite at +600. Unfortunately for the driver of Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 9 Honda, he hasn’t been able to capitalize in any of the last three years.
Reigning winner Marcus Ericsson, who became Chip Ganassi Racing’s first Indy 500 winner in a decade, is listed in a fifth-place tie at +1000.
2023 Stanley Cup Finals – TBC
Last year, the Colorado Avalanche made history as one of the most dominant Stanley Cup champions to ever take the ice. Since 1971, only three defending Cup champs have failed to follow their title run with a return trip to the playoffs the next season: the 1995-96 New Jersey Devils, the 2006-07 Carolina Hurricanes and the 2014-15 Los Angeles Kings. If the 2022-23 regular season ended today, Colorado would join that group. At +275 however, the Avalanche are expected to return to the Stanley Cup Finals with the Las Vegas Golden Knights next up in the Western Conference at +400.
With 80 points in 47 games, the Bruins lead the Eastern Conference by a significant margin – 14 points ahead of second-place Carolina. Boston is +300 to come out of the East and return to the Stanley Cup Finals. The Hurricanes are not too far behind even if they don’t catch Boston as the No. 1 seed. Carolina is second to Boston with betus.com at +500.
Wimbledon – All England Lawn Tennis Club – 3-16 July
History is at stake on the men’s side of Wimbledon in 2023. Novak Djokovic looks to break a second-place tie with Pete Sampras to earn his eighth Wimbledon title, matching Roger Federer’s record of eight. Depending on what happens at the Australian Open, Djokovic may also be in a position to tie or break Rafael Nadal’s record of 22 Grand Slam titles.
At the time of writing this, you can get Novak Djokovic +120 via Caesars, Matteo Berrettini +800 via PointsBet, and Nick Kyrgios, last year’s semi-finalist, is an outside shout at +2200 via BetMGM.
Neither last year’s ladies’ champion or runner-up, Elena Rybakina and Ons Jabeur, are favorites for this year’s crown according to BetMGM at +1000 and +900 respectively. The current leader is the current world number one however, Iga Swiatek, who is available at +450.
The Open 2023 – Royal Liverpool Golf Club – 14-17 July
Rory McIlroy will be a popular choice as he returns to the scene of his Open triumph in 2014, but a wet weekend and some tee-time fortune aided that victory. If the most recent British summer is anything to go by, a baked, firm and fast Royal Liverpool seems more likely for this year’s event. The creativity and touch of Jordan Spieth, coupled with the Texas natives comfort of playing in a breeze, may prove decisive.
US Open – Flushing Meadows, New York City – 28 August – 10 September
It may well be the fourth major event in the 2023 ATP/WTA calendar, but the US Open is one of the most eagerly anticipated tournaments in tennis and it’s never too early to see who the favorites are.
At the time of writing, the odds for the US Open Men are unsurprising with Novak Djokovic at +135 leading the way, followed by Daniil Medvedev at +275, Carlos Alcaraz +350, and Nick Kyrgios +900.
Meanwhile, the odds for the US Open Women have Iga Swiatek way out in front at +225, with France’s Caroline Garcia next up at +800 and then Aryna Sabalenka is +1000.
2023 Ryder Cup – Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Italy – 29 September – 1 October
When it comes to Ryder Cup winners by year, the Europeans have dominated of late. They have won nine of the last 13 editions, but the United States has claimed two of the last three, including winning the 2021 Ryder Cup.
Zach Johnson will be the captain for the Americans, while Luke Donald will lead Team Europe. Team USA will be looking to win in Europe for the first time since 1993.
The United States are the favorite for the 2023 Ryder Cup with -175 odds to win, with Europe +175, while a tie is +1200.
MLB World Series – TBC
Under the new MLB format, all teams will play each other for at least one series during the regular season, with 52 divisional games (previously 76), 64 intraleague games (previously 66), and 46 interleague games (previously 20) creating new matchups across the league.
The reigning champion Houston Astros are the current favorites at +650 to take home the 2023 World Series title, but do they really have enough to repeat having lost Justin Verlander this offseason?
The New York Yankees’ odds to win the World Series have gone up considerably (+650 from +900) since they signed pitcher Carlos Rodón to a six-year, $162 million contract. This acquisition came just a week after the Yankees re-signed star slugger Aaron Judge to a nine-year, $360 million deal. During the 2022 regular season, Judge batted .311 with a 1.111 OPS and 62 home runs, an AL record for the most in a single season.
So far this Winter, the New York Mets have signed Justin Verlander (two years, $86 million), José Quintana (two years, $26 million), David Robertson (one year, $10 million), Kodai Senga (five years, $75 million), Omar Narváez (two years, $15 million), and Carlos Correa (12 years, $315 million).
Having also resigned Brandon Nimmo (eight years, $162 million), Edwin Diaz (five years, $102 million), and Adam Ottavino (two years, $14.5 million), this puts the Mets’ total outlay this offseason at $806.1 million — the most money ever spent by a team in a single offseason. They have subsequently shifted from +1100 to joint second favorites at +750.
