posted September 25, 2007 at 15:42 EST in NASCAR Articles

Cheaters never prosper. Sure, Carl Edwards won the Dover 500 while cheating, but he also lost 25 points towards the Chase. The Chase is the main goal for all of these drivers and their teams and losing 25 points is a huge hit against Edwards. Of course, Edwards losing the 25 points does nothing to help anyone who had the other driver in a BetUS match-up wager versus Edwards. Hey, that’s NASCAR gambling, right?

In any case, the big story over the weekend is Jimmie Johnson. What the heck happened? Jimmie went out, got pole, made himself the favorite in BetUS match-up betting and then threw a clunker out there. He finished out of the top ten. Jimmie came in 14th. Sure, that’s better than Kurt Busch, who caused that incredible crash towards the end of the race, but, honestly, more was expected out of Jimmie.

And, more was expected out of Jeff Gordon. Gordon was a BetUS –140 in his match-up against Tony Stewart and, for most of the race, Gordon looked awesome. T.S. was hovering around the 30th position while Gordon was in the top ten. At the end, however, Gordon finished 11th while Stewart finished 9th. Stewart, by the way, was going off at +110 in that match-up.

A good thing to look at is the odds in any match-up between Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart or Jimmie Johnson. In almost every case, the wise NASCAR bettor will wager on the driver with the highest betting odds. That’s how close all three drivers are.

I was wrong about Kyle Busch in my article last week. I believed that Kyle’s immaturity would get to him and that he was a bet against versus any driver in BetUS match-up betting. I was just flat out wrong. Kyle had another excellent run, coming in 5th at Dover. That’s not to say that Kyle will be a good bet when the BetUS match-ups come out this Saturday, but it is to say that Kyle is obviously thinking long-term about wining the Chase and not just running other drivers off the track or wining individual races.

Speaking of losing your temper and immaturity, it was Denny Hamlin who lost his cool and he almost got beat up by Kyle Petty. Yes, in a bar fight, I would have to take Petty over Hamlin. Denny just lost it, at least, that’s what it looks like, and he might be a play against in BetUS match-ups in the future. Denny always, it seems, gives up odds in match-up wagering. That makes him a tough play for no matter what the match-up, but, with him losing his cool like that, he might be a bad match-up play for no matter what happens. Think hard before plunking down money on Denny Hamlin.

Kurt Busch better turn things around fast or his hopes of winning a Chase will be long gone. There are only eight races left and Busch needs to step it up big time. What the heck was he doing out there without a hood? Anyhow, his chances in BetUSmatch-up betting are way less than his little brother’s. First, he seems to do well in the qualifying round on Saturday and then he throws a dead bone on the track on Sunday. There’s no way figure. Maybe Kurt has started another 54 race losing streak. At least this week, he’s a definite stay away.

Until next week, good luck!

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