NASCAR Betting Tips - The Coca-Cola 600 Top 3

NASCAR is back to its regular schedule with Sprint Cup races being run on Sunday.

This Sunday is the Coca-Cola 600. The Coca-Cola 600 is on the same track as last Saturday’s NASCAR All-Star race. In that race, Tony Stewart took home top honors, but it was for only 100 miles. This Sunday’s race is for 600 miles. That could lead to a very different result.

Let’s forget about who might win the Coca-Cola 600 for a moment and just concentrate on the Top 3.

NASCAR: Coca-Cola 600 Top 3

1. Jimmie Johnson +180 - - Jimmie’s average finishing position at Lowe’s Motor Speedway is 8.9. He has 5 victories on the track, 8 top fives and 5 top tens. He’s got the best chance out of any driver in the field to finish in the top 3.

2. Jeff Gordon +200 - - 12 top fives and 15 top tens at the track means that Gordon should bounce back from his 19th place finish in last Saturday’s all-star race. Gordon and his crew really excel in these long races and even though Jeff has had a bad race here and there, overall, he’s been exceptional this year.

3. Tony Stewart +300 - - Smoke won his first race as a NASCAR betting owner this year in the all-star race, but he was having a good year before that. He finished 3rd in the Southern 500 two weeks ago and should be able to build upon that and last week’s victory. Stewart is driving with much more control this year than in 2008 and its showing as he’s been a regular in the top ten this year.

4. Denny Hamlin +350 - - I’m not a fan of Hamlin actually winning the Coca-Cola 500 but I do believe he can definitely sneak into the top 3. Hamlin, like his former teammate, Tony Stewart, hasn’t been pushing as hard as Stewart. That’s good for a driver to finish in the top 3. Hamlin has 2 top fives and 4 top tens this season.

5. Mark Martin +300 - - Martin was fantastic when winning the Southern 500 two weeks ago and should be tough in this. He already has two victories on the season since switching teams to Hendrick Motorsports. One thing that bettors must be careful about when betting Martin is that when he’s bad, he’s really bad. But, when he’s good, he’s exceptional.

6. Kyle Busch +180 - - Talk about being off one day and on the next! Busch has three victories this season, 4 top fives and 4 top tens, but he’s also finished 30th or worse in a few races as well. He’s coming off of one of those awful finishes in the Southern 500 two weeks ago where he finished 34th.

Best Long Shot

Ryan Newman +750 - - 7 ½ to 1 on a driver that has finished 4th in two races in a row? Not counting the all-star race, Newman has been fantastic in his last three races. All he needs to do is pass one other car and all of a sudden he makes money for gamblers in this category.