NASCAR Coke Zero 400 - Picking the Winner

Race-day: 7/4/2009

Race-time: 7:30 pm est.

The Coke Zero 400 will be held at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida this Saturday, July 4th. Daytona, of course, is famous for the Daytona 500, but if BetUS online racebook fans only concentrated on that race, then they would be missing out on plenty of wagering opportunities concerning NASCAR drivers.

Daytona, like a lot of tracks in the United States, can be particular. Some drivers do well over it. Others do not. Gamblers also must consider the fact that by the time the race gets into its second part, night will have fallen. The track plays differently at night then it does under the sun.

Let’s take a look at some of the drivers who will be trying to win the Coke Zero 400

NASCAR: Coke Zero 400 To Win

1. Kyle Busch +500 - - Kyle is the favorite in this race even though up until last week he hadn’t been close to showing the form that he showed earlier in 2009. Busch will be looking to add a fourth victory to his win column this Saturday and if the past is any indication, he’s got an excellent shot as his victory in the Coke Zero 400 in 2008 was sensational. He should definitely break out of the slump this Saturday.

2. Jimmie Johnson +1000 - - Like Kyle, Jimmie has been in somewhat of a slump lately, but, like Kyle, there’s hope that he can get out of it this Saturday. Johnson only has one victory at Daytona, but last week, in the rain shortened Lenox Industrial Tools 301, Johnson finished 9th. It was a great finish for Johnson who has been lost in the Hendrick shuffle lately with both Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin driving so well.

3. Jeff Gordon +700 - - There’s just no way that Gordon would have been favored over Johnson in the sportsbook in 2008. 2009 is a different story as Gordon all but had the race won last week at Loudon if it weren’t for the rains coming in. He has an exceptional record at Daytona with 6 lifetime victories. He could bring home victory number 2 on Saturday.

4. Tony Stewart +700 - - Even though Stewart leads in the Sprint Cup points standings and even though he finished 5th in the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 last week, the odds on Stewart sort of make him an underlay in the sportsbook. Smoke just hasn’t been that great at Daytona with only a single victory but the owner/driver of the Old Spice car is having a fantastic year. That could carry over to a win in this.

5. Kurt Busch +1000 - - Busch at 10 to 1 is a definite underlay if gamblers only concentrate on what he has done at Daytona. Zero. That’s the number of wins that Kurt Busch has at Daytona, but like Smoke and Johnson, Busch has had a decent year so far on the track and could come up with his first victory on this very difficult racetrack. Busch did finish 3rd last week at Loudon which means he is driving well.

6. Denny Hamlin +1400 - - Hamlin finished 15th last week in New Hampshire and has absolutely no stats regarding Daytona that would lead bettors to even consider him for a wager. So, why then do I have him in my top 6? Because Denny almost always bounces back from a disappointing run. Hamlin could surprise at nice odds.