NASCAR Crown Royal 400 - Picking the Top 3

Race-day:  5/2/2009
Race-time:  7:00 pm est.

The Crown Royal 400 is NASCAR’s Sprint Cup race this week and most drivers will just be trying to bounce back from a less than spectacular finish at Talladega last week.

The Crown Royal, run over the Richmond racetrack in Virginia, will go for 400 miles as opposed to the usual 500 for most NASCAR races.  That may have something to do with the fact that Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are all vying for a fourth victory at Richmond while the closest driver with two victories is Jeff Gordon.

But just because a driver is a favorite to win the race, it doesn’t necessarily make him a good bet in the BetUS online sportsbook to finish in the Top Three.

Let’s take a look at some of the drivers with the best chances to finish in the Top Three at Richmond on Saturday night.

NASCAR:  Crown Royal Top Three

1. Kyle Busch +180 - - He’s never won at Richmond but he has 6 top 5 and 6 top 10 finishes for an average finish of 6.8.  The man can drive over this track and should be in line for a Top Three finish, at the least, on Saturday.

2. Tony Stewart +200 - - To go along with those three victories at Richmond is 8 top fives and 14 top tens for a 10.4 average finish.  Like Kyle, the bounce back from the Talladega mess is likely.

3. Jeff Gordon +225 - - Still ranked number one in the NASCAR Power Rankings (link to power rankings article), Gordon has two victories at Richmond and the 12 top fives and 20 top tens means that he could be very tough in this.  The key is whether or not he and his crew put that 37th place finish at Talladega behind them.  I think they do.

4. Jimmie Johnson +130 - - Jimmie’s a terrific bet at +450 to win this race and not such a great bet at +130 to finish in the Top Three.  He deserves to be on this list because he has three victories at Richmond but after that he only has 4 top fives and 4 top tens.  His average finish at Richmond is 17.5.  So, he’s got a shot but the odds are awfully low.

5. Dale Earnhardt. Jr. +600 – Nice odds on Jr. who not only has three victories at Richmond but has finished in the top five 8 times and the top ten 10 times.  His average finish at Richmond is 11.1 which means that if he can improve off of that second place finish at Talladega last week, a Top Three won’t be all he’ll be in line for.

6. Kurt Busch +225 - - Only one victory at Richmond might not be enough for gamblers to take the low odds on Busch.  He did finish 6th at Talladega while almost everybody else was in the back of the pack, but he only has 2 top fives, 5 top tens, and an average finish of 19.5 to his credit at Richmond.  He’s driving well.  So, a bet isn’t out of the question, but he’ll have to improve to crack the Top Three.
   
   

Best Long Shots

Kevin Harvick +900 - - His 11.5 average finish at Richmond makes him a player in this and the fact that he was so awful at Talladega means absolutely nothing because everybody was.  Consider a wager because he could bounce back like everybody else.