Thursday, June 13, 2013

It pays to shop around when betting NASCAR

Carl Edwards opened at 30-to-1 odds to win at MGM sports books 
LAS VEGAS -- The MGM Resorts sports books, just like everyone else in Las Vegas, have opened Jimmie Johnson as the 4-to-1 favorite to win Sunday’s Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway. But as you go down the list of odds, you’ll notice the book is offering some of the best value in town on a few drivers.

One of those drivers is Carl Edwards at 30-to-1. Edwards will be driving a new chassis this week, which could be good or bad. Chances are, though, he’ll be good at Michigan because he’s been stout in just about every ride he’s had there. Not only does he have two Michigan wins, but he also boasts an average finish of 8.2 at the track – tops among active drivers.

As a measure of the differences between odds at the sports books, and why it pays to shop around, the LVH SuperBook has posted Edwards at 12-to-1.

Although a Ford has yet to win on a big horsepower track this season, the Roush Fenway organization should be excited about its chances on Sunday following a strong performance last week at Pocono, where they were fast in both practices and in the race. Team owner Jack Roush has always been the darling at his home track closest to the Ford executives from the Motor City, piling up a record 12 wins.

Last fall’s race at Michigan was won by Roush driver Greg Biffle, who is posted at 10-to-1 odds by MGM Resorts, but is a juicy 15-to-1 at the LVH. Biffle has three wins at Michigan and will be using the same chassis with which he won there last season.

Other drivers that stand out on the MGM board are Kasey Kahne at 15-to-1 and Kevin Harvick at 25-to-1. Each have a Michigan win under his belt and has shown a tremendous amount of speed this season on similar tracks. Harvick won the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte in late May for his second win of the season. Kahne has been runner-up this season at Las Vegas, Kansas and Charlotte.

This week Harvick will be driving a chassis that finished 13th at Fontana, Michigan’s sister track. It also finished in 11th-place in the All-Star race in Charlotte. Kahne will be using the same chassis that finished second at Kansas and Charlotte. In the Coca-Cola 600, Kahne led a race-high 161 laps before Harvick passed him with 11 laps remaining.

The LVH has Kahne 7-to-1 to win this week and Harvick 18-to-1.

Here’s a comparison of Michigan odds at the two Vegas sports books.

Read More Here....MGM Odds

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