Saturday, March 1, 2014

Final Phoenix Driver Ratings: 2014 The Profit on CNBC 500

Micah Roberts’ Top-10 Driver Ratings
The Profit on CNBC 500
Phoenix International  Raceway
Sunday, March 2, 2014 - 12:16 pm (PT)

RATING    DRIVER   ODDS              PRAC 1   QUALIFIED  PRAC 2   PRAC 3 
 1. Kevin Harvick 8/1            19th          13th        1st         1st 
Four-time winner; new chassis had fastest 10-consecutive lap averages in final practices.
 2. Brad Keselowski 9/1       13th           1st          5th        20th 
Finished 11th or better in past four starts; strong practice averages using brand new chassis.
 3. Joey Logano 20/1            2nd            2nd       10th         8th 
Third-place in 2010; has a new chassis like teammate Keselowski, should be dialed in the same.
 4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 12/1   1st             5th         4th          6th  
Two-time winner, the last in 2004 - same year he last won at Daytona. Top 5s in both 2013 starts.
 5. Ryan Newman 30/1        11th           15th       24th        3rd 
2010 winner with five top-5 finishes past eight starts; using brand new RCR chassis this week.
 6. Jimmie Johnson 5/1        15th           4th         9th        14th  
Four-time winner with 6.3 average; using third-place chassis from November Phoenix race.
 7. Jamie McMurray 100/1    14th           3rd        2nd         7th  
Third-place in 2008, but is biggest wild card after final practices with most upside at bet window.
 8. Denny Hamlin 7/1            29th          12th       14th       12th 
2012 winner with 10.9 average, second best among active drivers. Third or better seven times.
 9. Kyle Larson 100/1            6th             8th         3rd         2nd 
Stellar practices; only thing keeping him from being rated No. 2 overall is that he’s a rookie.
10. Carl Edwards 20/1          21st          23rd        8th        10th  
Two-time winner, including this race in 2013, with 12.3 average; using new chassis this week.

Note: To help good a good read what drivers may do well at Phoenix, recent results at similar flats tracks at New Hampshire and Richmond serve as a great barometer.  

Odd courtesy of the LVH Super Book

Micah Roberts, a former race and sports book director in Las Vegas, has been setting NASCAR odds since 1995. For more post-practice analysis, visit the Linemakers on SportingNews.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter. 

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