Saturday, June 25, 2016

Final Sonoma Driver Ratings: 2016 Toyota/SaveMart 350

Carl Edwards will start from the pole Sunday at Sonoma.
Carl Edwards had a pair of outstanding practices Friday at Sonoma Raceway and it carried over into Saturday's qualifying as he laid down the fastest lap to capture his first pole on the 1.99-mile, 12-turn road course. However, race-favorite Kurt Busch who qualified fourth still rates as the driver to beat in Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350.

The Linemakers on Sporting News


Micah Roberts' NASCAR Ratings
Toyota/Save Mart 350
Sonoma Raceway
Sunday, June 26, 2016 - 12:18 pm (PT)    
 
 
Rating     Driver       Odds     Practice 1  Practice 2  Qualified   Sonoma '15*
 1. Kurt Busch (5/1)                     11th            12th             4th                 2nd 
2011 winner, active leader with seven top-fives and 197 laps led; using 2015 road chassis.
 2. Carl Edwards (10/1)                 5th              4th             1st                40th
2014 winner, third-place in 2013 and 2011. Pole sitter won five of 27 Sonoma races (18.5%).
 3. A.J. Allmendinger (7/1)       19th            15th           2nd                37th
Captured only career win in 2014 on the other road course at the faster Watkins Glen Int'l.
 4. Jimmie Johnson (7/1)          15th            13th           15th                6th
2010 winner, ninth or better in past seven starts. Led race-high 45 laps in last seasons race.
 5. Kyle Busch (10/1)                    14th              5th            8th                  1st
Two-time winner, including last season -- his only top-fives in 11 career starts (19.09 avg).
 6. Martin Truex Jr. (10/1)            3rd            10th            3rd               42nd 
2013 with 21st-place average finish in 10 starts. Best 10-consecutive lap average in practice 2.
 7. Kasey Kahne (30/1)                24th              9th          19th                 8th
2009 winner after not cracking top-20 in first five attempts; eighth or better past three starts.
 8. Kevin Harvick (7/1)                 17th           18th           25th                 4th 
2007 runner-up and using chassis this week that had top-fives in both 2015 road course races.
 9. Joey Logano (15/1)                10th            16th            7th                  5th
Career-best fifth last year continuing trend of him getting better on road courses every year.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (18/1)       4th              1st            13th                7th
Didn't have a top-10 in first 14 starts, but was third in 2014 and then seventh last year.

* Results from June 28, 2015 Sonoma race

Odds courtesy of the Westgate SuperBook.

Micah Roberts, a former Las Vegas sports book director, has been setting NASCAR odds since 1994. Follow him on twitter @MicahRoberts7

No comments: