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| Kevin Harvick is still the King of 1.5-mile tracks. |
Kevin Harvick is still 'King of the Hill' on another 1.5-mile track, but unlike the first two at Atlanta and Las Vegas where he won, there appears to be -- on paper -- many more cars capable of hunting him down in Sunday's O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. At least that's what speeds from Saturday's final two practices suggest.
And for the first time, we have a gaggle of Chevy's showing some speed, namely Hendrick Motorsports with seven-time Texas winner Jimmie Johnson posting the fastest lap (198.143 mph) during Saturday's final session. In Saturday's earlier session, Richard Childress Racing's Ryan Newman had the best 10-consecutive lap average and HMS rookie William Byron had the third best speed (198.741).
I came in believing the Team Penske trio would give Harvick the most trouble, but the practices show Joe Gibbs Racing as being the top contender with Daniel Suarez first and third fastest in the two sessions and Erik Jones seventh or better in both, including the second-best 10-consecutive lap average during happy hour, just behind Kevin Harvick in that category, of course.
However, I don't believe that everyone else got better all of a sudden. No way! How about we just say the track was awful and let's throw all the times in the trash and stick with the meat and potatoes based on recent Texas history and what happened in Atlanta and Las Vegas .
I'm not putting too much into the practice times and they don't factor much into my final ratings.
When Johnson runs only three laps in the final session while having the fastest time, something is wrong. This guy wants to build on finally having 2018 success, but he calls it quits and says, "we're good"? No, I'm not buying all is good.
Denny Hamlin didn't even run a lap during Happy Hour and had just five laps after posting the second-fastest lap in the early session. This isn't Talladega or Daytona where they do stuff like that.
So, while all the new faces and speeds posted near the top look promising, my suggestion is to be skeptical when wagering or setting your fantasy line-up.
I'm also expecting lots accidents. Be careful out there, boys.
MICAH ROBERTS' 2018 MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER RATINGS
2018 O'REILLY AUTO PARTS 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, APRIL 8, 2018 - 2:16 PM ET
RATING DRIVER ODDS PRAC 1 QUALIFIED PRAC 2 PRAC 3
1. Kevin Harvick 3/1 2nd 2nd 5th 2nd
2. Martin Truex Jr. 4/1 10th 6th 11th 5th
3. Kyle Busch 4/1 4th 8th 19th 11th
4. Denny Hamlin 15/1 6th 5th 2nd DNP
5. Erik Jones 20/1 15th 21st 6th 7th
6. Ryan Blaney 15/1 5th 4th 10th 10th
7. Kyle Larson 7/1 18th 10th 8th 6th
8. Brad Keselowski 8/1 8th 11th 14th 23rd
9. Kurt Busch 40/1 1st 1st 12th 4th
10. Joey Logano 12/1 16th 7th 7th 24th
11. Aric Almirola 50/1 9th 12th 21st 12th
12. Clint Bowyer 30/1 3rd 3rd 22nd 9th
13. Jimmie Johnson 20/1 12th 9th 4th 1st
14. Ryan Newman 100/1 11th 25th 17th 30th
15. Daniel Suarez 100/1 13th 14th 1st 3rd
Opening odds courtesy of Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook.
Micah Roberts, a former Las Vegas sports book director, has been setting auto racing odds in Las Vegas since 1994.
And for the first time, we have a gaggle of Chevy's showing some speed, namely Hendrick Motorsports with seven-time Texas winner Jimmie Johnson posting the fastest lap (198.143 mph) during Saturday's final session. In Saturday's earlier session, Richard Childress Racing's Ryan Newman had the best 10-consecutive lap average and HMS rookie William Byron had the third best speed (198.741).
I came in believing the Team Penske trio would give Harvick the most trouble, but the practices show Joe Gibbs Racing as being the top contender with Daniel Suarez first and third fastest in the two sessions and Erik Jones seventh or better in both, including the second-best 10-consecutive lap average during happy hour, just behind Kevin Harvick in that category, of course.
However, I don't believe that everyone else got better all of a sudden. No way! How about we just say the track was awful and let's throw all the times in the trash and stick with the meat and potatoes based on recent Texas history and what happened in Atlanta and Las Vegas .
I'm not putting too much into the practice times and they don't factor much into my final ratings.
When Johnson runs only three laps in the final session while having the fastest time, something is wrong. This guy wants to build on finally having 2018 success, but he calls it quits and says, "we're good"? No, I'm not buying all is good.
Denny Hamlin didn't even run a lap during Happy Hour and had just five laps after posting the second-fastest lap in the early session. This isn't Talladega or Daytona where they do stuff like that.
So, while all the new faces and speeds posted near the top look promising, my suggestion is to be skeptical when wagering or setting your fantasy line-up.
I'm also expecting lots accidents. Be careful out there, boys.
MICAH ROBERTS' 2018 MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER RATINGS
2018 O'REILLY AUTO PARTS 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, APRIL 8, 2018 - 2:16 PM ET
RATING DRIVER ODDS PRAC 1 QUALIFIED PRAC 2 PRAC 3
1. Kevin Harvick 3/1 2nd 2nd 5th 2nd
2. Martin Truex Jr. 4/1 10th 6th 11th 5th
3. Kyle Busch 4/1 4th 8th 19th 11th
4. Denny Hamlin 15/1 6th 5th 2nd DNP
5. Erik Jones 20/1 15th 21st 6th 7th
6. Ryan Blaney 15/1 5th 4th 10th 10th
7. Kyle Larson 7/1 18th 10th 8th 6th
8. Brad Keselowski 8/1 8th 11th 14th 23rd
9. Kurt Busch 40/1 1st 1st 12th 4th
10. Joey Logano 12/1 16th 7th 7th 24th
11. Aric Almirola 50/1 9th 12th 21st 12th
12. Clint Bowyer 30/1 3rd 3rd 22nd 9th
13. Jimmie Johnson 20/1 12th 9th 4th 1st
14. Ryan Newman 100/1 11th 25th 17th 30th
15. Daniel Suarez 100/1 13th 14th 1st 3rd
Opening odds courtesy of Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook.
Micah Roberts, a former Las Vegas sports book director, has been setting auto racing odds in Las Vegas since 1994.
1 comment:
Those days are nostalgic. Most of the auto race are memorable.
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