NASCAR Michigan Betting Preview: Doubleheader with two 312 mile races

Date: Saturday Aug. 8 and Sunday Aug. 9
Venue: Michigan International Speedway
Location: Brooklyn, Michigan
Television-Time: NBCSN, 4:00 p.m., 4:30 p.m. ET

Handicapping NASCAR at Michigan

There are so many important happenings this weekend at Michigan International Speedway that it’s hard where to start. Since this is a NASCAR betting piece I’ll start with the fact we have two races to bet on this weekend.

Yes, It’s a Saturday-Sunday doubleheader with each race reduced to 312 miles with the top-20 start position in Sunday’s race set by the inverted results from Saturday.

The Saturday winner starts 20th on Sunday and when NASCAR unveiled the two races in one weekend in June at Pocono, I thought the Sunday race was wild with the best cars starting 16th through 20th marching through the field to the front.

Saturday’s race saw Kevin Harvick dominate in clean air and hold off runner-up Denny Hamlin. On Sunday it was Hamlin winning with Harvick as runner-up. Aric Almirola also had top-fives in both races.

So it’s easy to understand why the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook posted Harvick as the 4/1 favorite with Hamlin next at 5/1 odds. Almirola, who had been 25/1 or 20/1 the last eight weeks, is now listed at 14/1 to win Saturday’s race.

Almirola currently is on a run of nine straight top-10 finishes and despite the odds drop I still bet him to win.

Perfect 10 for Almirola?

“Michigan is a weird place for me because, in my mind, I feel like I run well there,” Almirola said. “I won a Truck race there years ago and, from that point forward, I just always loved going to Michigan. My wife’s family is from Michigan, so I go to Michigan with such a great attitude. I felt like in our first race there last year we had a lot of speed.

I felt we had a top-five car there at Michigan and didn’t execute and things didn’t go our way with the restarts and I didn’t get the result. I’m excited about going back. Going to Michigan, there’s always a lot of pride for the manufacturers. I’d love to go there and keep the trophy in Ford’s backyard.”

Almirola brings up another fun fact I love about Michigan races regarding the manufacturer's battle. Ford leads the way with 39 Michigan wins, including the last four, and its Mercury division also won 12 times in the manufacturers battle near Motor City. Chevrolet has 26 wins and Toyota has five.

Kick the Tires

A couple of other fun facts regarding Michigan is that this will be the 15th and 16th race using the race package with engines producing 550 horsepower.

And the teams will also be using the Goodyear tire compound used at Las Vegas, Kentucky, and Texas, or better known as the tire that doesn’t wear and produced the biggest back/back long shot winners in NASCAR betting history in Las Vegas. Cole Custer’s win at Kentucky paid 300/1 and Austin Dillon’s win paid out 100/1 odds.

"With limited track time under the current schedules, teams enter this weekend’s races at Michigan already being familiar with this tire set-up," said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing.

READ MORE HERE....TOP-5 FINISH PREDICTION ON VEGASINSIDER.COM

Fresher tires late propel Larson to third straight Michigan win

Kyle Larson was 3/1 co-favorite to win Sunday at Michigan.

NASCAR Wire Service

BROOKLYN, Mich. - Sitting in his racecar during a red flag delay near the end of the Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway, Kyle Larson pondered the possible routes to an overtime victory. He was in fourth-place and would restart for the final two-lap shootout behind leader Martin Truex Jr.

Larson hadn’t had a fast racecar all day at Michigan International Speedway, but he thought with a gutsy move on the restart, he could steal a win in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. Ahead of him, Truex, the race leader, was in the opposite positon. He had had a fast racecar all day, and he figured he needed a strong restart to repel whatever move Larson or somebody else would throw at him. Like Larson, he was trying to figure out which scenario would be most likely to take him to Victory Lane.

As it turned out, Larson and Truex both drew up the same plan—they both wanted Larson to hit Truex on the restart. They just had different ideas about what would happen after that.

Truex hoped the contact would push him forward and to the victory, and for a very brief second, that seemed possible. But Truex spun his tires, which played right into Larson’s strategy.

"I wanted to time it and get to his bumper and act like I was pushing him out to the lead and duck underneath him and get to his left-rear quarter and pull him back," Larson said. "It’s crazy how when you get to someone’s left rear quarter how much it slows them down. It did just that."

Larson bounced off of Truex as he passed him, and for a split second the race fanned out four wide. That never ends well—especially not on the penultimate lap when all four drivers are going for the win. But somehow they all stayed off each other, and afterward, rookie Erik Jones, one of those drivers, was at a loss to explain how. "I was pointed at the infield for half of (Turns) one and two," said Jones, who finished third.

After the pass, Larson’s car was loose for the rest of the restart lap and the white flag lap. But he put enough distance between him and Truex that Truex couldn’t catch him and had to settle for second. Those were the only two laps Larson led all day. The thrilling win in a car that had no business doing so looked like a career defining move for Larson, the young driver from California.

The win was an exclamation point on an already great week of racing for Larson. He finished second late Saturday night in the Knoxville Nationals, one of the biggest dirt races in the world. His contract forbids him from running on dirt the night before he has to be on track for NASCAR, be it practice, qualifying or a race. But on Thursday, he talked team owner Chip Ganassi into making an exception.

Ganassi harbored misgivings about the decision—he thought Larson, who didn’t get back to Michigan from Knoxville, Iowa until 2:30 a.m. Sunday might be too worn out for the 400 mile race, and those doubts grew bigger in the middle of the race as Larson languished in the middle of the pack. But after the win, Ganassi joyously shook team members on the pit box and planted a kiss on Larson.



It was Larson’s third consecutive win at Michigan. The only other drivers to accomplish that are David Pearson and Bill Elliott, both of whom are in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The race was slowed by five cautions for 28 laps.

Michigan native Brad Keselowski won the first stage. He dominated the first half of the race, leading five times for 105 laps. But he faded to 17th. Truex led three times for 57 laps and won the second stage. Truex kept his position atop the points race, but finished runner-up.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race - Pure Michigan 400

Michigan International Speedway

Brooklyn, Michigan

Sunday, August 13, 2017

               1. (9) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 202.

               2. (13) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 202.

               3. (8) Erik Jones #, Toyota, 202.

               4. (25) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 202.

               5. (21) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 202.

               6. (20) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 202.

               7. (17) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 202.

               8. (5) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 202.

               9. (7) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 202.

               10. (6) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 202.

               11. (15) Kurt Busch, Ford, 202.

               12. (24) Aric Almirola, Ford, 202.

               13. (3) Kevin Harvick, Ford, 202.

               14. (19) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 202.

               15. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 202.

               16. (10) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 202.

               17. (1) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 202.

               18. (14) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 202.

               19. (22) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 202.

               20. (29) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 202.

               21. (33) Ty Dillon #, Chevrolet, 202.

               22. (18) Danica Patrick, Ford, 202.

               23. (11) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 202.

               24. (4) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 202.

               25. (32) Landon Cassill, Ford, 200.

               26. (27) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 200.

               27. (26) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 200.

               28. (2) Joey Logano, Ford, 200.

               29. (31) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 199.

               30. (28) David Ragan, Ford, 199.

               31. (34) Corey LaJoie #, Toyota, 199.

               32. (35) * Brett Moffitt(i), Toyota, 198.

               33. (38) * Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 197.

               34. (30) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, Accident, 196.

               35. (36) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 196.

               36. (39) * BJ McLeod(i), Chevrolet, 178.

               37. (16) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, Accident, 138.

               38. (23) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, Accident, 138.

               39. (37) Derrike Cope, Toyota, Engine, 107.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  150.903 mph.

Time of Race:  02 Hrs, 40 Mins, 38 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.310 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  5 for 28 laps.

Lead Changes:  14 among 7 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   B. Keselowski 1-42; E. Jones # 43-46; B. Keselowski 47-63; D. Suarez # 64-66; B. Keselowski 67-110; Kyle Busch 111-113; M. Truex Jr. 114-127; B. Keselowski 128; M. Truex Jr. 129-159; E. Jones # 160; B. Keselowski 161; D. Hamlin 162-177; Kyle Busch 178-188; M. Truex Jr. 189-200; K. Larson 201-202.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  B. Keselowski 5 times for 105 laps; M. Truex Jr. 3 times for 57 laps; D. Hamlin 1 time for 16 laps; Kyle Busch 2 times for 14 laps; E. Jones # 2 times for 5 laps; D. Suarez # 1 time for 3 laps; K. Larson 1 time for 2 laps.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 2,4,24,78,77,22,20,18,42,11

Stage #2 Top Ten: 78,2,4,77,19,21,1,42,18,11

Final Michigan Driver Ratings: 2017 Pure Michigan 400

Brad Keselowski has a real good look at finally winning on his home track. He was 18/1 to win in Las Vegas.

Micah Roberts' Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Driver Ratings
Pure Michigan 400
Michigan International Speedway
Sunday, August 13, 2017 - 3:16 pm ET
RATED DRIVER     ODDS                PRAC 1        START        PRAC 2      PRAC 3  
 1. Kyle Larson 3/1                 7th           9th          1st          7th
 2. Kyle Busch 3/1                  2nd          6th          8th          5th
 3. Martin Truex Jr. 3/1           4th          13th        10th         2nd
 4. Ryan Blaney 25/1              1st          12th         4th          4th
 5. Matt Kenseth 18/1            13th           4th        16th        11th
 6. Denny Hamlin 15/1            3rd          10th        15th          8th
 7. Brad Keselowski 18/1         5th           1st         2nd          1st
 8. Chase Elliott 15/1               9th           5th         5th         15th
 9. Jimmie Johnson 20/1        16th         22nd         3rd         37th
10. Kevin Harvick 10/1             8th           3rd        17th        14th
11. Erik Jones 35/1                12th           8th          7th        12th
12. Joey Logano 20/1             10th          2nd        18th          3rd
13. Jamie McMurray 35/1        11th          7th         11th        10th
14. Dale Earnhardt Jr 60/1      17th         19th          6th          6th
15. Clint Bowyer 40/1               6th         11th         12th        16th

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.

Kyle Busch at Michigan: 19.8 average finish in 25 starts, one win

Kyle Busch is the 3/1 co-favorite along with Larson, Truex.

KYLE BUSCH, Driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing: 

Does taking the same approach you have at the Kansas repave also benefit you at a place like Michigan? 

“Our team has come a long way at Kansas, that’s for sure. To get a win there was a really big deal for our team. I give my guys a lot of credit for working hard to find something I was more comfortable with there. Our whole team has shown how well we’ve worked together, and that he (crew chief Adam Stevens) has been a really quick study, so I think the same direction can work at Michigan this weekend. We are working on improving as an organization not only on the resurfaced tracks, but overall in general and it showed there in June. We ran as well as we have since the repave there. Everyone is working their guts out to get our stuff better there and we made a lot of progress in June there. I’m looking forward to getting out there in practice and seeing what we can learn with our Interstate Batteries Camry.” 

So much of the talk this year has been the strength of Kyle Larson and Martin Truex Jr. Do you feel like you’ll be a contender for the title this year with how strong you’ve been? 

“I don’t know. We normally tend to fly under the radar most times during the playoffs. But, you know, I’m not one who needs to go out and beat our chest to say that we should be in the conversations. That’s for other people to decide. I think our stats and our runs and our speed shows for itself. Those guys have just been able to capitalize on race victories. That’s what we haven’t been able to capitalize on. We haven’t been very flashy when it comes to getting through the playoffs. When our backs are against the wall, I would say we haven’t necessarily had that situation, thankfully, so we haven’t had to go out there and win. I mean, in those playoff instances, like some of these other teams have. The 4 (Kevin Harvick) has been able to do it, the 78 (Truex), a couple other guys. We just methodically go about our races and that’s our mentality. When it works for us, we go to victory lane. That’s how we’ve gotten to Homestead the last couple of years.” 

Most drivers really seem to enjoy racing at Michigan International Speedway. Why is that? “Regardless of new pavement or not, it’s wide-open racing and you can run from top to bottom more and more every race there as the groove widens out. The biggest thing used to be to find grip there. But with the new surface, there is a ton of grip now. Before, you had grip for maybe five laps, and then you’d just be out to lunch. But now, the tire wear is all out the window and the racetrack is very fast. And the wide racetrack is good. That’s what makes Michigan so exciting and so fun. That’s the biggest deal about it. The surface is finally starting to wear in a bit and we have learned a lot there, I would certainly like to get back to victory lane there for Norm (Miller, Interstate Chairman) and everyone at Interstate Batteries.” 

How much more worn is the track surface at Michigan? 

“I expect it to be fast, still. There’s still a lot of grip, but it’s starting to get worn in like Kansas did, but not quite to that level just yet. I would still expect it to be very fast this weekend. But if you’re just a little bit loose there, now you’re nervous that just any little bit of getting outside the groove or having a little bit too much yaw will lead to a wreck. It was really intense last year in our tests and in the races there. You are hauling there now, for sure, and we know that corner speeds are up overall this year at other places.”

Kyle Busch Notes of Interest: · 

* The Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn will mark Kyle Busch’s 449th career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start and his 26th NASCAR Cup Series start at Michigan. 

* Busch has career totals of 39 wins, 24 poles, 155 top-five finishes, 231 top-10s and 13,491 laps led in 448 career Cup Series races. His most recent Cup Series win came two races ago at Pocono (Pa.) raceway. Busch’s most recent pole, the 25th of his career, came last weekend at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International. He now has six poles this season, a career high. 

* Busch has one win, four top-five finishes and seven top-10s and has led a total of 219 laps in 25 career Cup Series starts at Michigan. Busch’s average Michigan finish is 19.9. 

* 13,000: After leading 100 laps at Pocono in June, Busch bested the 13,000 mark in laps led in NASCAR’s top series. With his current 13,491 Cup Series laps led, Busch is just the 11th driver to best the 13,000 mark. 

* 100th: Busch brought home Toyota’s maiden Cup series victory in March of 2008. Fast forward nine years later and Busch’s recent Pocono win was the 100th for the Toyota Camry brand in NASCAR’s top series. Busch has brought home 35 of those 100 victories for the manufacturer. The win was also Toyota’s 400th victory among NASCAR’s top three series. Among those 400 wins, Busch has 155. 

* Starting Up Front: Busch captured his third consecutive pole last weekend at Watkins Glen, which was the sixth of 2017 for the Las Vegas native. Six poles is the most Busch has captured during any season of his career. In fact, prior to 2017, the most poles Busch had captured in a season was three, which he did on two different occasions during the 2013 and 2014 seasons.

Chase Elliott: Runner-up in first three Michigan starts; he obviously likes it

Chase Elliott is 10/1 to win at Michigan.

Chase Elliott on heading to Michigan
“It’s great. It’s also frustrating to have run second every time we have been there. It’s good I guess that we are inside the top five the past few times we have been there, but at the same time that is frustrating to have been pretty close to having a shot to win there, which would have been very big if we could have pulled that out. I like Michigan. I’ve always liked going up there. I really love that area. It’s just a cool part of the United States to go to. I like it up there – it’s a nice area and that is kind of why I like going.”

NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET: This weekend at Michigan International Speedway, Chase Elliott's No. 24 Chevrolet SS will don the familiar blue-and-yellow NAPA AUTO PARTS paint scheme. The Atlanta-based company will serve as majority sponsor for Elliott and the No. 24 team for 24 NASCAR Cup Series races this year. Most recently, Elliott piloted the NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevy to a 10th-place finish at Pocono Raceway.

MICHIGAN STATS: The 21-year-old driver is set to make his fourth career NASCAR Cup Series start at Michigan this weekend. In each of Elliott’s three previous starts at the two-mile speedway, he collected second-place finishes. In addition to his average finishing position of 2.0, he averages a starting position of 8.3 at the track. In Elliott’s two NASCAR XFINITY Series starts at Michigan, he collected one top-five finish and two top-10s.

MICHIGAN LOOP DATA: According to NASCAR's loop data statistics since 2005, Elliott has the top driver rating at Michigan with an average score of 119.0. The driver rating is a formula that combines wins, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led and lead-lap finishes. The maximum a driver can earn in each race is 150 points. Elliott also ranks first for average running position at Michigan with a 5.135 average place.

ELLIOTT AT CHEVY STAGE: Elliott will appear at the Team Chevy Stage on Sunday, August 13, at 12:10 p.m. local time for a question-and-answer session.

WATKINS GLEN REWIND: Elliott posted his best career qualifying effort and raced inside the top 10 for much of last Sunday’s Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International before ultimately finishing 13th after having to pit for fuel in the closing laps. He remains seventh in the driver point standings as the series heads to Michigan.

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2017 Season 7th in standings 22 starts 0 race wins 2 stage wins 1 pole position 6 top-five finishes 12 top-10 finishes 182 laps led     Career 63 starts 0 wins 3 pole positions 16 top-five finishes 29 top-10 finishes 540 laps led     Track Career  3 starts 0 wins 0 pole positions 3 top-five finishes 3 top-10 finishes 66 laps led

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Michigan Betting Preview: 2017 Pure Michigan 400

Kyle Larson is the new face of NASCAR, really?

LAS VEGAS -- Things are getting pretty intense with only four races to until the 16-drivers are announced for the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Playoffs, but I'm looking ahead to 2018 right now and the climate of the Cup Series.

Hendrick Motorsports is losing Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne and will replace them with two very young drivers, Alex Bowman and William Byron. They'll join Chase Elliott in his third year and then of course there's the anchor, seven-time champ Jimmie Johnson.

That's a new look, a new flavor, and a new taste for NASCAR. But there's lots more.

Kurt Busch likely won't return to the No. 41 and Matt Kenseth won't be back in the No. 20 as Erik Jones takes over. Paul Menard will leave the No. 27 and drive the No. 21 after Ryan Blaney accepted the Team Penske offer to drive a third car -- the No. 12. Danica Patrick may be a sitting duck as well in the No. 10. She barely found enough sponsorship coming into 2017. At some point Tony Stewart is going to want to see that division of his team win some races; the sponsors too. That's why she may be out.

With Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards and Earnhardt Jr. gone, can the series survive? The stands have been empty everywhere with the exception of Watkins Glen being sold out last week for the third straight year.

I hate to be that crusty old man who can't move on and lives in yesterday's world -- I don't apologize for feeling the same way with music. I think I just see some reluctance from the drivers this season to show some emotion. Kyle Busch exploded in Las Vegas while chasing Joey Logano on pit row, and got bloodied in the process, but it was awesome. And that was it. Las Vegas was race No. 3 and we're at No. 23 now. Snooze....

I don't want wrecks. I want personality conflicts and these guys all seem too chummy in the garage for that to happen.

Alright, enough whining already, let's talk about this week's race.

READ MORE HERE......Top-5 Finish Prediction on VegasInsider.com

Michigan NASCAR Cup Series Notes: 2017 Pure Michigan 400

Kyle Larson has won three straight races on 2-mile tracks.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

Next Race: Pure Michigan 400

The Place: Michigan International Speedway

The Date: Sunday, August 13

The Time: 3 p.m. ET

TV: NBCSN, 2:30 p.m. ET

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Distance: 400 miles (200 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on lap 60),

Stage 2 (Ends on lap 120), Final Stage (Ends on lap 200)

NASCAR XFINITY Series

Next Race: Mid-Ohio Challenge

The Place: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

The Date: Saturday, August 12

The Time: 3:30 p.m. ET

TV: NBCSN, 3 p.m. ET

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Distance: 169.35 miles (75 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on lap 20),

Stage 2 (Ends on lap 40), Final Stage (Ends on lap 75)

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series 

Next Race: LTI Printing 200

The Place: Michigan International Speedway

The Date: Saturday, August 12

The Time: 1 p.m. ET

TV: FS1, 12:30 p.m. ET

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Distance: 200 miles (100 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on lap 30),

Stage 2 (Ends on lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on lap 100)

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

Truex Wins Series-Best Fourth Race

Saving fuel in the closing laps, Martin Truex Jr. passed Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney, who had to pit for gas, to win the I LOVE NEW YORK 355 at Watkins Glen International – his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series-high fourth victory of the season.

Truex leads second-place Kyle Busch by 116 points in the series standings. He boasts a series-high 34 playoff points, 18 more than Jimmie Johnson’s 16. If Truex completes the regular season as points leader, he’ll gain an additional 15 playoff points.

The No. 78 Furniture Row Racing driver’s four wins match his previous career-high total set last season. His nine top fives in 2017 are the most he’s ever accumulated in a single campaign.

Truex also leads the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in top 10s (15), stage wins (14), average start (7.0), average running position (7.9), driver rating (113.9), fastest laps run (760) and laps led (1,315, 22.2%).

He’ll try to keep his dream season going in Sunday’s Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway (3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). He claims five top fives and eight top 10s in 23 career starts at the two-mile track. He finished sixth in the June race there after leading 62 laps.

Can Michigan Be The Site Of Earnhardt Jr.’s first win?

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is in playoff trouble. He hasn’t finished better than 12th since his sixth-place showing at Sonoma and needs a win to make the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

Michigan might be his best bet of the remaining four tracks (Bristol, Darlington, Richmond) to reach Victory Lane. In 35 career starts at the two-mile track, he has two wins, eight top fives, 15 top 10s and a 15.6 average finish.

Still, if Earnhardt can’t pull off the victory at Michigan, he has recorded a triumph at Bristol and three wins at Richmond in the past.

Larson Goes For Third-Straight Michigan Win

Kyle Larson seems to have Michigan International Speedway figured out. He’s won the last two races and boasts three consecutive top-three showings at the two-mile track.

Larson could use a strong performance in the Pure Michigan 400. He fell to third in the points standings after Watkins Glen and now trails leader Martin Truex Jr. by 122 markers. He hasn’t finished better than 23rd in his last three races, which were preceded by consecutive runner-up showings at Kentucky and New Hampshire.

The No. 42 Chevrolet driver led a race-high 96 laps on his way to the checkered flag at Michigan in June.

Four Races Remain Until Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs

A mere four races remain for winless drivers to capture one of the three remaining playoff berths.

The following drivers would be in the playoffs if the season ended today: Martin Truex Jr. (four wins, 34 playoff points), Jimmie Johnson (three, 16), Kyle Larson (two, 13), Brad Keselowski (two, 13), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (two, 10), Kyle Busch (one, 14), Kevin Harvick (one, eight), Ryan Blaney (one, eight), Denny Hamlin (one, seven), Ryan Newman (one, five), Kasey Kahne (one, five), Austin Dillon (one, five), Chase Elliott (39 points above Clint Bowyer on the cutoff line, two playoff points), Jamie McMurray (+34, 0),  Matt Kenseth (+28, 2).

The driver currently outside the playoffs with the best shot to get in on points is Bowyer (28 points below Kenseth on the cutoff line, one playoff point).

Joey Logano – who’s made the Championship 4 in two of the last three seasons – finds himself 95 points behind Kenseth and virtually needs to win to make the playoffs. He has two victories each at Michigan, Bristol and Richmond. His April win at Richmond did not earn him a playoff berth because it was encumbered for a rear suspension violation.

Michigan: Earnhardt Jr., Kenseth, Logano

Bristol: Kenseth, Earnhardt Jr., Logano

Darlington: Kenseth

Richmond: Bowyer, Earnhardt Jr., Kenseth, Logano

Michigan Men: Keselowski, Jones Return To Wolverine State

If Michigan Football Head Coach Jim Harbaugh were involved in NASCAR, he’d definitely pull some of his wild recruiting tactics on Great Lakes State natives Brad Keselowski and Erik Jones.

Keselowski, the 2012 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion from Rochester Hills, has never won at his home track. Jones, a 21-year-old NASCAR Next alum for Byron, will make just his second career start at Michigan.

In 16 starts at his home track, Keselowski claims five top fives, eight top 10s and a 12.6 average finish. Six of his top 10s have come in his last seven Michigan starts.

Jones placed 13th in his lone Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start at Michigan earlier this season.

Suárez Earns Career-Best Third-Place Finish

Daniel Suárez notched a career-best third-place finish and earned his first stage win at Watkins Glen. The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing driver has hit his stride lately with four consecutive top-10 finishes.

Suárez, an alumnus of the NASCAR Next and Drive for Diversity programs, leads second-place Erik Jones in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings by 17 points.

The 2016 NASCAR XFINITY Series champion ranks 15th in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series standings on the strength of eight top 10s.

NASCAR Next = NASCAR Now

With the announcement that William Byron will inherit the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet next season, that brings the total number of NASCAR Next alumni in 2017 or 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rides to 10. (Click here for content, including career statistics, around today’s announcement.)

Below is the list of NASCAR Next alumni who have made a start in the series in 2017 or are scheduled to jump in a Monster Energy Series car in 2018 (in alphabetical order):

Ryan Blaney 

Alex Bowman 

William Byron 

Matt DiBenedetto 

Chase Elliott  

Gray Gaulding

Erik Jones 

Corey LaJoie 

Kyle Larson 

Daniel Suarez 

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Etc.

Michigan Heritage Trophy Goes To Winning Manufacturer: The Michigan Heritage trophy is a recognition and celebration of the automobile and its importance to the race track and manufacturers competing in NASCAR. The trophy is presented to the winning manufacturer in each Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway. As part of the presentation, each contending manufacturer, and MIS, committed $10,000 to be given to a youth-focused science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)-related charity in Michigan. 

Final Week Of Kids Drive NASCAR: There’s nothing like the NASCAR experience for kids and families. Kids’ Takeovers will continue at both MIS and Mid-Ohio, with kids taking over positions like flag wavers, pit reporters, prerace VIPs and more. The Kids vs Drivers challenges enter into the final week at Michigan and Mid-Ohio. Parents and kids can upload their challenges on their social media accounts or at AccelerationNation.com/KidsvsDrivers and use #KidsDriveNASCAR and #Promotion.