Updated LVH odds to win 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship, following Martinsville

Earnhardt Jr. has the points lead coming out of Martinsville

2014 SPRINT CUP CHAMPIONSHIP

JIMMIE JOHNSON 5-2
KYLE BUSCH 8
MATT KENSETH 8
DENNY HAMLIN 10
BRAD KESELOWSKI 8
KASEY KAHNE 15
JEFF GORDON 12
DALE EARNHARDT JR 10
TONY STEWART 15
KEVIN HARVICK 8
KURT BUSCH 15
JOEY LOGANO 15
CARL EDWARDS 20
CLINT BOWYER 30
GREG BIFFLE 30
RYAN NEWMAN 40
MARTIN TRUEX JR 300
BRIAN VICKERS 100
JAMIE McMURRAY 100
RICKY STENHOUSE JR 200
AUSTIN DILLON 300
PAUL MENARD 200
KYLE LARSON 100
MARCOS AMBROSE 300
DANICA PATRICK 1000
FIELD 200

2014 Texas Duck Commander 500 Preview: Favorites usually come through at Texas

Great theater last week with Kurt Busch and Brad Keselowski 

We get our second look at a high banked 1.5-mile layout this week at Texas Motor Speedway, but let’s take a moment to reflect on what we saw last week at Martinsville where Las Vegan Kurt Busch took a beat up car to end his personal 83-race winless streak. He radioed in to his crew saying that their ’day was done’ after an early pit road crunch with Brad Keselowski, and then went blow for blow with a hoodless and fenderless Keselowski for multiple laps, and then finally won on a track where four select drivers had won 17 of the past 19 races.

It was a magical ride for all of us, and with the win, he became the sixth different driver to win in the first six races. The ride would have been better is I actually had Kurt Busch at the 50/1 odds (Bet $100 to win $5,000) offered by the LVH SuperBook. The most encouraging thing is that there looks to finally be hope for other drivers at Martinsville like the days when 30/1 or higher payouts were common with Ricky Rudd, Bobby Hamilton, John Andretti and Ricky Craven. Lately, Martinsville has been won by the big favorites. So make a mental note for when they return to the track on Oct. 26 that longer shots actually do have a chance now.

Over the years, we haven’t seen too many upsets at Texas, so when looking at the best candidates to win Sunday’s Duck Commander 500, you might want to keep your eyes at the top half of the odds board.

You could categorize Jeff Burton’s win in 2007 at 35/1 odds as a longshot, but for the most part, the elite have won. And when getting to see them run in final practices, the eventual winner should become much clearer as the cream rises to the top of the speed charts.

One way to get a head start on who might be the best Sunday is look at what happened during the Las Vegas race from Mar. 9 won by Brad Keselowski. Both are 1.5-mile tracks with each having their own unique characteristics. But since it’s the only relative thing to go off of from this season, it should be an important part of any wagering equation.

In the Las Vegas race, Dale Earnhardt Jr. gambled with fuel mileage and was leading when he ran out of fuel on the final lap, whereupon Keselowski passed for the win. Junior would finish second and was followed by Paul Menard, who would be considered somewhat of a long shot candidate this week.

Joey Logano, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch led some laps in that race, and Busch would go on to win at Fontana, which is a race that can also be applied into the betting equation this week.

Read More Here.....Top-5 Finish Prediction

Texas Storylines: 2014 Duck Commander 500

Kurt Busch makes it six different drivers to win in first six races

NASCAR Storylines for Week of March 31, 2014

Another race; another close call for six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson.

But rest assured his time to celebrate is more than likely approaching sooner than later, and with that an all-but-guaranteed spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

It could come as soon as this Sunday at Texas where he has three wins, two of them coming in the last three visits to the 1.5-mile track. He’s finished in the top 10 in 16 of his 21 starts there.

If Jimmie Johnson does wind up in Victory Lane, he would be the seventh different driver to win in the first seven races of the 2014 season. Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle and Tony Stewart are also past winners in Texas still searching for their first wins of the season.

A long-awaited victory finally came for Kurt Busch on Sunday at Martinsville. It was Busch that passed Johnson with 10 laps to go before holding him off over the final laps to seize his first win since 2011.

After a weekend off, the NASCAR Nationwide Series returns to action – also at Texas. Trevor Bayne will be aiming to break his tie with Regan Smith in the points standings. Bayne’s hoping the week off didn’t cool off his hot streak of five consecutive top-10 finishes to begin the season.

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series returned to action for the first time in over a month with reigning champion Matt Crafton celebrating his first win of the season. Entered in the race were four NASCAR Next members, proving that the future of NASCAR is in capable hands.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES – DUCK COMMANDER 500, SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 3 P.M. ET ON FOX

Jimmie Johnson On The Verge Of Win
The last two races for six-time NSCS champion Jimmie Johnson were going so well … and then they slipped away. He led the most laps in the races at Auto Club and Martinsville, where he came so close to capturing the win before finishing second to Kurt Busch, who took the point from Johnson with 10 laps to go. Johnson has an excellent shot at winning this weekend at Texas, where has won thrice, including two of the last three races, and thus all but locking up a Chase spot.

Five-For-Five, Six-For-Six … Now Paging Seven-For-Seven
One has to go all the way back to the 2003 season to find a year in which the first seven races were won by seven different drivers (it wasn’t until the 10th race that season that Kurt Busch became the first two-race winner). With the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series headed to Texas for Sunday’s Duck Commander 500, several past winners there, including Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and Jeff Gordon, are looking to be the seventh consecutive winner of 2014 and all but locking up a spot for the postseason.

Kurt Busch Quenches Thirst For Win, Ends Drought
Eighty-three races ago, Kurt Busch piloted the No. 22 Penske Dodge to Victory Lane at Dover International Speedway. On Sunday, Busch took the checkered flag at Martinsville in the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet for the first time since that day in Dover. The win was a first for Busch’s crew chief Daniel Knost in NASCAR’s national series. The series now heads to Texas where Busch has one win.

Roush Fenway Racing Has The Right Stuff At Texas
In 1997, when Texas Motor Speedway hosted its first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, then-Roush Fenway Racing driver Jeff Burton walked away with the trophy. Since that inaugural race, the organization has won a record eight more times in the series at Texas. Greg Biffle (three) and Carl Edwards (two) have both piloted RFR Fords to victory. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won a NNS event there for the organization in 2012. Both Biffle and Stenhouse have struggled in the first six races of 2014, but a strong finish on Sunday could turn their seasons around.

Austin Dillon Finds Himself In Enviable Position
Six races into his first full-time season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Austin Dillon has to be pleased with where he sits – ninth in the points standings and second in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year competition. He’s a very manageable 48 points behind points leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the championship standings and two points behind Kyle Larson in the rookie race heading to Texas. On Sunday at Martinsville, Dillon notched his fourth top-15 finish of the young season. He has six top-10 finishes in 10 national series starts at Texas.

- NASCAR

LVH Formula One odds: 2014 Bahrain Grand Prix

BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX
BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT
SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 2014

LEWIS HAMILTON EVEN

NICO ROSBERG 9-4
SEBASTIAN VETTEL 6

FERNANDO ALONSO 15
KIMI RAIKKONEN 25
FELIPE MASSA 30V

ALTTERI BOTTAS 30
JENSON BUTTON 30
KEVIN MAGNUSSEN 35
DANIEL RICCIARDO 50
NICO HULKENBERG 60
SERGIO PEREZ 200
ROMAIN GROSJEAN 500
DANIIL KVYAT 300
JEAN-ERIC VERGNE 500
PASTOR MALDONADO 500
ADRIAN SUTIL 1000
ESTEBAN GUTIERREZ 1000

KAMUI KOBAYASHI 5000
FIELD 300

Texas Track Facts: 2014 Duck Commander 500

Matt Kenseth is the top rated Texas driver in NASCAR's Loop Data

Texas Motor Speedway

Texas Motor Speedway Data

Season Race #: 7 of 36 (04-06-14)

Track Size: 1.5-mile

Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 24 degrees

Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 24 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees

Frontstretch Length: 2,250 feet

Backstretch Length: 1,330 feet

Race Length: 334 laps / 501 miles

 

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Texas

Matt Kenseth............................. 107.2

Jimmie Johnson........................ 106.4

Greg Biffle................................ 101.8

Kyle Busch............................... 101.6

Tony Stewart............................... 99.1

Carl Edwards.............................. 97.5

Dale Earnhardt Jr........................ 93.8

Denny Hamlin............................. 93.3

Clint Bowyer............................... 92.3

Jeff Gordon................................ 90.6

Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2013 races (18 total) among active drivers at Texas Motor Speedway.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2013 Coors Light Pole winner:

Kyle Busch, Toyota

196.299 mph, 27.509 secs. 04-12-13

 

2013 race winner:

Kyle Busch, Toyota

144.751 mph, (03:27:40), 04-13-13

 

Track qualifying record:

Kyle Busch, Toyota

196.299 mph, 27.509 secs. 04-12-13

 

Track race record:

Greg Biffle, Ford

160.577 mph, (3:07:12), 11-14-12

 

 

History

·         Construction on Texas Motor Speedway began in 1995.

·         The first NASCAR national series race at TMS was a NASCAR Nationwide Series event on April 5, 1997 – won by Mark Martin.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was on April 6, 1997 – won by Jeff Burton.

·         The track underwent a repave between the 2001 and 2002 seasons.

·         In 2011, the spring NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was moved from Sunday to Saturday night under the lights at Texas Motor Speedway.

·         Texas Motor Speedway hosted its first Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on November 6, 2005 – won by Carl Edwards.

Notebook

·         There have been 26 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway, one NSCS event from 1997 - 2004 and two races per year since 2005.

·         134 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas; 109 in more than one.

·         Four drivers have made all 26 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway – Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Jeff Burton and Mark Martin.

·         Jeremy Mayfield was the first Coors Light pole winner, in 1998 with a speed of 185.906 mph. The inaugural Coors Light pole at Texas Motor Speedway in 1997 was cancelled due to weather conditions.

·         19 drivers have Coors Light poles at Texas, led by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr. with two each.

·         Two drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Texas Motor Speedway: Bobby Labonte (2003 and 2004) and Ryan Newman (2005 sweep).

·         Youngest Texas Coors Light pole winner: Brian Vickers (11/05/2006 – 23 years, 0 months, 12 days).

·         Oldest Texas Coors Light pole winner: Bill Elliott (4/08/2002 – 46 years, 6 months, 0 days).

·         17 different drivers have won at Texas Motor Speedway, led by Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson with three each.

·         Seven drivers have multiple wins at Texas Motor Speedway: Carl Edwards (three), Jimmie Johnson (three),Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart each have two.

·         Roush Fenway Racing leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in wins at Texas Motor Speedway with nine; followed by Hendrick Motorsports with five and Joe Gibbs Racing with four. 

·         Three of the 26 (11.5%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from the Coors Light Pole; Kasey Kahne (2006), Jimmie Johnson (2012) and Kyle Busch (2013). 

·         The third-place starting position is the most proficient starting spot in the field at Texas Motor Speedway, producing more wins than any other starting position in the field (five) – most recent: Jimmie Johnson last fall.

·         Six of the 26 (23.1%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from the front row: three from the pole and three from second-place.

·         20 of the 26 (76.9%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from a top-10 starting position.

·         Four of the 26 (15.3%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

·         The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Texas Motor Speedway is 31st, by Matt Kenseth in 2002.

·         Youngest Texas winner: Ryan Newman (03/30/2003 – 25 years, 3 months, 22 days).

·         Oldest Texas winner: Dale Jarrett (04/01/2001 – 44 years, 4 months, 6 days).

·         Jimmie Johnson leads the series in runner-up finishes at Texas Motor Speedway with five; followed by Matt Kenseth with four. 

·         Matt Kenseth leads the series in top-five finishes at Texas Motor Speedway with 13; followed by Jimmie Johnson with 10.

·         Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson are tied for the series lead in top-10 finishes at Texas Motor Speedway with 16 each; followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. with 13.

·         Jimmie Johnson leads active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Texas Motor Speedway with an 8..476. Johnson is the only active driver with an average starting position at Texas in the top 10.

·         Two active drivers have a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series average finish in the top 10 at Texas: Matt Kenseth (8.3) and Jimmie Johnson (8.7).

·         There have been three NSCS green-white-checkered finishes at Texas Motor Speedway: fall 2006 (334/339), spring 2008 (334/339), and fall 2012 (334/335).

·         Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions twice in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Texas Motor Speedway; the inaugural event in 1997 and spring 2007. The race has never been rain shortened. 

·         Kevin Harvick has participated in the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway without posting a DNF (22).

·         Jeff Burton (4/06/1997) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (4/02/2000) won their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career race at Texas Motor Speedway.

·         David Ragan (4/09/2011) and Martin Truex Jr. (11/04/2007) posted their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light poles at Texas Motor Speedway.   

·         2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski (11/02/2008) and Trevor Bayne (11/07/2010) made their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career starts at Texas Motor Speedway.

·         Two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted consecutive wins at Texas Motor Speedway: Carl Edwards(2008 sweep) and Denny Hamlin (2010 sweep). 

·         Nine of the 12 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers who have won at Texas Motor Speedway participated in at least two or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. won at Texas in their first appearance; Carl Edwards and Ryan Newman won in their second appearance at TMS. 

·         Jeff Gordon competed at Texas Motor Speedway 16 times before winning in the spring of 2009; the longest span of any the 12 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners.

·         Only three of the 12 winning drivers have made 10 or more attempts before their first win at Texas Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (16) Kyle Busch (15) and Kurt Busch (13).

·         Joe Nemechek leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway without visiting Victory Lane at 23.

·         Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Texas Motor Speedway was the (4/4/2004) race won by Elliott Sadler with a MOV of 0.028 second.

·         Two female drivers have made NSCS starts at Texas Motor Speedway: Shawna Robinson and Danica Patrick

Driver	Starting Position	Finishing Position	Date
Shawna Robinson	16	36	4/8/2002
Danica Patrick	32	24	11/4/2012
Danica Patrick	42	28	4/13/2013
Danica Patrick	30	25	11/3/2013

 

·         Matt Kenseth leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Texas Motor Speedway with 775 laps led in 23 starts.

·         One NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver has won at Texas Motor Speedway in two different manufacturers: Jeff Burton (1997 – Ford; 2007 – Chevrolet)

 

NASCAR in Texas

·         There have been 35 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races among three tracks in the state of Texas.

Track Name	City	NSCS
Texas Motor Speedway	Fort Worth	26
Texas World Speedway	College Station	8
Meyer Speedway	Houston	1

 

·         80 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as Texas.

·         Nine drivers from Texas have won at least one race in NASCAR’s three national series. Six of the nine Texas native NASCAR winners have won in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Terry Labonte	22	11	1
Bobby Labonte	21	10	1
A.J. Foyt	7	0	0
Billy Wade	4	0	0
Bobby Hillin Jr	1	2	0
Johnny Rutherford	1	0	0
James Buescher	0	1	6
David Starr	0	0	4
Colin Braun	0	0	1