Dodge Challenger 500 Betting Preview

[Shame About Ray]

NASCAR races under the lights for the second week in a row on Saturday night when online betting action runs at Darlington Raceway for the Dodge Challenger 500. Kyle Busch took over the points lead after finishing second at Richmond last week, and he also drew the ire of the legion of Dale Earnhardt Jr. sports betting fans after a late maneuver wiped out Junior’s chances of finally ending his long winless drought. Will Busch’s new bad boy image make him a top pick for NASCAR betting fans once again?



Even though Busch stole most of the headlines at Richmond last week, Clint Bowyer actually won the Dan Lowry 400. That was Bowyer’s first win of the season and it bumped him up to fourth in the driver standings. Anyone expecting Bowyer to make it two in a row this weekend is likely in the minority, as he is a big +1600 underdog.

Leading the way on the odds list are Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards, both at +600. The back-to-back reigning Cup champion finished well back in 30th place last week but Johnson has won at Darlington before, having swept both races on the track back in 2004 when Darlington was a two-race stop on the series.

Edwards continues to lead the series with three victories on the season, and he cracked the Top 10 again last week in Richmond after finishing seventh. Edwards is looking for his first career win at Darlington and he has to be a favorite this weekend, because you have to drive a fast car to win at Darlington and Edwards has consistently boasted one of the fastest cars on the circuit all season.

Following Johnson and Edwards is Denny Hamlin at +650 and bad boy Busch at +700. Hamlin started on the pole last week in Richmond and led 381 of the 400 laps before a flat tire cost him what looked like to be a surefire win. He went on to finish a disappointing 24th. Busch’s consistency this season, which includes six Top 5 finishes in 10 races, has been just enough to put him atop the driver standings. Busch enters the weekend with an 18-point led over Jeff Burton.

If it’s history you want to look at when making your picks for this weekend, your clear choice is Jeff Gordon at +800 on the NASCAR odds. Gordon has a series-leading seven career wins at Darlington, including winning this race last season. Gordon is still searching for his first win this year and Darlington would be the opportune place for him to get it.

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