2011 AdvoCare 500 Race Predictions – Betting Preview + Picks + Odds
Preview: For the first time since NASCAR began racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1960, the Sprint Cup circuit is making just one stop at AMS this year. 
Race: AdvoCare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Date: Sunday, September 4, 2011
Time: 7:46 PM ET (scheduled Green Flag)
TV: 7:30 PM ET on ESPN
TIME FOR 2011 AdvoCare 500 Gambling! Open A Nascar Betting Acct. @ JustBet.com – GET A HUGE SIGN UP BONUS TODAY! – CLICK HERE!
The last time the series was here was last September in a race won by Tony Stewart; Kurt Busch won at Atlanta last March. Atlanta is a favorite racetrack of many drivers, as Kevin Harvick explained Friday: “It is a really fun track, sliding around.
You have a lot of options as a driver to move yourself around the racetrack. With the bumps and the fall off of the tires, it’s just a challenging race track with a lot of speed.”
Brad Keselowski, the hottest driver in NASCAR the past few weeks, paced practice on Friday, while Martin Truex Jr. had the best consecutive-10-lap average speed.
Qualifying takes place Saturday evening.
Safe Bet: (odds of less than 10/1)
– Jeff Gordon (8/1): Gordon leads all drivers in wins at Atlanta with four and was fastest on the speed chart in pre-qualifying Happy Hour practice on Saturday.
Though his last win in Atlanta came in 2003, Gordon is looking solid so far this weekend. In 37 Atlanta starts, Gordon has the third-best average finish here behind Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart.
Mid Range: (odds between 10/1 – 20/1)
– Tony Stewart (10/1): Many pundits consider this a ‘must-win’ race for Tony Stewart. He’s been hanging on to 10th in points for several weeks, but remains winless in 2011 heading to Atlanta. Although he can make the Chase without a regular-season win, a ‘W’ on Sunday would go a long way to bolstering this team’s confidence. Stewart won this race a year ago and has three Atlanta wins overall.
He was second on the speed chart in final practice.
Long Shot: (odds of greater than 20/1)
– Martin Truex Jr. (40/1): Although he’s never won at Atlanta, Truex does have two top-10s in 12 starts and finished 12th here last fall. The car looked racy in practice, 4th-quickest on Friday, and (as noted above) looked fast on longer runs.
Summary:
In the past six Atlanta races, all four Cup manufacturers have visited Victory Lane at least once.
Dodge won three of the last four races here (both fall and spring dates) – two wins for Kurt Busch and one for Kasey Kahne – which may bode well for hot shoe Keselowski again this weekend.
With just two weeks left before the Chase, much of the focus will be on the bubble drivers and wildcard contenders, both here and at Richmond next week.
NASCAR – Irwin Tools Night Race Odds To Win
Edwards, Carl 5-1
Kenseth, Matt 5-1
Busch, Kyle 6-1
Gordon, Jeff 8-1
Johnson, Jimmie 8-1
Kahne, Kasey 10-1
Stewart, Tony 10-1
Busch, Kurt 12-1
Keselowski, Brad 12-1
Hamlin, Denny 12-1
Harvick, Kevin 15-1
Biffle, Greg 20-1
Earnhardt Jr., Dale 20-1
Bowyer, Clint 20-1
Ragan, David 25-1
Vickers, Brian 25-1
Martin, Mark 30-1
Newman, Ryan 30-1
Lagano, Joey 40-1
McMurray, Jamie 40-1
Montoya, Juan 40-1
Allmendinger, A.J. 40-1
Burton, Jeff 60-1
Smith, Regan 75-1
Reutimann, David 75-1
Menard, Paul 75-1
Ambrose, Marcos 100-1
Labonte, Bobby 500-1
Against the Field (any other driver) 100-1
