Atlanta – AdvoCare 500 Race Predictions
The NASCAR Sprint Cup series will make its first and only appearance this season at the Atlanta Motor Speedway this Sunday night for the running of the AdvoCare 500.
NASCAR Sprint Cup AdvoCare 500 Preview and Prediction
Race: AdvoCare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Date: Sunday, Sept. 1, 2013
Time: 7:30 p.m. (ET)
Broadcast: ESPN
Odds from Bovada
The green flag is set to wave at 7:30 p.m. and the race will be broadcast nationally on ABC.
Last Saturday night at Bristol, Matt Kenseth notched is fifth checkered flag of the season, which is the most of any Sprint Cup driver this year. Kasey Kahne finished second and Juan Pablo Montoya ended-up a surprising third.
The following is a closer look at our favorite, contender, and longshot picks for Sunday night’s race with odds provided by Sportsbook.
The Favorite (odd of less than 10/1)
It has been a rough two weeks for Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 car with a 40th-place finish at Michigan and a 36th-place finish last week, but it could be a great time to jump on his +450 odds to turn things around with a win this week.
The heat has been dialed-up in the Sprint Cup standings as this team’s lead is down to just 18 points; however Johnson’s form this season speaks for itself with four point-race victories along with a win in the non-point All Star Race back in May.
If you discount last year’s 34th-place finish in this race because of a wreck, he still has a solid record at Atlanta with three previous Sprint Cup victories and a second-place finish in this race in 2011. [ad-8757089]
The Contender (odds from 10/1 to 19/1)
Things started bad for Denny Hamlin with a wreck at Fontana that knocked him out of the next four races and they have not gotten much better for the No. 11 car with just one top-10 finish in its last 11 point races.
You cannot even get excited too excited about Hamlin’s overall record at Atlanta, but the reason he is our top contender this week at +1500 is the fact that he comes into this race as the defending champion.
Anyone that follows Sprint Cup racing knows that Hamlin is the kind of driver that has a chance to win anytime he gets behind the wheel especially at a track he likes.
The Longshot (odds 20/1 or greater)
One of the hardest drivers to figure out this season has been Greg Biffle. He won earlier this season at Michigan and is still in pretty good shape to make into this year’s Chase with 698 points in the current Sprint Cup standings.
However, since that victory in mid-June the No. 16 car has only cracked the top 10 in four of its last nine point races and it has zero top five’s during that stretch.
None the less, if you are looking for a driver with longer odds this week, Biffle is your best bet at +2500. Be aware that current form at Atlanta is not on your side either with just one top-10 finish here in his last four runs around the track.
Odds from Bovada
JIMMIE JOHNSON 5-1
MATT KENSETH 6-1
KYLE BUSCH 7-1
KASEY KAHNE 7-1
JEFF GORDON 10-1
KEVIN HARVICK 10-1
BRAD KESELOWSKI 10-1
KURT BUSCH 12-1
MARTIN TRUEX JR 15-1
CLINT BOWYER 15-1
DALE EARNHARDT JR 15-1
DENNY HAMLIN 15-1
CARL EDWARDS 18-1
JOEY LOGANO 20-1
BRIAN VICKERS 25-1
GREG BIFFLE 25-1
RYAN NEWMAN 40-1
JAMIE McMURRAY 75-1
JUAN MONTOYA 75-1
MARK MARTIN 75-1
PAUL MENARD 100-1
RICKY STENHOUSE JR 100-1
AUSTIN DILLON 200-1
ARIC ALMIROLA 200-1
JEFF BURTON 200-1
MARCOS AMBROSE 300-1
AJ ALLMENDINGER 300-1
BOBBY LABONTE 1000-1
DANICA PATRICK 1000-1
FIELD 300-1
