This week in NASCAR: Allstate 400 at the Brickyard
It’s a big weekend in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series. Other than the season-opening Daytona 500, no race is as important to drivers as the one stop at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.
And the winner at America’s most historic race track tends to fare well in the final points standings. In 15 races at the track, seven times the winner of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard has gone on to win the Cup title. Only three of the 15 winners have ended the season lower than fifth in points.
Jeff Gordon is one of the WagerWeb.com favorites at +700 this weekend, and he should be with a series-high four wins in this race. Gordon is tied for second in total career wins at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, matching open-wheel veterans A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears. If Gordon wins Sunday, he will tie Michael Schumacher with five career Indy victories.
Gordon’s 8.6 finishing average at Indy is the best all-time in NASCAR, and he has finished eighth or better in seven of the past eight races.
“From the competitor’s standpoint, [the Brickyard 400 is] one of the biggest races that we have, right next to the Daytona 500 is where I would put it,” Gordon said.
Matt Kenseth won the Daytona 500 but has struggled since. And only two drivers have won both the Daytona 500 and Allstate 400 at the Brickyard in the same season. But Kenseth has four top-five finishes in nine races at the Brickyard.
Jimmie Johnson is the favorite on WagerWeb.com at +450, as he has won here two of the past three years, including in 2008. No NASCAR driver has won in back-to-back years at the Brickyard.
Tony Stewart (+550 on WagerWeb.com) has alternated with Johnson in winning the Brickyard during the last four years, winning it in 2005 and 2007. He leads the points and is on a roll.
Kyle Busch (+750 on WagerWeb.com) could use a good finish this week. He has just one top-10 finish in the last seven races, dropping to 10th in the points standings. He is just two points ahead of Mark Martin and three ahead of Kenseth, who holds down the final spot for the Chase for the Championship. Only seven races remain before the Chase begins.
If you are looking for a bit of a sleeper this week, consider Denny Hamlin (+1200 on WagerWeb.com). He has two top 10s in three starts at the track and is coming off a third-place run in last year’s event.
Tires were a major problem in last year’s race, causing dozens of cautions, but Goodyear put new tires through rigorous testing for Sunday’s race, so all should be well this year.
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
