NASCAR: Upcoming race
I think it’s safe to say at this point we’re looking at a 2-man race in the Cup chase – Mark Martin, who’s soared into first place, and leads most major categories with five wins, six poles and 11 top 5 finishes. And Jimmie Johnson, who many experts out there (and me) believe will make up the 10 points he trails Martin by and cement his spot at the top through to the end.
That, of course, leaves the NASCAR betting favorite Jeff Gordon, whose too-little-too-late push from 10th to 8th won’t be nearly enough to make up his slow start this year. It’s 2010 for Gordon, who trails Martin by 122 points right now. I know Gordon has an incredible legacy, but why the recent rallying around the notion that he’ll be more of a factor down the stretch? He’s won one race all year and zero poles – zero. I won’t be betting on Gordon to win any race outright, regardless of the conditions, and I wouldn’t be him against any remaining cutoff contenders in a one-on-one matchup, either.
So who would I bet this week? Let’s take a look at the race, but I can tell you right now his initials are JJ.
On Oct. 11, it’s the Pepsi 500 in California at Auto Club Speedway. The 2-mile track is mostly oval, and it’s a mid-sized race track. We’re now at the fourth race in the Chase for the Championship, so it’ll be a hotly contested battle around those 2 miles. The flat corners can give drivers fits, but the elite cars seem to handle it better than the also-rans. Of course, at this point there are no also-rans, so don’t look for that to be much of a factor.
Like I said, if there’s one nascar odds racer I’d bet to win outright at this point it’s Johnson, otherwise take him, Martin and I’ll say Hamlin in one-one-one bets against anyone but each other.