Race 15 out of 36
at Michigan International Speedway - 2 mile D-Shaped Oval - 200 laps for 400 miles
This Week's Schedule: (All times Eastern)
Friday, June 14th
11:20 a.m. Winston Cup 1st Practice
3:05 p.m. Winston Cup Bud Pole Qualifying
Saturday, June 15th
9:30 a.m. Winston Cup 2nd Practice
11:15 a.m. Winston Cup Happy Hour Practice
Sunday, June 16th
1 p.m. Start of The Sirius Satellite Radio 400
Coming off a tough race at Pocono last week, where the best car once again did not win it. As most fans know, California Speedway was built to resemble Michigan, with only a few degrees of banking separating them. Therefore, it should make handicapping this week's race pretty simple. The one problem however, is the fact that all the contenders are very low this week, making a win set of drivers more complicated. I have wagered on 2 drivers so far, as I can only see their odds dropping after qualifying.
The early drivers to watch:
2 R. Wallace -
Rusty was decent last week, but as this year has gone for him and the team, he really was not in contention for the
win. He's a no bet until I can see him challenging for wins.
6 M. Martin -
Another Top 5 for Martin. He really seems rejuvenated this year and the team is clicking on (pardon this) all
cylinders. This car will contend for the win this week and will be tough to leave out. 10-1 is just not enough right now though.
8 D. Earnhardt, Jr. -
It looked like this team was ready to contend last week as they made their charge to the top 5 really early in the
race. But as 2002 has gone for them, they were simply only good enough to get a 12th place finish. Another guy
that is not really worth a bet until he starts leading more laps. This is a track that should suit him very well though.
9 B. Elliott -
Here is my first pre-qualifying wager. This team is ready to win a race very soon, and there is no better place han Michigan for that to happen. They should qualify in the top 10, so 25-1 is a no-brainer. Look for Elliott to be in the top 5 most of this race contending for the victory.
12 R. Newman -
Same 'ol for this team. Led 19 laps and had a huge lead before the expected happened again....I really think they can win a race in this series this year, but with all the mechanical problems still plaguing this team, it makes it tough to bet them at anything under 30-1. However, with the right matchup, you have to take a good look at the 12 this week.
17 M. Kenseth -
Two straight horrible finishes have taken Kenseth out of what was a great chance to win a Winston Cup Championship.
Do not, under any circumstances, count this team out. Without problems, look for the 17 to contend for this win. If the price is right, he will easily be included. It's going to take 15-1 or better however.
18 B. Labonte -
Even Pocono could not cure this team's ills. A busted transmission very early in the race took them out of any contention, and it doesn't look like they will be turning around this season any time soon. Unbettable IMO.
20 T. Stewart -
Now that the Pontiacs got an aero concession, maybe this team can run up front a lot more at speedways such as Michigan. This team is good enough to contend for the Cup, and have won at Michigan before, so let's keep an eye on them.
24 J. Gordon -
COPY AND PASTE......Is this the week? Is it? Okay...let me play the recording: "Gordon and his team are too good not to win a race soon. He's had great success at (insert track here), so don't be surprised to finally see him in victory lane again."
28 R. Rudd -
I don't think I've seen a car this good running up front constantly not win a race. Rudd came from dead last to lead the MOST LAPS in last week's race, and had more misery become him and his team. For this team's sake, I will not play them to win, even though I'm sure they will contend once again.
32 R. Craven -
Going to take a hard look at this up and coming team this week. Craven has qualified very well this year which is a concern, but I would be more inclined to include him if I can get around 30-1. He will be part of matchup wagering though. Should be in the top 10.
40 S. Marlin -
Sterling finally had a race that is indicative of the Winston Cup points leader. He didn't have a great car by any means, but pit strategy gave him a much needed top 5. The 40 won the last race run at Michigan last year, and should be there for this one as well. Once again though, odds will determine whether he's worth it.
48 J. Johnson -
AGAIN! They are simply dialed in like no other team right now. With Michigan being so similar to California, the 48 should be there again contending for their amazing 3rd win this year. Gotta hope he blows up in qualifying to get any sort of value though.
77 D. Blaney -
Here is a driver that performed just as expected last week, and gave me an easy win over Jeff Green. Much like Pocono, Blaney (with the 93 team) and the 77 team have had great finishes here, so I will look to include him again in matchups.
88 D. Jarrett -
Well, 88 gave me a win last week which was nice considering his teammate's issues. It looks like they have indeed "turned the corner" with their chassis issues and look to be back contending for top 5's. 88 loves this track as it gave him his first win in this series. Hard to leave him out, but as usual, the odds have to be right, and right now they are not.
97 K. Busch -
Here is my second pre-qualifying wager at 22-1. He ran great at California and should have the setup to contend for the win this week if he doesn't drive his 97 car into the wall like he did last week. Roush has always gotten great gas mileage, and this is the track where this could be a determining factor.
99 J. Burton -
Same thing holds true for me and this team. I simply cannot figure out when they have a good run in them. I will not include the 99 in my driver win set, but being a Roush car at Michigan, I will not be surprised if he runs up front most of the day.
Including the 9 and 97, I will look to play the 6, 48 and one or two others depending on the price. I will be leaving out the usual group of drivers (including the 28) that can easily take the checkers, but with the odds the way they look now, that's the only play to make.
Any input and opinions?
GLTA
