MICAH ROBERTS’ SPRINT CUP DRIVER RATINGS
August 27, 2011 - 1:00 am
MICAH ROBERTS' SPRINT CUP DRIVER RATINGS
Irwin Tools Night Race
Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, Tenn.
4:30 p.m. PDT today, ABC (13)
Rating Driver Odds Practice 1 Practice 2 Qualified Bristol 1*
1. Carl Edwards 8/1 1st 1st 2nd 2nd
Two-time winner with 12.5 average finish in 14 starts; using fifth-place Michigan car
2. Kyle Busch 5/2 20th 10th 23rd 1st
Five-time winner, including four of past five; using winning chassis from March race
3. Matt Kenseth 15/1 3rd 31st 3rd 4th
Two-time winner with 10.8 average in past 20 starts; using eighth-place Pocono chassis
4. Jimmie Johnson 5/1 26th 9th 13th 3rd
2010 winner with four top-10 finishes in past five starts; using car from March race
5. Mark Martin 30/1 2nd 19th 5th 12th
Two-time winner with 13.1 average finish in 45 starts; using runner-up Dover car
6. Jeff Gordon 12/1 10th 23rd 4th 14th
Five-time winner, last coming in 2002; leads active drivers with 2,440 laps led at Bristol
7. Ryan Newman 30/1 7th 39th 1st 10th
One top-five finish; 10th or better in five of past six; using fifth-place Darlington car
8. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 30/1 6th 29th 22nd 11th
2004 winner with 11.5 average finish in 22 starts; using runner-up Kansas chassis
9. Brad Keselowski 25/1 4th 5th 8th 18th
Had fastest 10-consecutive-lap average times in Practice 1; using Pocono chassis
10. Kurt Busch 10/1 13th 12th 10th 7th
Five-time winner, with last coming in 2006; using runner-up Pocono chassis
Note: Since Bristol was repaved in 2007, it gave the track multiple grooves, making the half-mile track run similar to the one-mile Dover layout.
* Results from the first Bristol race of the season, on March 20.
Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book.
Micah Roberts, a former race and sports director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. For more Roberts insights and post-practice analysis on the race, go to VegasInsider.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.