Camping World 500 Betting News and Notes

Talladega Driver Tale of the Tape

1 - Joey Logano (No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 79.3
2015 Rundown
· Four wins, 18 top fives, 24 top 10s,
· Led 1090 laps
· Average Finish of 8.1

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Two top fives, four top 10s
· Average finish of 20.923, 26th-best
· Average Running Position of 18.028, 11th-best
· Driver Rating of 79.3, 14th-best
· 1203 Laps in the Top 15 (48.6), ninth-most
· 2876 Quality Passes, 17th-most

2 - Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 83.5
2015 Rundown
· Two wins, 12 top fives, 16 top 10s,
· Led 521 laps
· Average Finish of 13.1

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· One win, four top fives, seven top 10s
· Average finish of 18.474, 13th-best
· Average Running Position of 17.743, eighth-best
· Driver Rating of 83.5, seventh-best
· 1731 Laps in the Top 15 (48.0), 10th-most
· 3851 Quality Passes, sixth-most

3 - Kurt Busch (No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 88.3
2015 Rundown
· Two wins, ten top fives, 16 top 10s,
· Led 765 laps
· Average Finish of 10.9

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Six top fives, 14 top 10s
· Average finish of 18.190, 12th-best
· Average Running Position of 14.631, fourth-best
· Driver Rating of 88.3, fifth-best
· 2537 Laps in the Top 15 (63.5), second-most
· 5620 Quality Passes, series-most

4 - Carl Edwards (No. 19 Subway Toyota)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 66.4
2015 Rundown
· Two wins, five top fives, 12 top 10s,
· Led 362 laps
· Average Finish of 14.9

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Two top fives, five top 10s
· Average finish of 20.571, 24th-best
· Average Running Position of 23.472, 35th-best
· Driver Rating of 66.4, 32nd-best
· 1213 Laps in the Top 15 (30.4), 31st-most
· 2631 Quality Passes, 20th-most

5 - Kevin Harvick (No. 4 Budweiser / Jimmy John's Chevrolet)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 79.9
2015 Rundown
· Three wins, 20 top fives, 24 top 10s,
· Led 2031 laps
· Average Finish of 8.9

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· One win, six top fives, 13 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 15.810, seventh-best
· Average Running Position of 18.373, 13th-best
· Driver Rating of 79.9, 11th-best
· 1841 Laps in the Top 15 (46.1), 16th-most
· 3820 Quality Passes, seventh-most

6 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 3M Chevrolet)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 79.2
2015 Rundown
· Three top fives, 15 top 10s,
· Led 209 laps
· Average Finish of 15.3

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Six wins, 15 top fives, 19 top 10s; four poles
· Average finish of 20.048, 17th-best
· Average Running Position of 18.843, 16th-best
· Driver Rating of 79.2, 15th-best
· 1805 Laps in the Top 15 (45.2), 17th-most
· 3347 Quality Passes, 13th-most

7 - Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Miller Lite Ford)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 83.2
2015 Rundown
· One win, six top fives, 20 top 10s,
· Led 611 laps
· Average Finish of 11.3

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Three wins, four top fives, seven top 10s
· Average finish of 15.615, sixth-best
· Average Running Position of 18.751, 14th-best
· Driver Rating of 83.2, eighth-best
· 1160 Laps in the Top 15 (46.8), 13th-most
· 2697 Quality Passes, 19th-most

8 - Martin Truex, Jr (No. 78 Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevrolet)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 79.6
2015 Rundown
· One win, eight top fives, 19 top 10s,
· Led 536 laps
· Average Finish of 12.6

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Two top fives, seven top 10s
· Average finish of 20.476, 21st-best
· Average Running Position of 17.801, 10th-best
· Driver Rating of 79.6, 12th-best
· 1985 Laps in the Top 15 (49.7), eighth-most
· 4309 Quality Passes, fourth-most

9 - Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M's Halloween Toyota)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 78.6
2015 Rundown
· Four wins, seven top fives, 11 top 10s,
· Led 682 laps
· Average Finish of 12.6

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· One win, four top fives, five top 10s
· Average finish of 22.350, 32nd-best
· Average Running Position of 19.820, 21st-best
· Driver Rating of 78.6, 17th-best
· 1784 Laps in the Top 15 (46.9), 12th-most
· 3707 Quality Passes, ninth-most

10 - Ryan Newman (No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 68.1
2015 Rundown
· Five top fives, 14 top 10s,
· Led 19 laps
· Average Finish of 13.6

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Five top fives, 11 top 10s
· Average finish of 20.476, 22nd-best
· Average Running Position of 22.812, 33rd-best
· Driver Rating of 68.1, 31st-best
· 1166 Laps in the Top 15 (29.2), 33rd-most
· 2498 Quality Passes, 22nd-most

11 - Dale Earnhardt, Jr (No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 92.8
2015 Rundown
· Two wins, 13 top fives, 18 top 10s,
· Led 203 laps
· Average Finish of 11.1

Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:
· Six wins, 11 top fives, 15 top 10s
· Average finish of 18.762, 15th-best
· Average Running Position of 13.956, second-best
· Driver Rating of 92.8, series-best
· 2496 Laps in the Top 15 (62.5), fourth-most
· 4616 Quality Passes, third-most

12 - Matt Kenseth (No. 20 DeWalt Toyota)

· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 89.2
2015 Rundown
· Five wins, 12 top fives, 19 top 10s,
· Led 771 laps
· Average Finish of 13.4
Talladega Superspeedway Outlook:

· One win, six top fives, ten top 10s
· Average finish of 17.429, ninth-best
· Average Running Position of 14.557, third-best
· Driver Rating of 89.2, second-best
· 2527 Laps in the Top 15 (63.3), third-most
· 4897 Quality Passes, second-most

Camping World 500 Preview
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

You couldn't ask for a better track for an elimination race of the Chase than Talladega's super badass 2.66-mile layout. We can throw out all the 1.5-mile certainty nonsense where the same group of drivers consistently finish in the top-five because this beast of a track makes everyone almost equal. The edge is gone for the elite teams.

Talladega is a more about drivers getting lucky mixed in with a little of their own skill. Everyone's goal is to just stay out of trouble long enough to avoid the big one and some have a penchant for being better at it than others, but it still is really just a crap shoot.

Four drivers will have their heads on the Chase chopping block and will be eliminated from Championship contention will eight drivers will advance to the Eliminator Round, where after three more sets of races, only four will be left standing the Championship Race at Homestead.

So far, only Joey Logano has qualified by virtue of winning in this Contender Round. In fact, he's won both races so far which puts the 11 other contenders in a tough spot.

Some, like Denny Hamlin, Kurt Busch and Carl Edwards are positioned better than others while others like Kyle Busch, Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth are outside looking in as the bottom four. Still, none of those 11 drivers are safe as the Talladega beast looms and doesn't care where anyone sits in points.

We're going to see a lot of drivers currently sitting in the top-eight in points play it safe early on while those outside looking in are going to need to spice things up a bit to keep their season alive. The four drivers outside looking right now are all compelling stories.

Kyle Busch is six points out of eighth-place, and while we've never seen him perfrom well in the Chase, I think everyone was on board with him faring well this season after winning four races during a five-race stretch that ended in July. He hasn't won since, and he may be feeling the pressure a little at Talladega where he does have a win, but his average finish position is 22.3.

Ryan Newman is eight points out of eighth-place as he looks to advance just like last season. Just like last year, he hasn't won a race on the season, but he's been playing it smart and using the rules wisely. Newman has never won at Talladega, but has finished seventh and fifth in the his last two starts there. A similar performance Sunday could see him advance to the next round.

We've never seen Dale Earnhardt Jr. win a Champiosnhip -- his Daddy won seven times, but with Talladega being the turn race into the next round, we could see him get there just because of his past dominance at Talladega and winning two of the three restrictor-plate races on the season. His won at Talladega in May -- his sixth win there -- and then won at Daytona in July. It's his only two wins on the season. He should be consisdered the favorite to win on Sunday. He's 21-points out of eighth-place and likely needs a win to advance or a crazy amount of help.

Matt Kenseth is 25-points out of eighth-place and has to still be fuming due to an over-zealous Joey Logano wrecking him late at Kansas while he was leading. Sure, you always go for the win, but with Logano having things sewn up to advance to the next round, you'd think he'd be a little less aggressive. Logano was racing like he had to win to advance. This will hurt him down the road in the next round and some of the veterans will look to teach him some respect.

Anyways, Kenseth wasn't a good plate racer early in his career, but has been outstanding over the past six seasons. He grabbed a win at Talladega in 2012 and then was runner-up in this race last fall. With the stakes so high, and Kenseth being close to Earnhardt Jr.'s equal in this race, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Kenseth and Earnhardt Jr. bumping and banging down the stertch for the win.

I'll stick with that scenario this week just because I hope it happens. Brad Keselowski, who won this race last season, will be right there as well. He's a three-time winner at Talladega, which includes his first career Cup win in 2009 while driving for a part-time team.

As always with the plate races, stay away from match-ups unless getting +115 or higher, and it usually doesn't matter who the driver is. Odds to win is still a crap shoot, but you you can mix in six drivers at all different stages on the odds board and find yourself getting lucky and showinga profit.

Top-5 Finish Prediction:

1) #88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (8/1)
2) #20 Matt Kenseth (10/1)
3) #2 Brad Keselowski (10/1)
4) #48 Jimmie Johnson (10/1)
5) #24 Jeff Gordon (12/1)

Eliminator Round Clinch Scenarios

Eleven drivers looking to fill seven spots. Scenarios for each driver listed below.

Denny Hamlin: 14th and no laps led; 15th and at least one lap led; 16th and most laps led

Kurt Busch: 8th and no laps led; 9th and at least one lap led; 10th and most laps led

Carl Edwards: 7th and no laps led; 8th and at least one lap led; 9th and most laps led

Kevin Harvick: 3rd and no laps led; 4th with a lap led

Jeff Gordon and Brad Keselowski: 2nd or better; 3rd and at least one lap led; 4th and most laps led

Martin Truex Jr.: 2nd and no laps led; 3rd and the most laps led

Kyle Busch, Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth only control their own destiny with a win.

Drivers to Watch - Talladega
By Sportsbook.ag

The drivers head to the iconic Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday and there will be a lot at stake with just five races left on the season. Joey Logano currently leads all drivers with 3,095 points and Denny Hamlin is just 13 behind with 3,082.

Six other drivers will also come into this race less than 30 points behind Logano, so things can certainly change at any given event.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the winner the last time these drivers were at Talladega and he is extremely confident at this course, which runs 2.66 miles long and features 33 degree banking on turns 1 and 2, 32.4 degree banking on turn 3 and 32.5 degree banking on turn 4.

With that out of the way, let’s now take a look at who may win on Sunday:

Drivers to Watch:

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (9/2) - Earnhardt Jr. is the favorite to win this race and it’s for good reason. Earlier this year, Earnhardt Jr. won the Geico 500 at this track and some have called him the King of Talladega. While Earnhardt Jr. has finished outside of the top 20 at two consecutive races, people should not be scared away from placing a few units on him. It’d be shocking to see him place outside of the top five on Sunday.

Jeff Gordon (12/1) - Gordon has still failed to win his first race this season, but he knows Talladega well and enters this race after a few solid performances in a row. Gordon has finished outside of the top 10 at just two of the past six races and came in 10th last week at the Hollywood Casino 400. He is still in contention to win the Chase and he knows what a win would mean for his chances. He’s worth taking a shot on at these odds.

Joey Logano (15/1) - It’s too tough to ignore Logano after what he’s done in recent weeks. Logano has now won two straight races after taking home the Hollywood Casino 400 last week and he has finished in the top five at seven of the past 10 races. He has not been great at Talladega throughout his career, but he is young and the odds are far too good to pass up with him as hot as he is right now.

Brad Keselowski (15/1) - While he’s not the king at Talladega like Earnhardt Jr., Keselowski has fared pretty well here in the past. The driver has racked up three victories at this track in his career and enters this one in excellent form. Keselowski has finished in the top 10 at nine of the past 11 events. He’s extremely aggressive and these odds are almost too good to pass up on.

Sam Hornish Jr. (100/1) - Hornish Jr. is a complete dark horse at 100/1, but he has a better shot to win here than he does anywhere else. Earlier in the season, Hornish Jr. finished in sixth at Talladega in the Geico 500. He is more comfortable at this track than he is at most and he’s worth putting unit on Sunday.

Driver Handicaps: Talladega
By: Jeff Wackerlin
Racingone.com

MRN.com's detailed notes and statistics to help you set your fantasy racing lineup for Sunday's CampingWorld.com 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Who's HOT at Talladega

• Dale Earnhardt Jr. is coming off his sixth win and has combined to lead 162 laps in last four races.
• Jimmie Johnson, a two-time winner, finished second in the spring and has led the most laps (199) in the last five races.
• Martin Truex Jr. and Clint Bowyer each have a 12.8 average finish in the last five races, the best
among all drivers that has started all the races in that span.
• Jeff Gordon is a six time winner and led 47 laps from the pole in the spring before a late-race pit
road speeding penalty.
• Kevin Harvick, the 2010 spring winner, is the only driver that has finished in the top 10 in the
last three races.
• Denny Hamlin has finished in the top 10 in two of the last three races, including a win in the 2014 spring race.
• Brad Keselowski scored his third win in this event last season.

Who to Keep an Eye On at Talladega

• Matt Kenseth has one win and has led the most laps (324) in the last 10 Talladega races.
• David Ragan and Jamie McMurray each have a win in the last five Talladega races (2013).
• Paul Menard and Ryan Newman have finished in the top 10 in three of the last four Talladega races.
• Daytona 500 winner Joey Logano ranks fourth in laps led (31) in the three restrictor-plate races
this season.
• Kurt Busch, who has an 8.5 average finish in two restrictor-plate starts this season, will be back in the same car that he finished fifth with at Daytona in July.
• Casey Mears (15.0) and Sam Hornish Jr. (16.0) each rank in the top 10 in average finish in the three restrictor-plate races this season.
• Austin Dillon, who finished seventh at Daytona in July, will be racing the same car his teammate
Paul Menard finished fourth with at Talladega in 2013.
• Kyle Busch has one win at Talladega (2008) and has finished in the top five in three of his last six starts at the track.
• Ryan Blaney finished fourth at Talladega in the spring, his last restrictor-plate start of the
season.
• Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart, respectively, posted the sixth and seventh best average running
position in the spring at Talladega.

MRN.com Staff Picks

Jeff Wackerlin: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Pete Pistone: Denny Hamlin
Robbie Mays: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
John Singler: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Driver Notes - Ordered by Top 20 in Average Finish in the Five Races at Talladega (Multiple Starts)

Martin Truex Jr. equaled his best Talladega finish with a fifth-place run in the spring - his first top 10 in three track starts with Furniture Row Racing. Truex is tied with Clint Bowyer for the best average finish (12.8) among all drivers that have competed in the last five races. A crash at Daytona in July raised his finishing average from 6.5 to 17.0 in the three restrictor-plate races this season.

Clint Bowyer finished 30th in the spring to snap a streak of three consecutive top 10s at Talladega. Bowyer is a two-time winner of this event, but both came with Richard Childress Racing on 2010 and 2011. In 14 restrictor-plate starts with Michael Waltrip Racing, Bowyer has posted eight top 10s and a 14.4 average finish. Bowyer finished 10th at Daytona in July to lower his average finish to 15.7 in the three plate races this season.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished 26th in the spring to snap a streak of two consecutive top 10s at Talladega, which includes a third-place run in this event in 2013. The spring finish is one of three of 19th or worse on restrictor-plate tracks this season.

Ryan Blaney came home fourth at Talladega in the spring to mark his best finish in three career Sprint Cup restrictor-plate starts. Two of his starts have come at Talladega and an engine issue in this year's Daytona 500 raised his average finish to 21.7 in the three plate races.

Jimmie Johnson finished second in the spring for his second top five in the last five races at Talladega. Johnson led 50 laps in that event and leads all drivers with 199 laps led at the track since 2013. His last of two Talladega wins came in the 2011 spring race. This season, Johnson ranks second in average finish (3.0) in the three restrictor-plate races this season.

Ryan Newman finished seventh in the spring for his second consecutive and third top 10 in the last five Talladega races. Newman also finished eighth in the July race for his second consecutive top 10 on a restrictor-plate track this season. This weekend, Newman will return in the same car (chassis No. 494) he scored those two top 10s with this season.

Paul Menard finished third in the spring for his third finish of sixth or better in the last four races at Talladega. A crash in this event last season raised his average finish to 15.0 in the last five races at the track. Menard, who has the sixth best average finish in the three restrictor-plate races this season, will return in the same car (chassis No. 492) that he raced in the last two plate events in 2015.

AJ Allmendinger has posted one top five and an average finish of 15.0 in three Talladega starts with JTG Daugherty Racing. Allmendinger's 17th-place run in the spring at Talladega is his best finish in the three restrictor-plate races in 2015.

Kevin Harvick has finished ninth or better in his three Talladega starts with Stewart-Haas Racing. He won at Talladega in the 2010 spring race with Richard Childress Racing and has 13 top 10s in 29 overall starts. In 2015, Harvick holds the third-best average finish (4.7) in the three restrictor-plate races. This weekend, Harvick will return in the same car (chassis No. 949) that he finished fourth with at Daytona in July.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the spring race for his six win at Talladega and first since 2004. Earnhardt has been the hottest driver at restrictor-plate tracks this season, winning the last two races and posting a 1.7 average finish. This weekend, Earnhardt will return in the same car that he's dominated with on the plate tracks in 2015.

Matt Kenseth has combined to lead 176 laps and post an 18.4 average finish in five Talladega starts with Joe Gibbs Racing. His best finish with JGR came in this event last year, in second and he did win this event in 2012 with Roush Fenway Racing. Kenseth, who is in a must win situation to advance in the Chase, has yet to finish inside the top 25 in the three restrictor-plate races in 2015.

David Gilliland finished in the top 10 in both races in 2013, but since then has finished 20th or worse. This season, Gilliland has posted a 23.7 average finish in the three restrictor-plate races this season. His best finish in the three races came in the season-opening Daytona 500, in 11th.

Jamie McMurray won this event in 2013 for his second win at Talladega. He finished 11th in the spring to lower his average finish to 19.8 in the last five races at the track. The spring finish is also McMurray's best in the three restrictor-plate races this season.

Aric Almirola has posted a 19.8 average finish in his last five Talladega starts. Almirola finished 15th in the spring to equal his best finish in the three races at restrictor-plate races this season.

Cole Whitt has recorded a 24.0 average finish in five Talladega starts. His last two races have resulted in top-15 finishes, including a 13th in the spring.

Kurt Busch has made three starts with Stewart-Haas Racing and has finished seventh and 12th, respectively in his last two outings. Busch finished fifth at Daytona in July with chassis No. 950 and will return in that same car this weekend.

Denny Hamlin has posted two top-10s in his last five Talladega starts, including a win in the 2014 spring race. Hamlin finished ninth in the spring for one of three top 10s in the three restrictor-plate races this season.

Casey Mears recorded a 10th-place finish in this event last year for his only top 10 in the last five Talladega races. His 15.0 average finish in the three races at restrictor-plate races this season ranks seventh among all drivers.

Carl Edwards finished 32nd in his first Talladega start with Joe Gibbs Racing in the spring. Edwards posted five top 10s in his previous 21 track starts with Roush Fenway Racing. This weekend, Edwards will look to turn around his plate record with JGR that has resulted in an average finish of 32.0 in three starts.

Brad Keselowski won this event last season for his third win at Talladega. Keselowski's 22nd-place finish in the spring is his best in the three races at restrictor-plate races this season.