Coca Cola 600 News and Notes

The Cool Down Lap: Not enough brewing at Lowe's

The press box staff at Lowe's Motor Speedway brews some of the best coffee on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit.

It's a good thing.

The Sprint All-Star Challenge, typically a monument to mangled sheet metal and embattled egos, featured three cautions Saturday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway -- all for planned breaks between the 25-lap segments.

Not once did a yellow flag fly for a racing incident. Of course, to have a racing incident, you first must have racing.

Even NASCAR president Mike Helton made the short trip from race control to the press box for a java bump between segments of Saturday's event.

The saving grace in the 2008 all-star race was the failure of the engine in Kyle Busch's No. 18 Toyota. As he had done the previous Saturday at Darlington, Busch was threatening to run away and hide from the rest of the 24-car field before he broke a rocker arm on Lap 36.

Busch's exit after the second segment paved the way for one of the top feel-good stories in the history of the event -- Kasey Kahne's riding the Sprint Fan Vote to victory and the $1 million first prize. To say Kahne's victory was unexpected is tantamount to calling the Sahara a decent-sized sand box.

Kahne has struggled since posting three top 10s to start the season. He ran a lackluster fifth in the Sprint Showdown that preceded the all-star event. Only the top two finishers transferred to the all-star race, but Kahne's unflagging popularity got him in, as fans continued to cast online and text message votes for the driver of the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge.

After a fuel-only pit stop before the last segment, Kahne battled Denny Hamlin for the lead, went to the front on Lap 84 after Hamlin's engine failed and held off a challenge from runner-up Greg Biffle in the closing laps. Kahne became the first fan-vote choice and the first Dodge driver to win the event.

Kahne's battle with Hamlin was one of very few instances of prolonged racing Saturday night. And though Kahne's win was a popular victory for a popular driver, it couldn't compensate for lack of action on the track in a race that's supposed to be a no-holds-barred, checkers-or-wreckers war between Sprint Cup's top drivers.

More than anything, Saturday's race showed us how much more refinement still needs to be done on the work in progress that is NASCAR's new racecar.

Tires weren't an issue at Lowe's Motor Speedway, as they had been earlier this year at Atlanta. The fact the tires were more comfortable to the drivers, however, only highlighted the effects of aerodynamic push on the new cars, a condition that rendered passing between cars of relatively equal speed not just difficult but next to impossible.

What does that portend for next Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at LMS?

Biffle said it will help to be three- or four-tenths of a second per lap faster than the car you're trying to overtake. If not, other measures will be required.

"You're going to have to take his line away somehow, either way at the top and get on the outside of him or get up in the corner high and kind of diamond it down to try and get a run at him -- (that's) kind of how you've got to pass a guy," Biffle said. "But I think there will be passing, just not probably a lot, I guess."

How important was holding the top spot in the all-star race? Busch led every lap of the first segment and beat Carl Edwards to the finish line by 2.006 seconds. After Busch's engine failed, Edwards won the second segment by 3.590 seconds over Dale Earnhardt Jr. Once he took the lead in the third segment, Biffle stretched his advantage to 4.217 seconds over Earnhardt at the finish.

In the final segment, with no fresh rubber to Biffle's two new right-side tires, Kahne opened a lead of 1.327 seconds, only the fifth time in the 24-year history of the all-star race that the margin of victory has exceeded one second.

Let's hope the Cup race teams and engineers learned something from Saturday's race, something that will help make the cars more competitive against each other. In fact, let's hope they learned a lot. (Beyond that, let's hope NASCAR will reconsider its hard-line stance against providing aerodynamic help to the new cars, which clearly need an assist at downforce speedways.)

Otherwise, to get us through 400 laps of the Starbucks 600 next Sunday night, we'll need to break out the NoDoz and fire up the coffee pot -- because that's about the only thing that will be percolating at LMS.

sportingnews.com

Indy/Coca-Cola previews
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

Memorial Day weekend has to be one of my favorite weekends of the year. It’s filled with pleasant memories of my family and friends that I’ll always cherish. It was one of the few times a year that we did get together. It’s amazing that most of those memories always feature a perfect backdrop of sunshine on what is usually considered the first day of summer. For some reason, good memories in retrospect never have gray clouds or rain. I remember good food, being taught how to respect and honor our soldiers who died in service, and then of course there is the Indianapolis 500.

The race is a must see event on the day and always compliments the days festivities. It’s the 92nd running of the Indy 500 and it is about as American as any event we have in this great county. However, the importance of the race has waned considerably. What used to be a highly anticipated event because it featured the best drivers in the world is now an event that uses its tradition as its selling point. I’d prefer it the way it used to be, but I’m still buying what they’re selling however diluted the product is.

Without getting too deep into the root of the Indy 500 demise, let’s just say it all begins with Tony George, owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He was so bad for his series that he helped another thrive. The myriad of poor decisions he has made in hind sight almost make you believe that his initial intent was to sabotage open-wheel racing as if he had a monetary interest in NASCAR’s stock rising.

When George took over the track, his first major decision in 1994 was to bring stock car racing to his track. Everyone who loved and respected the track were shocked. Many became angry citing that the Bricks will forever be tainted if those cars with fenders were allowed and that the prestige of the track would be diminished severely. The drivers, owners, and fans didn’t approve. They treated the track with reverence, while Tony George treated the track like a business.

Can you blame him? It’s his track, he can do what he wants with it! It doesn’t make good business sense to use a facility only once a year and to continually shut NASCAR out. Let’s bring them in, we’ll all make some money, and sooner or later the Indy fans will get over it.

What George could have never imagined is that those Indy fans didn’t just get over it, they also got something else, NASCAR fever. George opened the doors to the entire country and opened their eyes to the great racing of NASCAR. Lots of regular folks who only watched the Indy 500 because of tradition tuned in to watch the Stock car race at the fabled Brickyard. In the Mid-west, some folks started watching because they figured if the race was in their back yard, they might as well go, and if they were going they might as well start following the drivers so they know what their watching.

Something else also happened during that race that captured an audience. A young driver named Jeff Gordon won the inaugural race and began what would be a great career. The way he drove to victory, it was apparent to many people that he was going to great from that moment.

So those are just a couple of things George did to get NASCAR going and expand their audience. The final nail in the coffin for Open-Wheel racing was in 1996 when he formed his own league, the Indy Racing League, and used America’s race, the Indy 500, as his bargaining chip. His league consisted of cast-offs and drivers who would have never started a Champ car race. Meanwhile, the other series, CART, took all the good drivers, but slowly faded away and attendance dipped everywhere. And guess whose attendance and TV ratings increased?

Things aren’t likely to get better for open-wheel racing anytime soon. What used to be considered the highest level of skill driving is now a mere training ground for future NASCAR drivers. The most talented drivers in the world obviously want to get paid the most they can and they all know they can’t make the most of the driving career in open-wheel racing. Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, and Ryan Newman all made the choice early as to what series gave them the best opportunity to maximize their profits. Juan Pablo Montoya, Robby Gordon, Sam Hornish Jr, Patrick Carpentier, Dario Franchitti, and A.J. Allmendinger all followed suit and saw the light.

So for all you NASCAR fans, you owe Tony George a Big thanks for bringing the NASCAR closer to you. For all you Indy fans, you owe Tony George a big sarcastic thanks.

The rant on George is more a matter of me just being disappointed at what happened to my race. There is no drama and nothing to debate. Only 8 drivers have a shot at winning that are part of three teams. End of story!

As for the Coca-Cola 600 which will be run later on Sunday night, that race is wide open. There are so many questions and variables because of the distance, the recent Charlotte testing, and how the All-Star race unfolded Saturday Night. Kasey Kahne wins? Are you kidding me? This guy couldn’t even beat the slugs in the qualifying race, he had to be voted in by the fans and then he holds off all the best cars in the series for the win? That blew me away. I’ve seen some out of the ordinary stuff before, but that win was a definite shocker because there was no way to see it coming from every piece of data accumulated which is why I am very apprehensive about the Coca-Cola 600.

All the data says it should be Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and one of the Gibbs Toyota’s, but that All-Star race definitely threw a monkey wrench in the formula. Good Luck this week, have a great holiday, and a special thank you to all the veterans around the country who put their lives on the line for us.

INDY 500 Top 5 Finish Prediction:
1-#26 Marco Andretti (8/1)
2-#9 Scott Dixon 9/2
3-#10 Dan Wheldon (9/2)
4-#7 Danica Patrick (12/1)
5-#3 Helio CastroNeves (7/1)

Coca-Cola 600 Top 5 Finish prediction:
1-#48 Jimmie Johnson (7/1)
2-#99 Carl Edwards (6/1)
3-#20 Tony Stewart (10/1)
4-#18 Kyle Busch (8/1)
5-#88 Dale Earnhardt Jr (7/1)

Driver Highlights - Lowe's
VegasInsider.com

Note: All driver statistics that follow are from Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The Loop Data statistics – Driver Rating, Average Running Position, etc. – in this release, however, cover the last three races at LMS. NASCAR’s scoring loops began collecting data for statistical purposes in 2005.

Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Toyota) 7/1

# One top five, two top 10s
# Average finish of 25.9
# Average Running Position of 14.4, fourth-best
# Driver Rating of 94.3, second-best
# 116 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
# Average Green Flag Speed of 177.051 mph, second-fastest
# 1,504 (68.1%) Laps in the Top 15, third-most
# 279 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), second-most

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet) 7/1

# Four top fives, eight top 10s
# Average finish of 16.9
# Average Running Position of 17.8, 13th-best
# Driver Rating of 85.1, seventh-best
# 51 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most
# 413 Green Flag Passes, fifth-most
# Average Green Flag Speed of 176.548 mph, third-fastest
# 1,182 (53.6%) Laps in the Top 15, seventh-most
# 208 Quality Passes, eighth-most

Carl Edwards (No. 99 Office Depot Ford) 6/1

# Three top fives, five top 10s
# Average finish of 7.3
# Average Running Position of 15.0, fifth-best
# Driver Rating of 88.6, fifth-best
# 41 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-most
# Series-high 495 Green Flag Passes
# 1,225 (55.5%) Laps in the Top 15, fifth-most
# 215 Quality Passes, sixth-most

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) 7/1

# Five wins, 14 top fives, 16 top 10s
# Average finish of 16.8
# Average Running Position of 6.4, fifth-best
# Driver Rating of 85.0, eighth-best
# 102 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
# 1,108 (50.2%) Laps in the Top 15, 12th-most

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet) 7/1

# Five wins, eight top fives, 11 top 10s
# Average finish of 6.8
# Series-best Average Running Position of 7.5
# Series-best Driver Rating of 120.2
# Series-high 246 Fastest Laps Run
# 459 Green Flag Passes, second-most
# Series-high 1,956 (88.6%) Laps in the Top 15
# 298 Quality Passes, second-most

Kasey Kahne (No. 9 Budweiser Dodge) 20/1

# Two wins, three top 10s
# Average finish of 15.8
# Average Running Position of 14.0, third-best
# Driver Rating of 92.9, fourth-best
# 163 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
# 430 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
# 1,171 (53.1%) Laps in the Top 15, eighth-most
# 242 Quality Passes, third-most

Matt Kenseth (No. 17 DEWALT Ford) 17/1

# One win, five top fives, seven top 10s
# Average finish of 15.8
# Average Running Position of 18.4, 14th-best
# Driver Rating of 87.0, sixth-best
# 76 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most
# 1,200 (54.4%) Laps in the Top 15, sixth-most

Mark Martin (No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet) 20/1

# Four wins, 17 top fives, 21 top 10s
# Average finish of 16.1
# Average Running Position of 11.9, second-best
# Driver Rating of 93.2, third-best
# 39 Fastest Laps Run, tied for 13th-most
# Average Green Flag Speed of 176.546 mph, fourth-fastest
# 1,664 (75.4%) Laps in the Top 15, second-most
# 232 Quality Passes, fourth-most

Casey Mears (No. 5 Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet) 40/1

# One win
# Average finish of 20.1
# Average Running Position of 16.1, seventh-best
# Driver Rating of 81.3, 12th-best
# Average Green Flag Speed of 175.904 mph, 10th-fastest
# 1,334 (60.4%) Laps in the Top 15, fourth-most
# 209 Quality Passes, seventh-most

Odds and Ends - North Carolina
VegasInsider.com

History

# Construction began in 1959.
# The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on June 19, 1960.
# The first NASCAR Nationwide Series race was May 29, 1982.
# The first night race was the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race in 1992. The first night (twilight) point race was in the spring of 1993.
# The track was repaved mid-season in 1994.
# The first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at LMS was on May 16, 2003.
# The 2003 fall race was the first race at Lowe’s to be run completely at night.
# The track was re-paved before the 2006 season. Notebook
# There have been 98 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, two races per year since the track opened in 1960. In 1961, there were two 100-mile qualifying point races held the week before the World 600. The first six fall races at Charlotte were 400-mile events (1960-65).
# Fireball Roberts won the pole for the first race at LMS, in 1960.
# Joe Lee Johnson won the first race at LMS, in 1960.
# 36 drivers have posted poles at LMS, led by David Pearson with 14.
# David Pearson posted 11 straight poles at Charlotte from the fall of 1973 through 1978.
# Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman lead active drivers with seven poles each.
# Jeff Gordon won five straight spring race poles from 1994 to 1998.
# 40 drivers have won races, led by Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip with six each.
# Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon lead active drivers in wins with five victories each.
# Hendrick Motorsports has won 15 races at LMS, more than any other organization.
# There have been 13 back-to-back victories at Lowe’s, including three in-a-row by Fred Lorenzen (fall 1964-fall1965).
# A sweep has occurred eight times at LMS, including three of the past four seasons: Jimmie Johnson (2004 and 2005) and Kasey Kahne (2006).
# 13 races have been won from the pole, the last by Jimmie Johnson in the spring of 2004.
# Jimmie Johnson won the 2003 Coca-Cola 600 from the 37th starting position, the furthest back a race winner has started at LMS.
# Hendrick Motorsports has won seven of the past 10 races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Three different HMS drivers have won there since 2002, including sweeps in 2004 and 2005 by Jimmie Johnson and an organization sweep last season by Casey Mears and Jeff Gordon.

NASCAR in North Carolina

# There have been 506 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in North Carolina.
# 406 NASCAR drivers have their home state recorded as North Carolina; 311 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
# There have been 42 race winners from North Carolina in NASCAR’s three national series; 29 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series:

Lowe’s Motor Speedway Data

Race #: 12 of 36 (5-25-08)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
# Banking/Corners: 24 degrees
# Banking/Straights: 5 degrees
# Frontstretch: 1,980 feet
# Backstretch: 1,500 feet

Driver Rating at Lowe’s Motor Speedway

Jimmie Johnson 120.2
Kyle Busch 94.3
Mark Martin 93.2
Kasey Kahne 92.9
Carl Edwards 88.6
Matt Kenseth 87.0
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 85.1
Jeff Gordon 85.0
Brian Vickers 84.7
Greg Biffle 83.6

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2007 races (6 total) at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Qualifying/Race Data

2006 pole winner: Scott Riggs (187.865 mph, 28.744 seconds)
2006 race winner: Kasey Kahne, 128.840 mph, 5-28-06)
Track qualifying record: Elliott Sadler (193.216 mph, 27.948 secs., 10-13-05)
600-mile race record: Bobby Labonte (151.952 mph, 5-28-95)

Estimated Pit Window: Every 50-55 laps, based on fuel mileage.

Better Days for Biffle
Racingone.com

Although he missed visiting victory lane by one spot in Saturday night's NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway, things are looking brighter for Greg Biffle.

One week ago, Biffle was as frustrated as he could be after having a tire go down and later an engine failure to sideline him from what looked like a possible win at Darlington.

Saturday night the No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford was back to its powerful form and if not for the late race pit stop strategy employed by all-star winner Kasey Kahne, Biffle could have very well been the winner.

The run was good enough for Biffle to feel much more positive about his car, his team and his future than a week ago at Darlington.

"I’m just excited that we ran that good and really excited for next week for the 600,” Biffle said. “This was a big confidence boost for our team.”

Not to say Saturday night went perfectly for Biffle and company.

Biffle had a fast car all night but the handling seemed to fade, forcing adjustments.

“[We] made some adjustments to our car, pretty aggressive,” he said. “We wouldn’t have done something like that in a normal race and loosened it up a bunch. When the green flag dropped, I mean, man alive, I could not believe how fast my car was. It was unbelievable. I could just drive it anywhere – on the mat – drive it in the corner and just hold it to the floor.”

The biggest change for Biffle came on the night's final stop between the third and fourth segments.

“I was so fast out front and we put two tires on it and it just killed it,” Biffle said. "I not sure why … It’s disappointing. Really gut-wrenching that we had that thing that fast and thought we had it one. Great confidence for the 600 next week.”

But with NASCAR's longest race on the horizon, finding the right balance and what adjustments to make next week will most certainly be a challenge.

"I think we got a good idea of what that much adjustment we did is going to do,” Biffle said. “What kind of blows our mind is that we didn’t change anything and put two right-side tires on it and it just went way back tight again. It’s hard to put your finger on it."

“It’s a moving target, but, yeah, now that I know what that did, certainly, that’s an option for us in the race and the 600 and everywhere else – Kansas, Chicago – any kind of track like this.”

NASCAR: Coca-Cola 600 Preview

After a short break for last week’s All-Star events, the Sprint Cup Series drivers return to real racing this weekend in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Kyle Busch will likely be the man to beat once again this weekend, as he heads into this race off a win in the Dodge Challenger 500 two weeks ago and holding on to the points lead. Busch’s win in Darlington was his third of the season and bumped his point lead over Jeff Burton to 79 points. Busch is looking for his first career win at Lowe’s this weekend, but he did post a career-best third place in last season’s Bank of America 500, which is also held at Lowe’s.

In last year’s Coca-Cola 600 Casey Mears was a surprise winner. Mears hasn’t recorded a win this season and with only two Top 10 finishes he’s well back of Chase contention in 27th place in the points standings.

Before Mears’ win at Lowe’s last season, the track belonged to Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson. Kahne, who ended up in victory lane in last week’s All-Star race, won both races held at Lowe’s in the 2006 season. However, Kahne hasn’t won a Sprint Series race since winning the Bank of America 500 at Lowe’s that season.

In 2004 and 2005 Johnson swept both races at Lowe’s, and with another win in the 2003 Coca-Cola 600 he has five career victories at Lowe’s. Since recording his first win of the season in mid-April, Johnson has gone through a rough stretch with two 13th-place finishes and a 30th-place finish in his last three races.

Trailing Johnson on the career wins list at Lowe’s is Jeff Gordon, who has seen the checkered flag fly four times. Gordon’s most recent win at Lowe’s came last season in the Bank of America 500. Gordon re-entered the Chase picture after finishing third at Darlington two weeks ago, but he’s still not a lock for the Chase without a win this season.

Montoya gets new crew chief for No. 42 Dodge
May 20, 2008

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) -Juan Pablo Montoya will have his third crew chief in a month when Brian Pattie takes over the No. 42 Dodge for this week's race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Pattie replaces Jimmy Elledge, who was put in charge of the car four races ago in a crew shakeup at Chip Ganassi Racing. Elledge initially swapped places with Donnie Wingo, who guided Montoya's transition from Formula One to NASCAR but was moved to Reed Sorenson's crew in the swap.

Montoya is 16th in points with one top-10 finish this season, a second last month at Talladega Superspeedway in Elledge's first race leading the crew. He then finished 32nd in Richmond, 23rd in Darlington and was 14th in Saturday night's All-Star race.

Pattie, a crew chief on Ganassi's Nationwide Series teams, moves to Montoya's pit box for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600.

Coca-Cola 600 Driver Rating

Jimmie Johnson is atop a majority of NASCAR’s driver stats headed into the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Over the last six races, Johnson has run an impressive 14.4 percent of the fastest laps at the track. He has also been in the top 15 in 88.6 percent of laps run over that same time span. He trails only Kasey Kahne in laps led. Johnson has five wins and 11 top 10s in 13 starts at LMS. The #48 team used the All-Star race as a way to get additional testing done for this weekend’s race. “I really think we learned a lot about our car even if we didn't win,” Johnson said. “We are learning a lot. We are making gains, and I am happy to do that. I am happy to have a good run here at Lowe's and we will have our Lowe's Impala tuned up for next weekend.”

Kasey Kahne won the UAW-GM Quality 500 in 2006 so he does have experience competing at Lowe’s at the highest level. He will carry a lot of momentum into this weekend after winning the All-Star race. “As far as us coming out and winning the 600, we got some work to do,” Kahne said. “We have to keep working hard and doing the right things. But (the All-Star win) shows that our cars are not as far off (as I thought). I'm already looking forward to next weekend's 600.” Over the past six races at LMS Kahne has led more laps than any other driver.

Kyle Busch was on his way to winning the All-Star race until engine troubles sidelined him after the 2nd segment. Busch leads all drivers in percentage of quality passes and is 3rd in total number of fastest laps and laps in the top 15. So it’s safe to say that Busch should be one of the fastest cars this weekend. Busch will look for his first victory at LMS this weekend.

profantasysports.com

Coca-Cola 600 PreQ

While he does sit in the sixth position in the point standings Jimmie Johnson is off to a slow start, especially for him. Through the first 11 races of the season Johnson has just four top 10s with one win. At this point over the last two seasons Johnson has combined for seven wins and 16 top 10s. Johnson is searching for his first top 10 in four races and should be a contender to at least do that if not win the event. He has been dominant at this track in his career recoding five wins in 13 starts with an average finish of 7th place. Johnson is the early week favorite to take the checkers at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Although he has yet to win at Lowe’s Carl Edwards has shown throughout his career that he knows how to get around this track. In six career starts Edwards has posted five top 10s for an average finish of 7th place with his poorest finishing being 15th place. Edwards does have three wins this season but sits behind Johnson in the point standings due to a couple of finishes outside the top 40. He should be able to gain some of those points back this weekend at will be a top consider in the Coca-Cola 600.

Every time he is entered into an event this season it seems that Mark Martin always ranks among the top 10, if not the top 5, drivers heading into the race. That again is the case as Martin ranks 3rd on our PreQ forecast. He has four top 10s in the eight events he has started this season. Many feel that Martin will get a win in the DEI #8 Army Chevrolet before the season is over and it would not be a surprise to see him get to victory lane this weekend. Martin is one of the toughest competitors in the field even at his age working out rigorously on a regular basis. He is the Iron man of the sport and will be in store for a solid night in Charlotte.

One driver that has not been very fortunate at Lowe’s in his career has been David Ragan. Ragan is running very effectively this season currently in the top 12 in the point standings after a 5th place finish at Darlington. He has been posting much better finishes at tracks he struggled at last season as well proving that he is learning – and quickly. He should be able to better his top finish of 37th at Lowe’s with an average finish of 39th place but Ragan must still prove he can get around this track. He faded in the Sprint Showdown which could mean he will struggle this weekend as well. Keep a close eye on Ragan as he is not a shoe-in for a top 20 finish.

Another driver that we continually expect to run better but suggest to wait until the second half of the season is Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya sits 16th in the point standings after finishing in 20th place a year ago but has still not found his groove. He has had troubles on the high-banked superspeedways averaging a 22nd place finish in his career and has not finished in the top 15 in the four high-banked superspeedway races the season. Montoya will contend for a spot in the Chase for the Championship but the series has not reached the tracks where he runs best. Avoid him for this race as Montoya is averaging a 32nd place finish at Lowe’s and will likely not do too much better than that this Sunday evening.

profantasysports.com

Points leader stays hot, will start on pole for 600

Concord, NC (Sports Network) - Sprint Cup points leader Kyle Busch captured the pole for Sunday afternoon/evening's Coca-Cola 600 at the Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, NC. The No.18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota circled the fast 1.5-mile, tri-oval in 29.121 seconds (185.433 m.p.h.).

The pole victory was Busch's second of the season and fourth of his Sprint Cup career.

"I can't say enough about the guys," said Busch. "We keep working and working. We weren't right in practice and I made them change a lot of stuff. The guys went to work and figured out what we were missing."

Starting alongside Busch will be Sprint Cup All-Star Race winner Kasey Kahne who posted a time of 29.142 seconds.

Brian Vickers (29.150) and Greg Biffle (29.194) will make up row two.

Other drivers of note and their starting positions: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (sixth), Mark Martin (seventh), Jimmie Johnson (10th), Matt Kenseth (12th), Jeff Burton (14th), Jeff Gordon (18th), Kevin Harvick (19th), Carl Edwards (30th) and Tony Stewart (31st).

The last time the series was in real action, Busch won in Darlington to expand his championship lead to 79 points over Jeff Burton and annoy all the Earnhardt Jr. fans, who were still mad at the No.18 JGR driver for an accident in Richmond.

Casey Mears won last year's race, beating the field and J.J. Yeley by 9.561 seconds in a late-race fuel run. Dodge drivers Kyle Petty and Sorenson finished third and fourth, respectively.

But this is normally a great race for Johnson and the No.48 Hendrick Motorsports team. Johnson has made 13 starts at his sponsor's track, winning two poles, five races and collecting 11 top-10s. In fact, between May 2003 and May 2006 Johnson never finished lower than third. Last year he slumped, finishing 10th in the spring and 14th in the fall event.

Johnson's teammate Gordon also owns five wins and seven poles at Lowe's, including a win there during the Sprint Cup championship last October.

This is the longest "Cup" race of the year - 400 laps and 600 miles and will test both man and machine.

Green flag is scheduled to drop on Sunday around 5:30 p.m. (et).

Coca-Cola 600 HOT! Sheet

The top three names on our sheet this week might surprise some people, but the numbers are pretty impressive. The #22 team with Dave Blaney has steadily gotten better as the season rolls along. At Richmond, he ran with the lead pack all night and wound up 18th. Then the same thing happened at Darlington and the team gained their first top 10. Consider him a decent start this weekend.

Your eyes do not deceive you when you look at our chart and see that Travis Kvapil has averaged 10th in his last 3 races. At Talladega he survived and crossed the line 6th. He came from near the rear of the field at Richmond to place 16th. Then at Darlington he managed to lead a couple of laps before finishing 8th. It’s been good enough to vault him to 18th in the standings. Look for the momentum to continue Sunday night.

Believe it or not, if the Chase started this weekend David Ragan would be a part of it. That’s because he currently sits 12th in the standings thanks to a pair of top 5s in his last 3 races. His best finish of the season came at Talladega when he ended up 4th. His first laps led of the season came at Darlington when he went home 5th. He just barely missed out on the All Star race after running 3rd in the Showdown. His stock is rising, so get him now if you can.

One guy whose stock is dropping is Kurt Busch. He finds himself at the bottom of our sheet this week thanks to 10 straight finishes outside the top 10. As you can see, over the last 6 events, the blue deuce has an average finish of nearly 29th. Things did start to turn for the better at Darlington when he started 5th, led a lap, and finished 12th. But until he shows that more consistently, we’ll stay away.

Right above him this week is Greg Biffle. He should be much higher, but he has run into some real bad luck recently. After an average finish of about 7th in the first 5 races, over the last 6 races it has ballooned to nearly 24th. At Darlington, he literally went from first to worst. After gaining the pole and led 95 laps, his engine blew up and he wound up scoring 43rd. He ran well during the All Star event so we’re not saying bench him, but he gets our “buyer beware” label this week.

profantasysports.com

Driver Handicaps: Charlotte
Racingone.com

This weekend the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to Lowe's Motor Speedway for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600. To help you make your fantasy racing picks, RacingOne brings you our weekly detailed look at some of the field for the 400-lap event.

Who's HOT at Charlotte
* Jimmie Johnson has the best average finish among all drivers at 6.8.
* Mark Martin leads all active drivers with 17 top fives.
* Carl Edwards has yet to finish outside the top 15 in five starts.
* Hendrick Motorsports has won 15 races, including both last season with Casey Mears and Jeff Gordon.
* Kasey Kahne won last weekend's All-Star race.

Keep an Eye on at Charlotte
* In 2008, Jeff Burton, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Denny Hamlin are among the top average finishers in the two COT races on tracks exactly 1.5-miles in length.
* Ryan Newman has the best starting average at 4.0.
* Greg Biffle had a strong run in the All-Star race.
* Last fall at Lowe's, Clint Bowyer led 79 laps en route to a runner-up finish.

Track Performers
Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are tied for the lead with nine wins on tracks exactly 1.5-miles in length. Mark Martin and Tony Stewart are tied for second with seven wins each. Jeff Burton rounds out the top five in wins with six. Martin leads all drivers with 49 top-10 finishes, followed by Gordon with 45. Ryan Newman is the current pole leader on 1.5-mile tracks with 11. Carl Edwards has the best average finish with the new car on 1.5-mile tracks. In the two races contested so far Edwards has gone to victory lane in both.

Charlotte Rookie Report
Sam Hornish Jr., who is second in the rookie standings, is coming off a good run in last weekend's Sprint Showdown and All-Star race at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Although it was a non-points paying event, Hornish's seventh-place finish came in his first Cup Series start at the track. Hornish along with Partick Carpentier are the only rookies that need to qualify on time. Regan Smith is the only rookie with NASCAR experience under his belt at LMS, competing in four Nationwide races and one in the Craftsman Truck Series. Dario Franchitti continues to recover from injuries sustained at Talladega and will sit out this weekend's Coca-Cola 600. Rookie Standings

Qualifying Tidbits
Ryan Newman is coming off his seventh pole in 14 attempts at Lowe's Motor Speedway. It marked Dodge's eighth pole in the last 10 events. Elliott Sadler won his first pole at LMS in the 2005 fall race after setting the current qualifying record at 193.216 mph. It was the first pole by a Ford at LMS since 2001 when Jimmy Spencer took the top spot in Travis Carter's No. 26 in this event. Jeff Gordon is tied with Newman for the pole lead at LMS. Past Pole Winners | Starting Positions of Charlotte Winners

RacingOne Staff Picks

Jeff Wackerlin: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Pete Pistone: Elliott Sadler
Rachael West: Jeff Burton
Kym Opalenik: Carl Edwards

Top 20 Driver Notes - Ordered by Current Standings

1. Kyle Busch: Busch was able to lower his finishing average at Lowe's Motor Speedway from 29.1 to 25.9 with his third-place finish last fall. The finish marked his best in eight starts at the 1.5-mile track. This weekend he will look to lower his average even more as he heads into the Coca-Cola 600 as the championship leader and the most recent points-paying race winner (Darlington).

2. Jeff Burton: Burton has raced in seven events at Lowe's Motor Speedway with Richard Childress Racing. His best finishes with the team came in the last two fall events at third and fourth place, respectively. The 2006 Coca Cola 600 (finished sixth), marked the first time in the last 10 races Burton has led laps (12) at the 1.5-mile track. The majority of Burton's 26 starts at LMS came with Roush Racing - the team he scored his two LMS wins with in the 1999 and 2001 Coca-Cola 600. In the events Burton won, he led a combined 323 laps. This weekend Burton will pilot a brand new car (chassis No. 246) in the Coca-Cola 600.

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr: In 2005, Earnhardt Jr. posted his third and fourth finishes of 30th or worse in 17 races at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His 42nd-place finish in the 2005 fall race was his worst finish at the track and third DNF. Junior was able to bounce back with finishes of 11th, fourth and eighth, respectively, in his next three starts. His third-place finish in the 2004 fall race was his career best at the track. In the 2000 May race, Dale Jr. won his first career Cup pole and became the first rookie to win the All-Star race the prior weekend. After finishing 19th last fall in his last race at LMS with DEI, Earnhardt will make his first points paying start at the track with Hendrick Motorsports. He will make that start in a car (chassis No. 499) that was tested earlier this month at the 1.5-mile track.

4. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin has finished ninth in his two Coca-Cola 600 starts at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His only finishes outside the top 10 have come in the last two fall races in 28th and 20th, respectively. Hamlin, who holds a 14.8 average finish at LMS, will debut a new car (chassis No. 208) in the Coca-Cola 600. This car was tested at Lowe's earlier this month.

5. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer will be making his fifth career Sprint Cup start at Lowe's Motor Speedway this weekend. Last fall he snapped a streak of finishing 19th or worse when he led 79 laps en route to a runner-up finish. This weekend he will be piloting a new car (chassis No. 244) in the Coca-Cola 600.

6. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson has finished in the top 10, with five wins, in 11 of the 13 races he's competed in at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His 2003 Coca-Cola 600 win, one of three 600 wins, came from the furthest starting position in 37th. His finishing average of 6.8, coupled with a 39th-place finish in his first start, leads all drivers. Johnson, who has led 1,134 laps over the last 12 consecutive races at LMS, will race a brand new chassis (No. 502) in the Coca-Cola 600.

7. Carl Edwards: Edwards has the second best average finish (7.3) among all active drivers at Lowe's Motor Speedway. He has made six Cup starts, finishing third in his first two Coca-Cola 600 starts. His best finish in the fall race came last year when he came home fifth. This weekend Edwards will race chassis No. RK-575 in the Coca-Cola 600. This car last raced at Bristol where it finished 16th.

8. Tony Stewart: Stewart is coming off his 11th top 10 at Lowe's Motor Speedway after finishing seventh last fall. Five of his top 10s have come in the Coca-Cola 600, including a sixth last season. Stewart's May track time in 2006 at LMS in the 600, All-Star race and Nationwide Series race were abbreviated to 114 laps, after he suffered crashes. He recorded his worst finish at the track, in 42nd, in the Cup race, with only 32 laps run on the newly-paved surface. Stewart has led 530 laps at LMS, including 149 of them en route to his 2003 victory in the fall event.

9. Kevin Harvick: Harvick posted his best finish (second) at Lowe's Motor Speedway in his first track start in 2001 (Coca-Cola 600). His last of three top 10s came in the 2003 fall race. Since then, Harvick has posted a finishing average of 25.9, including one DNF (36th) in the 2004 fall race. This weekend Harvick will drive the same car (chassis No. 328) that most recently finished 11th at Texas Motor Speedway.

10. Jeff Gordon: Gordon is coming off his fifth win at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His win in the fall event last year moved him into a tie with his teammate Jimmie Johnson for most wins among active drivers. Gordon's first three victories all came in the 600 in the 90s. Prior to the fall race last year, Gordon recorded five consecutive DNFs at LMS.

11. Greg Biffle: Biffle has made 10 starts at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His best finish there was third in the 2005 fall race, marking his only top-five and third top-10 finish. In addition to his Cup record at Charlotte, Biffle has two wins, five top-five and eight top-10 finishes in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. This weekend Biffle will be racing the same car (chassis No. RK-576) that most recently finished 39th at Texas after suffering mechanical problems.

12. David Ragan: Ragan has competed in two Sprint Cup races at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His best finish came in this event last year when he came home 37th. This weekend he will look to turn around his luck at LMS by driving the same car (chassis RK-584) that was tested at the speedway earlier this month.

13. Ryan Newman: Last fall, Newman won his seventh pole, and second consecutive, at Lowe's Motor Speedway for his 12th top five in 14 starts. His qualifying success hasn't translated as well to the race finishes. Newman has three top-five and five top-10 finishes at LMS and five DNFs. Newman's best finish, of second, came in the fall event in 2003 and he has led a total of 243 laps over eight races. The No. 12 team is bringing chassis PRS-555 to the track this weekend. This is the same car that took part in the Goodyear tire test at Darlington Raceway in March.

14. Kasey Kahne: Fresh off his All-Star win, Kahne is looking to add another victory to his resume at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Kahne has scored four career victories at LMS, winning the last weekend's All-Star Race, 2006 Coca-Cola 600, 2006 Bank of America 500 and one Nationwide Series win. The 1.5-mile Charlotte facility is the only track on the circuit in which Kahne has recorded multiple wins.

15. Martin Truex Jr: Truex Jr's best finish, and only top 10, in five career starts at Lowe's Motor Speedway came in the 2005 Coca-Cola 600. The seventh-place finish came in his first career start at LMS after leading four laps.

16. Juan Montoya: Montoya came back from a multi-car accident in last year's Coca-Cola 600 to finish 28th in his first Sprint Cup start at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Last fall he was as lucky when an accident took him out of contention and dropped him to a 37th-place finish. This weekend he will look for his first top 20 at the track driving the same car (chassis No. 731) that finished 20th at Auto Club Speedway.

17. Brian Vickers: Vickers only qualified for one event at Lowe's Motor Speedway last season with Red Bull Racing. But in that event, which was the Coca-Cola 600, Vickers shined - leading 76 laps en route to a fifth-place finish. Vickers' previous seven starts at the track came with Hendrick Motorsports. His best finish in that span was 10th in the 2006 fall race.

18. Travis Kvapil: Kvapil will be making his fifth career Sprint Cup start at Lowe's Motor Speedway, and first since 2006, in Sunday's Coca-Cola 600. Kvapil will make his first start at the 1.5-mile track in a Yates Racing Ford. The chassis (No. 457) for the race is the same one that finished eighth at Las Vegas.

19. Bobby Labonte: Labonte will make his 31st career start at Lowe's Motor Speedway, and fifth there with Petty Enterprises on Sunday. He captured his best finish with Petty at LMS after finishing fifth in the 2006 fall race. Last year he posted two solid finishes of 13th and 12th. Labonte has won twice at LMS, recording his first career win there in May 1995 and last winning in the fall event in 2000. Lowe's is Labonte's best track based on finishing average at 12.8 thanks to 12 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes.

20. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth has captured seven top-10 finishes at Lowe's Motor Speedway, including his first Sprint Cup win in 2000. His victory total also includes a win in the All-Star race and two wins in the Nationwide Series. Kenseth has led in 12 races at the speedway for 251 laps and has suffered four DNFs, most recently last fall. This weekend he will race the same car (chassis No. RK-550) that last finished fifth at Auto Club Speedway.

Top 5 and 5 to watch: Lowe's
By Bill Marx

Here's a look at the top five in points and five drivers to watch in Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. All statistical references are for Sprint Cup races at Lowe's unless otherwise indicated.

1. Kyle Busch, 94.3 driver rating. Busch has the second-best driver rating behind Jimmie Johnson's 120.2. That's not saying a lot, though. It's basically Johnson and everyone else. Busch's high rating is based on top-10 finishes in the fall races the past two years. His record in the 600 is abysmal -- finishes of 32nd, 25th, 38th and 30th. It'll be interesting to see what engine whiz Mark Cronquist has cooked up for the Joe Gibbs Racing drivers, especially after what happened in the All-Star Challenge, which in my book was a glorified test session for the 600.

2. Jeff Burton, 82.9. Barring the unexpected, Burton will be among the leaders at the end -- he always is. He finished 24th last year but sixth in 2006. Burton won the race in 1999 and 2001. Bottom line: He is a smart, patient driver, and those virtues will serve him well in a 600-mile race.

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 85.1. Hendrick Chevrolets have won seven of the past 10 races at Lowe's, including four of the past five 600s. That tells me Hendrick is running good cars with good setups -- and the teams are making the proper adjustments as day turns into night. Junior is very hands-on when it comes to suggesting adjustments to his car, and this is definitely an adjustment-heavy race. If you are listening to scanner channels Sunday, make sure you spend some time on the 88. In 17 races at Lowe's, Earnhardt has eight top 10s but no wins.

4. Denny Hamlin, 78.8. You know the saying: What's good for the Busch is good for the Hamlin (or something like that). It all comes down to what's under the hood of the Joe Gibbs Toyotas. Hamlin has been solid in his five races at Lowe's, with three top 10s and a 14.8 average finish. If the engine problems of the Gibbs cars really were a one-shot deal -- which I think they were -- Gibbs racers Busch, Hamlin and Tony Stewart will be factors Sunday.

5. Clint Bowyer, 76.9. Bowyer finished second and led 79 laps last fall, by far his best effort in four races. His finishes in his two 600s are 19th and 29th. He has the equipment and smarts to do much better.

Five to watch:

6. Jimmie Johnson, 120.2. We finally come to Mr. Lowe's. He leads just about every piece of loop data out there, but let's focus on the most important statistic: five wins in 13 races, including four in a row (2004-05). Among those five wins are three 600 wins in a row. He tailed off last year with finishes of 10th and 14th, but he still led 83 laps of the 600 and 95 of the fall race. Johnson is always a factor at Lowe's.

7. Carl Edwards, 88.6. Edwards and his Roush Fenway Racing teammates are racing against recent history. The last time a Roush car won at Lowe's was in the 2002 Coca-Cola 600 (Mark Martin). Since then eight Chevrolets and three Dodges have been to victory lane -- and now Toyota is a factor. Edwards has five top 10s in six races. Everyone will be watching to see if the yaw on his car makes a difference this year.

12. David Ragan, 46.4. This will be Ragan's first race in the top 12 this year, so he will be under more scrutiny. Ragan, 22, finished 37th and 40th last year in his first two races at Lowe's. He is a different driver this year (read: better) and is emphasizing staying out of trouble. It shows -- on the track and in the standings.

14. Kasey Kahne, 92.9. Which Kahne will we see Sunday? The Kahne who began the season with three straight top 10s and won last week's Sprint All-Star Challenge? Or the Kahne with one top 10 in the past six points races? He is tied with Ryan Newman, two points behind David Ragan. Kahne swept both races in 2006 and finished 23rd and eighth last season. Kahne needs a top 10 Sunday.

20. Matt Kenseth, 87.0. Kenseth followed finishes of 38th, 41st and 38th with a third at Darlington before the all-star break. He won this race in 2000 but has one top 10 in his past seven races at Lowe's. Roush's recent history at Lowe's is a concern. Kenseth needs a top finish to continue his climb back toward the top 12.

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Coca Cola 600 Odds and Predictions
by Christopher G. Shepard

NASCAR returns to Sundays as Casey Mears looks to get Hendrick Motorsports back in victory lane "where racing lives" as he defends last year's win at the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowes Motor Speedway Sunday night at 5:30.

While Mears won it on fuel last year we are more likely to see HMS teammates (and three time Coca-Cola 600 winners) Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson waving the checkered flag.

NASCAR has had to deal with criticism regarding last weekend's vapid All-Star Race. And while NASCAR tweaks things yet again, we turn our attention back to Charlotte, a Heineken Mini-Keg Memorial Day weekend, and picking the winner of one damned long race.

Who will win the Coca-Cola 600?

There are perhaps a handful of drivers that have a realistic shot at winning this four-hour plus race-a-thon this weekend; Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Tony Stewart, etc. There is nothing better than home cooking. Especially if you've been having a tougher-than-expected first quarter of the season and your name is Jimmie Johnson and you're coming home to your sponsor's home track.

If there are two drivers you almost have to bet on in this race you can't ignore the combined six LMS wins between HMS teammates Jeff Gordon and Johnson. Johnson ran off a string of three-consecutive Coca-Cola 500 wins from 2003-2006.

Gordon has never won this race. On the other hand, he won at the October 2007 Bank of America 500, at LMS. You'd have to look all the way back to The Winston in 2001 for his last win at Charlotte. Moreover, Gordon has not done well at the Coca-Cola 600 during the last three years. He recorded a 41 place in 2007, 36 in 2006, and a 30th in 2005.

One quarter of the time Johnson races at LMS he is in the lead, which translates to 1,134 laps led in 4,477 laps raced. Of 13 starts he has five wins, eight top-five, and 11 top-10 finishes and an average finish of 6.77!

Pick! Jimmie Johnson, No. 48. (8/1)

Coca-Cola 600 Solid Gold Picks

Sportsbook.com has listed many matchups on the Coca-Cola 600, the longest race of the NASCAR season, this weekend. Last week, I won one unit on my Square Tire Pick backing -1.05 'dawg Jimmie Johnson to finish ahead of Carl Edwards (-1.25). Johnson finished the race in fourth place while Edwards, at one point in position to win the snooze-fest, took on two new tires and finished 10th for the effort. This brings my record Over-the-Wall to 8-8 with -1.80 units on the season as I've moved up a few positions in the money grid after 11 of 36 races (the All-Star Race doesn't count in the Sprint Cup standings) on the Sprint Cup circuit.

Long Odds Value Pick

Betting long shots (like betting favorites) in NASCAR all the time is a risky proposition and is a great way to watch your bankroll vaporize. Sometimes I'm asked what I am looking for when I consider the long odds value pick. While I don't expect the long shot to pay I do expect to get some 'entertainment value' for my bet. If I'm dropping a Jackson on the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday's four-hour race, I have two criteria for my driver; avoid a DNF and stay competitive the entire race. That way if my pick finishes the race it will cost me about five bucks an hour. Entertainment-wise that is far less than, say, going to the Multiplex. This week a driver that meets my criteria is David Ragan. Consider that after 11 starts in 2008 Ragan has already duplicated the numbers he did in 2007 after 36 races; two top-five and three top-10 finishes with only one DNF to date. Ragan has only finished out of the top-five once in the past four races and in Rousch Fenway Racing's Ford he should stay competitive the entire race and avoid a DNF.

Pick! David Ragan 40/1

Square Tire Pick

Mark Martin (-1.55)/Kasey Kahne (+1.25)

I believe this is a matchup that falls into the "marquee name" category and is designed to trap the casual NASCAR sports investor. Martin is a perennial favorite and has raced very well this year, causing what I see as an inflated line. Perhaps the oddsmakers are expecting a $1 million hang-over. But I don't see it happening. Sure, Kahne had no business winning the race, but due to the weird four-segment format the All-Star Race was anyone's to lose (and they did!). Despite last weekend's win there are a few reasons why I like Kahne in this matchup. Head-to-head in this race in 2006 Kahne led for 158 laps and won this race while Martin finished fourth leading for 20 laps. Certainly Martin has had more success at LMS given his longevity, but they both have recorded two wins. Martin beat's Kahne in most top-five (12) and top-10s (14) and average finish (10.3), but the numbers again belie the age between the two drivers. The other factor I am looking at is that I think these are two teams going in different directions and ultimately by backing Kahne I'm saying I believe that Gillett Evernham Motorsports will bring a better package for the long haul than DEI.

Pick! Kasey Kahne, No. 9, (+1.25)

*Coca-Cola 600 Odds

Bobby Labonte 100/1
Brian Vickers 100/1
Carl Edwards 5/1
Casey Mears 30/1
Clint Bowyer 22/1
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 8/1
Dave Blaney 100/1
David Gilliland 150/1
David Ragan 40/1
David Reutimann 100/1
Denny Hamlin 8/1
Elliott Sadler 80/1
Greg Biffle 12/1
J.J. Yeley 150/1
Jamie McMurray 80/1
Jeff Burton 25/1
Jeff Gordon 9/1
Jimmie Johnson 6/1
Juan Pablo Montoya 65/1
Kasey Kahne 16/1
Kevin Harvick 25/1
Kurt Busch 30/1
Kyle Busch 11/2
Mark Martin 28/1
Martin Truex Jr. 30/1
Matt Kenseth 12/1
Michael Waltrip 100/1
Paul Menard 125/1
Reed Sorenson 100/1
Ryan Newman 30/1
Sam Hornish Jr. 80/1
Scott Riggs 100/1
Tony Stewart 8/1
Travis Kvapil 100/1
Field (Any Other Driver) 40/1

*Odds courtesy of Bodog.

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