2011 Points: Gordon vs. Busch
(TheSpread) – Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon are always near the top of the point standings in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, but which driver will finish with the better spot at the end of 2011?
This season NASCAR has changed up its point system, significantly cutting down the total number of points one can earn in a race. The maximum number of points one can earn is 48 and there is an added emphasis on winning in 2011.
43 drivers will contend in each race and the winner will receive 43 points, second 42, third 41, all the way down to last, which gets just one point. The winner will also get three bonus points and one bonus point is given to each driver that leads at least one lap in the race and to the driver that leads the most laps in the race. So essentially, the winner of each race gets at least 47 points.
Oddsmakers at online sportsbook SBGGLOBAL.com feel that Busch has better chances to finish with more points than Gordon this season as Busch has odds of -160 while Gordon has odds of +110.
Last season, Gordon finished ninth in the series while Busch was eight. However, Busch had three wins to Gordon’s none, which would have had an even bigger factor this season than it did last.
Gordon is a four-time series champion, with his last title coming in 2001. His best recent finish was second in 2007 and third in 2009. Over the last three seasons, Gordon has just one win, which could pose problems this year with the new points system.
Kyle Busch has never finished higher than fifth in the point standings, and that was in 2007. Busch wins races, as he has 15 wins over the last three seasons, but he also has 7 DNF’s in the last three years as well.
Busch is an all-or-nothing type of driver while Gordon is more consistent. Gordon will consistently finish in the top 5 and top 10 to put himself in position to finish in the top 12 and get into the chase, while Busch may go periods where he doesn’t finish in the top 20 and then periods where he wins back-to-back weeks. It may be a safe play to go with the underdog here. Despite wins having more impact, so will DNF’s.
2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Futures Odds – More Points in 2011 (Both drivers must contend in 33 races)
Kyle Busch -160
Jeff Gordon +110
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