Jimmie Johnson was eliminated from the Chase after the opening round, but he was able to play the role of spoiler this past Sunday with a victory at Texas. Both Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick helped their chances to lock-up a spot in the final championship race next week by taking second and third. Kurt Busch was my top valued contender at +1200 but he ended-up seventh in the same exact spot he started from.
The following is a look at a few of the top favorites to win this Sunday’s Sprint Cup race along with my top value pick based on betting odds provided by Bovada.
Defending Sprint Cup Champ Kevin Harvick is holding down the third spot in the current Sprint Cup standings, but he knows that the only way he can guarantee the No. 4 car a spot in the four-car field for that final championship race at Homestead-Miami is by winning this week at Phoenix. TopBet appears to like his chances as a +225 favorite to get it done. He has raced a gritty Chase so far, but he only has one checkered flag through the first eight races with a win at Dover. What makes Harvick’s odds so attractive this week is another victory at Phoenix earlier in the season. He has been on a tear at this track with trips to the Winner’s Circle in five of his last six Sprint Cup races here.
The second-favorite to win on Sunday at +500 betting odds is Brad Keselowski. Despite a strong run last Sunday at Texas, he has some work to do with the No. 2 car sitting in sixth-place in the current standings. The good news is that three of the four spots remain open with Jeff Gordon being the only driver that has locked-up an automatic bid to the championship run. Keselowski has a knack for ending up at or near the front of the pack in pressure situations such as this and he has finished sixth or better in six of his last seven runs around this track in a point race.
Joey Logano was the toast of the Contender Round with three-straight trips to Victory Lane, but two bad runs in the Eliminator Round have him and the No. 22 car on the outside looking in as far as making a second-straight trip to the championship race. His odds to pull through with an all-important win at Phoenix have been set at +600 as a third-favorite. Given the win-and-you-are-in nature of this Sunday’s race, I see some solid value in his odds. Logano has raced well at Phoenix lately with four-straight finishes of ninth or better in his last four races here.
- Kevin Harvick +225
- Brad Keselowski +500
- Joey Logano +600
- Kyle Busch +800
- Denny Hamlin +1,000
- Jimmie Johnson +1,000
- Carl Edwards +1,200
- Kurt Busch +1,200
- Martin Truex Jr +1,800
- Dale Earnhardt Jr +2,000
- Jeff Gordon +2,000
- Jamie McMurray +2,500
- Erik Jones +3,000
- Kasey Kahne +3,000
- Kyle Larson +5,000
- Ryan Newman +7,500
- Austin Dillon +8,000
- Clint Bowyer +8,000
- David Ragan +10,000
- Greg Biffle +10,000
- Paul Menard +10,000
- Tony Stewart +10,000
- Aric Almirola +15,000
- AJ Allmendinger +25,000
- Casey Mears +25,000
- Danica Patrick +25,000
- Ricky Stenhouse +25,000
- Sam Hornish Jr +25,000
- Trevor Bayne +25,000
- Field (Any Other Driver) +7,500
