2009 Goody’s Fast Relief 500 Predictions
Written March 26, 2009 by Jason Lowry
This week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is making the first of its two stops at Martinsville Speedway, as drivers prepare for the 2nd short track of the season at the 2009 Goody’s Fast Relief 500. Lately it has been all Kyle and Kurt Busch, as the two brothers have won the last 3 races, including Kyle Busch’s second win of the season last week at the Food City 500. It won’t be easy for the two brothers to keep the streak alive this week, as Kurt Busch is the only one to have won here at Martinsville, way back in 2002. The two drivers that you should be watching this week is the Hendricks Motorsports duo of Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, as the two drivers have not finished outside of the top 10 in the last 12 races at Martinsville, and have combined to win 9 of the 12 races. So with the race scheduled to get underway this weekend, here is a look at my 3 favorites to win this weekend.
Jimmie Johnson +400 odds to win at Sportsbook.com. While it was pretty tough to decide between Johnson or Gordon this week, I feel like this is the week that Johnson gets on the board with his first win of the season. It doesn’t really matter what track the race is on for this guy to have a real legit shot at winning, but when you put him on a track that he has won 5 times on and finished in the top ten 13 times, he is near lock to be right in the thick of things at the end of the race. Johnson last won on this track at the end of last year, and has won 4 of the last 6 races he has started at Martinsville, including this race back in 2007. I know the odds aren’t the best if you are looking to make a big profit, but there really isn’t a better bet for a driver to win this race.
Denny Hamlin +600 odds to win at Sportsbook.com. While the Busch brothers and the Hendrick team have got all the attention so far, Hamlin will be the driver defending his title this weekend, as he won this race last year. Hamlin might not have the success at Martinsville of Gordon or Johnson, but this is a driver that has finished worse than 8th just once in his 7 starts at Martinsville. Hamlin also is coming in off a great performance last week at the Food City 500 where he finished 2nd after starting the race in 24th. While Johnson is my favorite to win this race, Hamlin is a close second and I would not be surprised at all if this guy takes home the checkered flag.
Tony Stewart +2000 odds to win at Sportsbook.com. Here is a pick you might not of seen coming, but the value here is something I couldn’t look past. Stewart has finished in 8th place 3 times this year, including last week at the Food City 500, and I just a feeling that Stewart is going to at least crack the top 5 this week, if not surprise everyone and win the race. Its not as though Stewart hasn’t raced well here at Martinsville before, as he has two wins and 7 top 5 finishes in his career. He hasn’t won on this track since 2006, but did finish 5th at this race a year ago. If its value you are looking for, Stewart is the way to go this week.
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