NASCAR Rankings and Championship odds- Aarons 499

Talladega Superspeedway -- 04/26/2009

Author: Jeremy Dunn

Published: Tuesday Apr 28 2009 11:52am

1. (1) 24-Jeff Gordon: 7-2 Sprint Cup championship odds

For the second week in a row, Jeff Gordon posted a sub par finish. On lap six of the 188-lap race at Talladega, Gordon and Matt Kenseth made contact, sending Gordon up the track. The incident began a chain reaction that dented over ten cars. The No. 24 crew was able to salvage the car, and Gordon returned to the track and avoided the dreaded ‘did not finish’(DNF). He finished in the 37th position, 60 laps off the pace.

After nine races, Gordon has one win, five top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He is second in the Sprint Cup championship standings, five points behind leader Kurt Busch. He leads all Sprint Cup drivers with a driver rating of 108.7. He has an average running position of 9.538

Quote: “I am not really sure what happened. I was just kind of cruising along there in the middle (before the wreck).”

2. (3) 2-Kurt Busch: 8-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

For the first time since March of 2005, the 2004 champion is leading the Sprint Cup championship standings. Kurt Busch nearly wrecked early in the race, but he was able to save the car from any contact with the wall. He guided the Miller Lite Dodge to a solid sixth place finish after leading thirteen laps. Busch continues his solid 2009 season, after three consecutive seasons filled with inconsistency.

After nine races, Kurt Busch has one win, three top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He leads the Sprint Cup championship standings by five points over Jeff Gordon. He has a driver rating of 103.1, and an average running position of 9.457.

Quote: “It’s Talladega. I circled this one on the calendar to just try and survive.”

3. (2) 48-Jimmie Johnson: 7-2 Sprint Cup championship odds

Jimmie Johnson almost made it to the end unscathed. Nevertheless, he was involved in a wreck with ten laps remaining, relegating him to an exasperating thirtieth place finish. Johnson was enjoying a decent run prior to the accident, as he led a total of two laps after qualifying thirty-sixth. The frustrated Johnson said that the racing at Talladega ‘sucks’ following his exit from the race.

After nine races, Johnson has one win, four top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He is third in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 64 points behind Kurt Busch. He has a driver rating of 105.5, and an average running position of 8.353, which leads all Sprint Cup drivers.

Quote: “It sucks racing here.”

4. (4) 14-Tony Stewart: 6-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Tony Stewart played it safe for most of the race, as he and teammate Ryan Newman patiently waited towards the back of the pack for the majority of the race. However, as Newman made his way to the front, Stewart faded after he lost a cylinder, and posted a twenty-third place finish. He was running towards the front when his engine began to sour. It was the first time in four races in which Stewart finished outside of the top ten.

After nine races, Stewart has yet to win a race in 2009, but he has scored three top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 67 points behind Kurt Busch. He has a driver rating of 99.0, and an average running position of 10.922.

Quote: “A bittersweet day. We were looking at a good finish and Ryan (Newman) had one, but he earned it the hard way. I’m glad he and Carl (Edwards) are alright.”

5. (5) 18-Kyle Busch: 5-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Kyle Busch led a race-high 42 laps before he was tapped by Jeff Burton. The spin caused Busch to lose a lap to the leaders, and he was unable to recover. Busch finished in the twenty-fifth position, one lap off the pace. Thus far, Busch has led the most laps of any driver on the two super speedway races in 2009, as he also led 88 laps at Daytona in February. It is apparent that this team has their restrictor plate program figured out.

After nine races, Kyle Busch has two victories, three top five finishes, and three top ten finishes. He is sixth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 175 points behind his brother Kurt Busch. He has a driver rating of 103.4, and an average running position of 12.643.

6. (6) 11-Denny Hamlin: 15-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Denny Hamlin finished in the twenty-second position after qualifying eighteenth. He was the driver that pushed Ryan Newman to the front with ten laps to go. When he lost the draft, he made contact with Juan Pablo Montoya, causing another multi-car accident. Hamlin remained on the lead lap despite the damage, and earned a respectable finish. He led twenty-eight laps on Sunday, as he had one of the stronger cars throughout the race.

After nine races, Hamlin has yet to win a race in 2009, but he has posted two top five finishes, and four top ten finishes. He is fifth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 109 points behind Kurt Busch. He has a driver rating of 100.4, and an average running position of 9.701.

7. (8) 99-Carl Edwards: 7-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Carl Edwards crossed the finish line on his feet. As Edwards, while leading, approached the finish line, second place driver Brad Keselowski had the inside line. Edwards attempted to block, and the Claritin Ford Fusion came off the ground, colliding with third place Ryan Newman. Following the contact with Newman, the No. 99 car hit the catchfence, injuring eight spectators. Edwards went from leading the race to finishing in the twenty-fourth position. It certainly was a disappointing finish for Edwards, as well as the unfortunate fans who were wounded by the flying debris.

After nine races, Edwards is still searching for his first win of the season; however, he has recorded one top five finish, and four top ten finishes. He is seventh in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 180 points behind Kurt Busch. He has a driver rating of 93.8, and an average running position of 12.677.

Quote: “Congrats to him (Brad Keselowski) on the win. But NASCAR puts us in a box and we’ll race like this until we kill somebody and then they’ll change it.”

8. (10) 16-Greg Biffle: 15-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Greg Biffle quietly posted his first career top ten finish at Talladega Superspeedway. After qualifying on the outside of the front row, he paced himself around back of the pack with other drivers such as Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart. Biffle made one final charge and steered clear of any damage en route to his seventh place finish. Biffle has scored three consecutive top ten finishes.

After nine races, Biffle has yet to win a race in 2009, but he has posted three top five finishes, and five top ten finishes. He is tenth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 218 points behind Kurt Busch, and 48 points ahead of thirteenth place driver Ryan Newman. He has a driver rating of 88.9, and an average running position of 15.739.

“Guys were just pushing and shoving all day. The bump drafting is getting maybe a tick out of control.”

9. (7) 33-Clint Bowyer: 18-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Ever since his fifth place finish at Martinsville last month, Clint Bowyer has began to recede down the standings. He was second in the championship standings just a month ago. Following his 39th place finish at Talladega, he is eighth. Bowyer was involved in the big wreck that occurred on lap six of the 188-lap event. However, his crew painstakingly labored to get the BB&T Chevrolet back on the track to avoid Bowyer’s first DNF since 2006, a modern era record of 82 races.

After nine races, Bowyer has scored three top five finishes, and four top ten finishes. He is eighth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 201 points behind Kurt Busch, and 65 points ahead of thirteenth place driver Ryan Newman. He has a driver rating of 79.1, and an average running position of 18.884.

Quote: “With that amount of damage, we normally would have put it on the truck and quit. But that’s not what this team is made out of, that’s not what RCR is made out of.”

10. (NR) 31-Jeff Burton: 35-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Jeff Burton perhaps had the most impressive performance with the exception of race winner Brad Keselowski. Burton had electrical issues that dropped him three laps off the pace. By virtue of the lucky dog, and a fast car, Burton made up all three laps, and challenged for the win. He ended up finishing in the tenth position.

After nine races, Burton has posted one top five finish, and four top ten finishes. He is ninth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 207 points behind Kurt Busch, and 59 points ahead of thirteenth place driver Ryan Newman. He has a driver rating of 83.6, and an average running position of 15.951.

On the rise: Dale Earnhardt Jr (30-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Ryan Newman (70-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Brad Keselowski (none), Scott Speed (150-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Marcos Ambrose (150-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), and Joey Logano (150-1 Sprint Cup championship odds)

On the decline: Kevin Harvick (Sprint Cup championship odds), Mark Martin (15-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Jamie McMurray (80-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Kasey Kahne (30-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Martin Truex Jr (100-1 Sprint Cup championship odds)

Comment on this article.

(255 chars max)

Username:
(No HTML)

Captcha: