NASCAR Rankings & Championship Odds- Las Vegas

Las Vegas Motor Speedway -- 03/1/2009

Author: Jeremy Dunn

Published: Monday Mar 2 2009 2:13pm

Kyle Busch passed Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton late in the Shelby 427 at Las Vegas to win on his home turf. The Las Vegas native won his thirteenth career race, and first at his home track. Busch overcame a great deal of adversity en route to his big win.

The surprises of the day were fourth place finisher David Reutimann and fifth place finisher Bobby Labonte. Reutimann also came from the back to post his first career top five finish. Labonte scored his season-high finish in only his third start with the Hall of Fame Yates Racing entry.

1. (1) 17-Matt Kenseth: 6-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Matt Kenseth’s bid for three consecutive season opening wins ended after only six laps. A catastrophic engine failure plagued this team. In fact, two other Roush Fenway Racing cars encountered engine malfunctions. Kenseth was disappointed with his 43rd place finish; however, you get the feeling that he is content with the way this season has began. He is still a legitimate championship contender. Kenseth is tied for third with Greg Biffle in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 40 points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Kenseth has two wins, two top five finishes, and two top ten finishes. He has a driver rating of 90.7, and an average running position of 19.072.

Quote: `I think it's the first failure we've had in over two years. These guys do a great job with engines. It's just one of those things that happens now and again.”

2. (3) 18-Kyle Busch: 5-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Kyle Busch schooled the Richard Childress Racing duo of Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton late in the race to score his thirteenth career Sprint Cup victory. All thirteen of Busch’s wins have occurred on different tracks. Only Jeff Gordon won more races, 15, before the age of 25; Busch has 13. Busch solidified himself as a championship contender. Many analysts were concerned about his consistency, especially considering the Chase for the Championship collapse in 2008. Nevertheless, Busch rallied from the back of the pack, and put himself in position to win, led 51 laps, and closed the deal, much to the delight of the hometown crowd. Busch is sixth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 54 points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Kyle Busch has one win, two top five finishes, and two top ten finishes. He has a driver rating of 110.7, and an average running position of 8.668.

Quote: `This is pretty cool. I didn't know exactly what it would mean. It's awesome man, this is just the feeling of a lifetime.”

3. (2) 24-Jeff Gordon: 6-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Once again, Jeff Gordon performed well enough to win, but fell short. This time, it was an infrequent driver blunder. Gordon was trying to make a green flag pit stop on lap 220 when he missed the pits, and flat spotted his tires in the process. He ended up cutting down a tire, causing left front damage. The damage notwithstanding, Gordon was able to remain on the lead lap, and finish in the sixth position. He led seventeen laps, including his 20,000th lap led of his career. He currently leads the Sprint Cup championship standings by eighteen points over Clint Bowyer.

After three races, Gordon has yet to win, but he has posted one top five finish and two top ten finishes. He has a driver rating of 118.9, and an average running position of 6.164.

Quote: `To come here to Las Vegas and see that kind of crowd and see a Las Vegas kid win this thing, they got their money's worth and I appreciate them all coming out.”

4. (7) 16-Greg Biffle: 8-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

dIt was another ‘what might’ve been’ day for Greg Biffle. Once again, he has a rocket ship for a race car, but to no avail. After qualifying 24th, Biffle quickly made his way into the top five, and even led forty laps. He spent most of the day in the top three. After a green flag pit stop, a caution came out, forcing Biffle to restart the race on the tail end of the lead lap. The caution came out with just over sixty laps to go, so there was little time for him to rebound. Still, he was able to muster up a seventh place finish. He is tied with Matt Kenseth for third in the Sprint Cup standings, forty points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Biffle has one top five finish, and two top ten finishes. He has a driver rating of 97.3, and an average running position of 14.24.

5. (4) 14-Tony Stewart: 18-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

For the first time, Tony Stewart felt the provocation of a driver and owner. After spending a large portion of the day battling among the top ten, Stewart had a vibration and was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop. He lost two laps, and ended the day with a disappointing 26th place showing. His teammate Ryan Newman encountered similar issues, and finished 25th. Stewart is eighth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 80 points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Stewart has two top ten finishes, and a driver rating of 98.5. He has an average running position of 10.649.

6. (NR) 33-Clint Bowyer: 50-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Clint Bowyer flew under the radar for much of the day in Las Vegas after qualifying in the 37th position. In fact, he even lost a lap in the early going. By the end of the race, he used pit strategy to take the lead, but was unable to fend off a hungry Kyle Busch. After his struggles last week in California, Bowyer and his new team hit their stride at Las Vegas, vividly enhancing their intermediate program. He moves up to second in the Sprint Cup championship standings, eighteen points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Bowyer has two top five finishes, and two top ten finishes. He has a driver rating of 80.9, and an average running position of 18.471.

Quote: `He (Kyle Busch) just passed us. He didn't like make some magic move.`

7. (5) 99-Carl Edwards: 5-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Carl Edwards was running in the fourth position as the field approached the white flag lap. That is when his engine finally blew up, relegating him to a seventeenth place finish. It was certainly not the day the defending winner of the race anticipated. Edwards and this team appear to be off the mark in comparison to where they were last year. Still, do not give up on them. They will be back. Edwards is currently ninth in the Sprint Cup championship standings.

After three races, Edwards has one top ten finish, and a driver rating of 99.2. He has an average running position of 9.718.

8. (6) 48-Jimmie Johnson: 4-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

After leading a race-high 92 laps, Jimmie Johnson arguably had the best car on the track. Nevertheless, he overshot his pit stop on a green flag pit stop, forcing him to lose a lap. He was able to regain the lap the old fashioned way by passing Kyle Busch. Just when it seemed that he was on his way to a solid top ten finish, he lost control of his car. He ended up finishing in the 24th position. It was an uncharacteristic string of driver gaffes by Johnson that contributed to the disappointing finish. He drops back to nineteenth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 145 points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Johnson has one top ten finish, and a driver rating of 103.2. He has an average running position of 9.391.

Quote: “There were some bad calls that ended up hurting us. We selected our pit stall on the other side of the start/finish line so that if the caution came out we wouldn't be held on the lead lap. I think NASCAR missed that call. And then they should have thrown the red well before and let these laps wind down at the end of the race today, in my opinion.`

9. (8) 2-Kurt Busch: 25-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

Kurt Busch appeared to have a top five run going before he had engine trouble. The Las Vegas native was able to salvage a decent finish, as he crawled home 23rd in the finishing order, while his kid brother soaked in the limelight in their backyard. Kurt Busch is still performing much better than they were last year at this time. He is currently seventh in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 66 points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Kurt Busch has one top five finish, and two top ten finishes. He has a driver rating of 94.2 and an average running position of 10.834.

10. (NR) 31-Jeff Burton: 40-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

After the near debacle in Fontana, California last weekend, Jeff Burton and his Richard Childress Racing effort rebounded nicely in Las Vegas. Burton led 61 laps, and finished in the third position. He moves up to thirteenth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 143 points behind Jeff Gordon.

After three races, Jeff Burton has one top five finish, a driver rating of 74.7, and an average running position of 18.751.

Quote: It's real easy to quit and give up when things are going badly. Our guys never do that.`

On the rise: David Reutimann, Bobby Labonte, Jamie McMurray (50-1 championship odds), Dale Earnhardt Jr (18-1 championship odds), and Brian Vickers (75-1 championship odds)

On the decline: Denny Hamlin (15-1 championship odds), Casey Mears (100-1 championship odds), Mark Martin (15-1 championship odds), David Ragan (35-1 championship odds), Juan Pablo Montoya (85-1 championship odds)

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2nd Place	I suspect the only reason Matt Kenseth has received as much attention as he has is because of the horrible luck the pit crews have had with the mechanics of the more famous race car drivers vehicles this year. As those bugs get worked out Matt will fall back into the rank and file of Nascar. It was interesting to see someone new at the top if only for a moment though.
FastTrack	I guess many people don`t understand that most race car drivers for Nascar only win a couple races a year and they keep getting out there in those cars and doing it week after week. Some would say its just for a paycheck but I say its for the thrill of racing is why they do it.
jade06	It must be a tough luck for Matt Kenseth. He recently had two wins but it seems like his engine gave up at the Shelby 427 race and he ended in the 43rd place. Kyle Busch may have won the race in his home track, but he still has a long way to go.
Tetchie	I think Kyle Busch must have been practicing at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway track before the race. If I put myself in his shoes, it`s a good feeling of winning the race in my home turf.
jamming	How cool is it to win a race in your own hometown? I`ll bet there were some great celebration parties in the old town after the race. It`s probably one of the best races to win in terms of fan support.
RIRmama	I was not happy about Busch winning the race this past week but after a few days I`m feeling better about. I`m holding out for Gordon to win in Atlanta. With a few races under his belt this season, he`s ready.
brix12	In my opinion, Tony Stewart really needs to lose some pounds so he wouldn`t have any problems driving in the track with his car. I noticed that he hasn`t won a single race lately, but at least he`s included in the top ten finishes after three races.
Elgar	I am not fully sure who I am with just yet. I still feel a little uneasy picking anyone and its driving me nuts. I see some good in one direction and then someone else steps up and just blows me away.
Cal	There is nothing wrong with slow and steady, remember the tortoise and the hare? That is fully what this is reminding me of, but you know on a track instead of running a race through the woods.
Harold Mayes	Greg Biffle seems to be getting better odds than he has in the last few years. I`d like to see him win a big one this year. Who`s with me in this wish?
Kevin	Agreed, and Mark Martin`s odds are a little two high in mine. Mark seems to be adopting the slow and steady approach, not pushing his vehicle or himself and seeing how things go at this early point in the season.
Casey Hillman	Dewspite his horrible showing during the race Matt Kenseth is still going strong as far as odds go. Personally I think his odds are a little low considering the problems his team seems to be having in keeping his car running so far.