NASCAR Rankings and Championship Odds- Phoenix

Phoenix International Raceway -- 04/18/2009

Author: Jeremy Dunn

Published: Tuesday Apr 21 2009 8:20am

1. (1) 24-Jeff Gordon: 10-3 Sprint Cup championship odds

Everyone is allowed an off-night every once in a while. At Phoenix, Jeff Gordon encountered his first bad race of the 2009 Sprint Cup campaign. After qualifying in the fourth position, Gordon remained in the top five for the majority of the first half of the race. While mired back in traffic, there was contact between Gordon and Denny Hamlin, forcing a cut tire; however, that was the least of his problems. During green flag pits stops, Gordon had to make an extra pit stop due to a missing lug nut on lap 235. The penalty relegated Gordon to a twenty-fifth place finish.

After eight races, Gordon has one win, five top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He leads the Sprint Cup championship standings by 85 points over his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson.

He leads all Sprint Cup drivers with a driver rating of 118.0, and an average running position of 6.137.

Quote: “We struggled with the car…it just wasn’t our night.”

2. (2) 48-Jimmie Johnson: 5-2 Sprint Cup championship odds

Jimmie Johnson did not win his fourth consecutive race at Phoenix on Saturday, but he continued his streak of top five finishes, now at four races. Johnson started the race in the tenth position. He fell back into the teens on the first green flag run. Nevertheless, as usual, crew chief Chad Knaus discovered the appropriate changes needed in order to help Johnson return to the front of the pack. He finished in the fourth position.

After eight races, Johnson has one win, four top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He is second in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 85 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 108.0, and an average running position of 8.115.

3. (4) 2-Kurt Busch: 8-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

After starting third on the grid, Kurt Busch spent practically the entire evening in the top three. In fact, he led 63 laps during the race. He seemed to be a step behind race winner Mark Martin, but Kurt Busch had a fast hot rod on Saturday. This team is continuing to prove that they are for real, and that last year’s struggles are soon to be a distant memory. Busch finished the Subway Fresh Fit 500 in the third position.

After eight races, Kurt Busch has one win, three top five finishes, and five top ten finishes. He is third in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 98 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 103.5, and an average running position of 9.308.

Quote: “Just too many choices and I didn’t make the right decision.”

4. (6) 14-Tony Stewart: 12-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

For the sixth time in eight races, Tony Stewart finished in the top ten. For the third consecutive race, he finished in the top five. Clearly, Stewart has this ownership slash driver thing figured out. Stewart led 19 laps en route to his second place finish after qualifying in the sixth position. He is fast and seems to have ‘lady luck’ on his side, unlike his crestfallen teammate Ryan Newman, who cannot seem to go through a weekend without some kind of tribulation.

After eight races, Stewart has yet to win, but he has scored three top five finishes, and six top ten finishes. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 104 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 103.3, and an average running position of 9.628.

Quote: To run second to Mark Martin is good…good to see him still kicking butt.”

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

Kyle Busch qualified in the second position, but he quickly faded. He spent most of the evening around the bottom half of the top ten. The handling improved as the race progressed, and he was set to restart in the third position directly behind Mark Martin with six laps to go. However, a pit road speeding penalty relegated Busch to an exasperating seventeenth place showing.

After eight races, Kyle Busch has two wins, three top five finishes, and three top ten finishes. He is seventh in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 216 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 104.7, and an average running position of 12.686.

Quote: “The guys had a great stop and they (NASCAR) said we were too fast exiting in the last pit stall, and it killed our day.”

6. (7) 11-Denny Hamlin: 15-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

After qualifying in the twelfth position, Denny Hamlin posted a solid sixth place finish. It was an eventful night for Hamlin, who engaged in several fierce on track battles with Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. At certain points in the race, Hamlin appeared to have one of the fastest cars, and at other times, it seemed as if it was all he could do not to loose control of the car. Overall, it was another solid effort from Hamlin and the No. 11 group.

After eight races, Hamlin has two top five finishes, and four top ten finishes. He is fifth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 154 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 99.9, and an average running position of 9.639.

7. (5) 33-Clint Bowyer: 25-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

For some reason, Clint Bowyer and his Richard Childress Racing teammates are struggling to find some speed. At Phoenix, none of the four Richard Childress Racing drivers spent much time near the front. Bowyer qualified in the 24th position, and finished in the 26th position. It was his worst finish of the season. However, he now extends his no-DNF streak to 82 races, tying him with Kevin Harvick for the modern era record.

After eight races, Bowyer has three top five finishes and four top ten finishes. He is sixth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 190 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 81.8, and an average running position of 16.575.

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

It was another nondescript night for Carl Edwards. Last year’s most frequent winner in Sprint Cup is not enjoying the same success as he did in 2008. Nevertheless, the season is still young, and Edwards and the No. 99 team are still one of the elite teams in the garage. He qualified eleventh and finished in the tenth position.

After eight races, Edwards has one top five finish, and four top ten finishes. He is eighth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, 219 points behind Jeff Gordon.

He has a driver rating of 98.4, and an average running position of 11.027.

9. (NR) 5-Mark Martin: 18-1 Sprint Cup championship odds

For the first time since October of 2005, Mark Martin is a winner in Sprint Cup racing. After scoring his third Coors Light Pole award in 2009, he led a race-high 157 laps en route to his 36th career victory. In fact, I actually picked Martin to win. After a sluggish start to the season, Martin is rapidly making his way back towards the top twelve.

After eight races, Martin has one win, one top five finish, and four top ten finishes. He is thirteenth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, nine points behind twelfth place driver Matt Kenseth.

He has a driver rating of 98.1, and an average running position of 12.630.

Quote: “He (Rick Hendrick) makes dreams come true. It (the win) just means so much.”

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

As well as Greg Biffle is performing, it is difficult to believe that he is fourteenth in the championship standings. He posted a fifth place finish after starting the race in the thirteenth position. He did not have a car that could contend for the win, but it was a much-needed top five finish for Biffle and the No. 16 team.

After eight races, Biffle has three top five finishes, and four top ten finishes. He is fourteenth in the Sprint Cup championship standings, sixteen points behind twelfth place driver Matt Kenseth.

He has a driver rating of 90.9, and an average running position of 15.251.

Quote: “Four (tires) is probably the right call because we ended up fifth and we could have ended up sliding way back, so I’m pretty happy with the night overall.”

On the rise: David Reutimann (100-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Martin Truex Jr (150-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), Sam Hornish Jr, Jamie McMurray (66-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), and Reed Sorenson

On the decline: Dale Earnhardt Jr (28-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), A.J. Allmendinger, Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick (35-1 Sprint Cup championship odds), and Matt Kenseth (18-1 Sprint Cup championship odds)

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