With just five races remaining in the Chase it could come down to a battle between Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin and they are the two favorites in sports betting for this week’s race at Martinsville. Hamlin is +275 while Johnson is +350 in sports betting online NASCAR odds at Sbg global.com.
Johnson, Hamlin or Gordon
If you are going to bet a driver to win at Martinsville for Sunday then you have to bet Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin or Jeff Gordon. Why is that? Since 2003, they have won 13 of the 15 races at Martinsville. Gordon won four times from 2003-05 and the last eight races have been won by Johnson and Hamlin. Tony Stewart is the only other active driver to win during that time. The odds makers obviously know the same stats we just gave you with Hamlin the favorite, Johnson the second choice and Gordon the third choice.
Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Tony Stewart are each 11-1 while Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards and Joey Logano are each 18-1. There has been some late action on Clint Bowyer in sports betting and his odds are down to 16.5 to 1.
Johnson Leads Hamlin by 41 Points – It is hard to go against either Johnson or Hamlin this week. Johnson leads Hamlin by 41 points in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Johnson has been excellent lately with a first, a second and two third place finishes. You have to like both of them to be right there at the finish this week. J.J. has only finished outside the top ten once at Martinsville and that was way back in 2002.
Ratings Drop – NASCAR is going to have to do something in the future because their TV ratings have nosedived this season. Part of the problem is that NASCAR goes up against the NFL on Sunday and that means no one watches the races. Really, are you going to watch a NASCAR race with NFL games on? It is not going to happen. What would help NASCAR is having the races on other nights of the week like Wednesday or Thursday. Going up against an average college football game is a lot easier than trying to outdraw an NFL game.