Jimmie Johnson Forced to Backup Car for Daytona. Sportsbook odds didn’t favor Jimmie Johnson for Sunday’s Daytona 500 but they did have him as one of the contenders. His chances took a hit on Wednesday as he was involved in a wreck, meaning he will now have to go to a backup car. Johnson was listed behind Kyle Busch, Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon in odds at the Internet sportsbook.
Sportsbook normally has Johnson as a favorite in most races but he has not had a lot of success at Daytona despite the fact he has won the last four Sprint Cup Championships. Racing in a backup car won’t be easy and his chances of winning this time at the Internet sportsbook don’t look great either. “I was just riding along and thought everything was fine, and the next thing you know, I was in the middle of it,” Johnson said. The crash started when Mike Bliss lost control. Joey Logano and Kyle Busch were also involved and Logano also had to go to a backup car.
It has not been a pleasant time at practice for the sportsbook contenders this week. Clint Bowyer started a three car accident that caught up Derrick Cope and David Reutimann. Bowyer and Reutimann had to go to backup cars. Dale Earnhardt Jr. who is one of the favorites at the online sportsbook just missed a couple of wrecks. Two-time Daytona winner Michael Waltrip started one of them but Earnhardt survived as did Denny Hamlin who is 12-1 at the sportsbook. “I think he made an aggressive move with (Jamie McMurray) and I followed him,” Hamlin said. “I think I was pushing him and he was steering all over the racetrack and it just may have lifted his car up at that point. But a relatively good save.”
It is important to keep in mind as you bet the Daytona 500 at the sportsbook that NASCAR made some rule changes. They are allowing bump drafting this year and it has made drivers more aggressive. Last week Hamlin and Mark Martin were involved in a seven-car accident as sportsbook indicated. It will be interesting to watch the 150-mile qualifying races on Thursday and the impact they have on Internet sportsbook odds. “I think it will be relatively wide,” Hamlin said. “You’ll see it’s very, very wild, but it’s going to be mid-pack around those guys that are fighting to get in.” Watching those races could provide some clues as to who will win at the sportsbook on Sunday.