Crown Royal Presents the John Wayne Walding 400 Race Picks
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Betting Preview
Date and Time: Sunday July 27th, 2014. 1:16PM Eastern
Where: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
TV: ESPN
By: NASCAR Wagers, NASCAR Handicapping Service
In less than 24 hours, 43 cars equipped with 850 horsepower will thunder around the infamous Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the 21st running of the Brickyard 400. This year’s Brickyard 400 will be officially titled the ‘Crown Royal Presents the John Wayne Walding 400.” However despite the title this Sunday’s race is still at the Brickyard and the home of the most famous track in auto racing which is Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Tomorrow’s race will be filled with strategy as teams try to gamble to put their drivers in position to capture the 2nd biggest purse of the season behind the Daytona 500 and score a win at one of the grandest venues in racing. So get ready for a display of horsepower, drafting, and 400 miles of racing excitement at the home of auto racing. Take a look at our Crown Royal presents the John Wayne Walding 400 race picks:
The first thing that bettors should be aware of when it comes to NASCAR racing at Indy is that all bets are off. Indianapolis Motor Speedway along with Pocono Raceway are the two biggest non restrictor plate tracks in NASCAR. Indianapolis just produces a lot more speed than Pocono as drivers will get around the 2.5 mile flat surface at an average lap approaching just under 190mph. Due to the track’s big size and fast speeds, the Brickyard has often been a race of strategy similar to what we saw earlier today in the Nationwide Series race. In that race, Kevin Harvick had the fastest car for the entire afternoon in the Lilly Diabetes 250 but a bad strategy call on pit road got Harvick off sequence with the leaders ultimately costing the #5 car the win. In 2 of the last 3 Brickyard 400’s, guys like Paul Menard and Ryan Newman worked the strategy card to their favor to pull out the wins despite not having the fastest cars. Menard’s victory in 2011 was a big underdog victory at 75 to 1 odds. Since strategy is so common at a place like Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it is never a bad idea to add a couple of longshots to your roster even if they are smaller plays because a big payout is still very plausible.
The next thing bettors should take note of when it comes to racing at Indianapolis is beware of the “Chevrolets.” We have talked quite a bit this season towards how dominate Chevrolet engines have been at the horsepower tracks like Michigan, Pocono, and others. Not only has that trend been obvious throughout 2014, but the Chevrolet engines will get a chance to flex their muscles once again tomorrow at a track that have owned for over a decade. Chevrolet powered cars have won the last 11 straight races at the Brickyard dating back to Kevin Harvick’s win from the pole back in 2003. Oh and by the way, Happy will lead the field to the green flag tomorrow after shattering the track record in qualifying earlier this afternoon. So Harvick will have the opportunity to try and win his 2nd Brickyard 400 from the pole when the green flag drops at 1:16pm.
Harvick is just one driver from the Chevrolet brigade that has shown plenty of speed this week. All Stewart-Haas racing cars have been stout in practices and everyone is aware of Tony Stewart’s admiration for Indianapolis. The #14 team appears to have the car to contend tomorrow and they definitely have the driver that can get the job done. Outside of the Stewart-Haas Racing machines, you have to look over towards the Hendrick Motorsports camp anytime you think of the Brickyard. Jimmie Johnson has won 4 of the last 8 races at Indianapolis including a 2nd place finish last year. Johnson paced the field in final practice and all signs indicate the #48 will once again be one tough customer tomorrow afternoon.
Jeff Gordon and the #24 team were also really happy with their racecar following Saturday practice and qualifying. Gordon finished 4th in final practice and qualified outside pole for tomorrow’s race. As most are aware, Gordon is the all-time win leader with 4 Brickyard 400’s including the inaugural Brickyard 400 in 1994. Expect that #24 team to hang around the front tomorrow afternoon. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Dale Earnhardt Jr and Kasey Kahne were unhappy with their race cars. Kahne has been down the speed charts all week. Dale Jr finished 5th in final practice but was very outspoken about how unhappy he was with his #88 car. Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a track that should suit Junior’s driving style given his success at places like Michigan and Pocono. However, the #88 has reportedly battled tight conditions all week.
Outside of the Chevrolet teams, it appears that only manufacturer that may be able to break the 11 race Chevy streak is the Ford’s from Team Penske. Penske Racing will actually field 3 cars this week with the addition of Juan Pablo Montoya in the #12 car. Montoya has had plenty of experience at Indianapolis Motor Speedway through his career in both Indycar and NASCAR. Montoya qualified in the 8th position and was solid in both practice session. All 3 Penske Racing cars qualified inside the top 10 with Brad Keselowski in 3rd and Joey Logano in 9th. Keselowski has been on a complete tear in the #2 car winning 2 of his last 3 races. Keselowski was also extremely strong at each of the last two tracks that put an emphasis towards horsepower finishing inside the top 3 at both Michigan and Pocono. The #2 Miller Lite team will be running a new chassis tomorrow and their 2014 new chassis have been running really well so far this season so expect Keselowski to be a contender tomorrow as well.
Outside of the Chevrolet and Penske camp, things get slim pretty quick. Most bettors would look towards Joe Gibbs Racing cars for the next most probable candidates. However, Toyota cars have been way down the speed charts this week. More importantly Joe Gibbs Racing drivers’ have never scored a win at Indianapolis and neither has a Toyota manufactured car. Matt Kenseth may provide the best threat from the Toyota camp but it appears the odds are still stacked against them. Denny Hamlin was very unhappy with his #11 FedEx Toyota following Saturday’s sessions. Hamlin described the car as “just slow” and they were just 1 of several cars that have struggled throughout the weekend. We may look to fade a couple of those drivers that have really struggled this weekend in H2H match-ups that will be posted tomorrow before race time. Our betting card for the Brickyard 400 is listed below but be sure to check back closer to race time for our added plays. Good luck to everyone!
Crown Royal presents the John Wayne Walding 400 Race Picks
Jimmie Johnson +475 (1.5 units): Early week newsletter pick, won 4 of last 8 at the Brickyard, fastest in final practice, and starting 11th.
Jeff Gordon +750 (1 unit): 4th in final practice, starting 2nd, all-time wins leader at Indianapolis
Kyle Larson +2500 (1 unit): Excellent on big tracks this year including top 5 finishes at Fontana, Pocono, and 8th at Michigan, 5th in 1st practice, 8th in final practice, starting 15th.
Greg Biffle +12500 (.25 unit): No love for the Biff? RFR cars have been awful in terms of speed at the horsepower tracks but this strategy race opens the door for the #16. Biffle has posted top 8 finishes in 5 of his last 6 races. If he can stay near the front, he has a chance. Small bet, high reward scenario.
Cover Parlay
Keselowski/Harvick +265 wins Brickyard
Carl Edwards +165 over Paul Menard
To Win: +835
H2H Matchups and Props
Clint Bowyer +105 over Denny Hamlin (2 units)
Tony Stewart -120 over Joey Logano (2 units)
Greg Biffle +165 over Paul Menard (2 units)
Kenseth to win Group B +365 over (Kahne, Logano, Ku. Busch, and Earnhardt)
