NASCAR Betting Odds

2008 LifeLock.com 400

By Jordan Walters
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

Sports Betting at WagerWeb Online Sportsbook

It’s been a strange year in NASCAR. After all, who would have predicted that as we reach the halfway point of the season that neither Tony Stewart nor Jeff Gordon would yet have a visit to Victory Lane?

Sure, both are currently in the midst of the Chase for the Championship point standings, but both are also desperate for a victory, beginning Saturday night in the LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.

Gordon won six times last year and was in contention to break through last week at Daytona before he was nudged out of the way on the final restart, sending his Chevrolet spinning out of control in the apron in the first turn. He ended up finishing 30th.

That was a rare non-top-10 finish for Gordon, and he and his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports crew are looking for the bump to start  converting top-10 finishes to victories.

"I still don't feel like we've really figured out what we need to be battling for wins and leading laps, but we're working really hard on that," said Gordon. "In terms of sheer speed, we still need to gain. But we feel like we have until September to make all those gains. We need to secure a spot in the Chase and then start off solid. We have a strong team – one that's capable of winning races anywhere. One that's capable of winning a championship."

To find that additional speed, Gordon’s team tested at Kentucky this week. And maybe Chicagoland will be what he needs, as Gordon won here in 2006. He has four top-five and five top-10 finishes in seven career starts and was ninth last year.

As for Stewart, this will be his first Sprint Cup Series race since announcing he is leaving Joe Gibbs Racing for co-ownership of a Haas team next season. Stewart has been dominant at Chicagoland with two wins and five top fives in seven races, and he won last year's race to bring life to his 2007 season. He won the following week at Indianapolis and two weeks later at Watkins Glen.

 

He says the fact he’s a lame-duck will make no difference, and he wants to go out as a winner for the team that gave him his start.

“We always seem to run well at Chicago. We’re cautiously optimistic that we’re going to run well. We need a good week, that’s for sure.

“It’s not like we’re not running well, because we are. We’ve just had some circumstances that haven’t gone our way. Every week our goal is to win the race, and that’s not going to change. That’s how we’ve won two championships. If we go out and win the race, the points take care of themselves.”

Stewart and Kevin Harvick are the only two-time winners of this event.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has a good history here, winning this race three years ago and with three top 10s in seven races.

Jimmy Johnson cut a tire and crashed last year after leading 82 laps and finished 37th, but that was his first finish outside the top six in six starts.

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