The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is at Martinsville Speedway this weekend, and with Kyle Busch winning at both Phoenix and Fontana within the last two weeks, he has been set up as a heavy favorite for the STP 500 at”The Paperclip”–and for good reason: Rowdy hasn’t finished outside of the top 5 in this track since the 2014 season, and he’s led a joint 582 laps over the previous four (and 937 within the previous six). Of course, whenever you have the preferred at +150 to win, that means there is some great value in gambling others in the event that man has problems during the race.
Last weekend at Car Club Speedway my favorite bets went 2-0, bringing my yearly record to 5-3. I’d Brad Keselowski to finish top 3, along with his day went south , so that has been screwed from the beginning.
My Bets for Martinsville
Martin Truex, Jr.. Sirius XM Paint Scheme Martinsville 2019
Photo Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Martin Truex, Jr.. Top 3 Finish (+200) — The races at Martinsville are generally predictable: we find the same faces up front time and time again, and we don’t see Martin Truex, Jr. in victory lane. Where we do find him, though, is close enough to acquire in case something goes wrong with the leader. Over the previous three races at”The Paperclip,” Truex has posted finishes of 3rd, 4th, and 2nd, although he begins back into 8th for today’s STP 500, he’s got one hell of a race car underneath him to get into the front. The 19 Toyota ranked #1 in 10-, 15-, 20-, and 30-lap average during the last practice session on Saturday, and there’s going to be plenty of long runs throughout the race. Truex is really going to shine during those. If you look at this week’s ranks by the Fantasy Racing On line algorithm, Truex is a really close 4th behind Logano, and if you look at current trends by pole sitters from the spring Martinsville race, then I would give that advantage to Truex.
Chris Buescher (+105) over Daniel Hemric — I’m really surprised Chris Buescher is not getting more love this weekend. This #37 team has never finished worse than 18th since the Daytona 500, and they’ve got a good starting spot for today’s STP 500 (12th). Meanwhile, the Hemric will start from back in 28th, and has a propensity to hit the wall more frequently than not. We’ve got 500 laps to race in today’s STP 500, and to be honest, I’m not sure he finishes. On the other hand, Buescher has completed 13th, 23rd, 21st, and 11th in his last four Martinsville begins, and he is running better than he’s likely ever conducted. This is a no brainer for me.
Martinsville Race Day Betting Odds for your STP 500
Kyle Busch 2.25/1 )
Martin Truex, Jr. 4.5/1 )
Brad Keselowski 5/1
Joey Logano 5/1
Denny Hamlin 8/1
Clint Bowyer 12/1
Kevin Harvick 12/1
Ryan Blaney 15/1
Aric Almirola 15/1
Chase Elliott 25/1
Kurt Busch 30/1
Jimmie Johnson 40/1
Kyle Larson 50/1
Erik Jones 60/1
Austin Dillon 80/1
Alex Bowman 80/1
Daniel Surez 80/1
Ryan Newman 80/1
Field 32/1
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