Saturday, 7:30pm on ABC

Night racing in Charlotte. Love this race and love this track. This is going to be a great race tonight. Jeff Gordon is on the pole while Jimmie Johnson will roll off 4th and Matt Kenseth 20th. With the Talladega wild card race next week, this is about as important as it gets for these guys.

Stay Away From

Kyle Busch +550

19 races here and Kyle has not won any of them. He needs a strong finish and will likely achieve that but he is not going to win this race.

Best Bets

Jimmie Johnson +350

Matt Kenseth 6-1

The obvious pick is the #48. He is starting in row 2 and closing in on Kenseth for the points lead. Matt is no slouch here either though. Most of his wins this year came on 1.5 mile tracks like Charlotte. These guys are going to remain near the front of probably every race from here on out. It’s going to be a fun battle.

Jeff Gordon 8-1

He just needs a win. He is on the pole again and just wants nothing more than to get back in the hunt. He has won five times at this track and seems to have the car to make it six.

Best Value Bets

Denny Hamlin 25-1

This season has seen Joe Gibbs Racing dominate on 1.5 mile tracks. Kevin Harvick is the only non JGR driver to win on one this year. Unfortunately for Denny, he doesn’t have any wins this season, this could be the time he gets the monkey off his back.

My Pick

Kevin Harvick 7-1

The only non JGR driver to win on a 1.5 mile track this season, and he has done it twice, including once at Charlotte already. He qualified on the front row again this week, and seems to excel in these races. He’s my pick to win again and he may have a shot to sneak up on Matt and Jimmie.

mlz

Saturday, October 12, 2013