Before you know it, the green flag will signal the start of the 2013 Daytona 500, which kicks-off another 36-race Sprint Cup series season.
Tips for Wagering on NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series
Before you know it, the green
flag will signal the start of the 2013 Daytona 500, which kicks-off another
36-race Sprint Cup series season, so it is not too early to start formulating
your NASCAR betting strategy to cash-in on all the action. The following are a
few betting tips to enhance your handicapping efforts.
Narrow the Field
Each of NASCAR’s 36 Sprint
Cup point races is normally comprised of a starting field of 43 qualifying
cars. Out of those 43 cars, a typical sportsbook will list odds for anywhere
from 20 to 30 drivers to win a particular race along with odds for betting the
‘field’ for the rest of the drivers not listed.
The first thing you can do is
throw-out the ‘field’ bet as it rarely comes through. That is not to say it is
impossible for some unknown driver to come out of nowhere much like Trevor
Bayne did to win the 2011 Daytona 500, however the payoff on this bet never
correlates with the risk. The next thing you can do is pretty much cut the
field in half as Sprint Cup racing is not really conducive to longshots winning
on a regular basis.
If you look back at 2012’s
race results there were only 14 different drivers that found their way to
victory lane. Of the 14, there were six drivers that were a one and done winner.
That means that eight different drivers won 30 of 36 races last season. Breaking
down things a bit further, the top seven drivers in the final Sprint Cup series
point standings for last season accounted for 25 checkered flags. These kinds
of results are usually the rule not the exception in a sport that is completely
dominated by a select few.
All this means is that when
you go to handicap a winner for a particular race, you should only be focusing
your attention on maybe seven to eight drivers as the most.
Current Form
Just as in any sport, NASCAR
Sprint Cup drivers go through hot and cold streaks over the course of the
season. This is why it is always important to know how a driver has been
performing leading-up to the current race on the schedule, which is called his
‘current form’. I'd like Kyle Busch to win this Sunday’s race because he has
attractive odds, dig a bit deeper into how he has finished in the past five
races to get a better feel for how the entire race team has been performing.
There are quite a few variables that go into winning a race and common sense
dictates that hot teams tend to stay hot, while teams that have been off the
mark in recent races are still trying to work out the kinks.
Past Performance
When it comes to the Sprint
Cup series, there are currently 24 different tracks that host the 36 different
point races. With the exception of road courses at Sonoma and Watkins Glenn,
the other 22 tracks are basic ovals but vastly different in length and actual
shapes. They are often broken down into three categories: short tracks (a mile
or less in length), intermediate tracks (1.5 miles) and long tracks (two or
more miles).
Given the subtle racing
differences that each driver faces each week, it is very important to not only
know how they have performed at that specific venue in the past, but how they
have performed on that specific track type as well. A great driver like Jimmy
Johnson can win anytime he gets behind the wheel of a car, but if he happens to
be racing at one of his favorite tracks, his chances to win vastly improve.
The Bottom Line
Once you narrow the field to
the legitimate contenders, kick-out any of those drivers whose current form is
not up to snuff and then pick-out the ones that have consistently performed
well at that week’s venue you should be left with a very short list of solid
plays to wager on for that week’s race
Good luck with all of your sports picks this week!