Early odds for 2009 title: Johnson at 4-1
THATSRACIN.COM OPINION
Monday, Dec. 22, 2008
Micah Roberts, who works for the Station casinos in Las Vegas, has sent over the opening line odds for the 2009 Sprint Cup championship, the Daytona 500 and the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona.
Jimmie Johnson, fittingly, has 4-1 odds to win a fourth straight Cup title. Carl Edwards is the next choice at 9-2 while Kyle Busch is 5-1.
Greg Biffle is 10-1 and Dale Earnhardt Jr. is 12-1. Jeff Gordon and Denny Hamlin are each 13-1 while Mark Martin and Matt Kenseth are 18-1. Jeff Burton is 20-1 and Kevin Harvick is 22-1.
Clint Bowyer, Tony Stewart, David Ragan and Kurt Busch are 30-1. Kasey Kahne, Jamie McMurray and Joey Logano are 40-1. Brian Vickers is the longest shot at 75-1. Everyone else would be part of the 30-1 “field” bet.
Kyle Busch is the favorite, at 7-2 odds, in both the 500 and the Shootout.
Earnhardt is 6-1 in the 500 while Johnson is 7-1. Gordon and Hamlin are 12-1 with Martin and Kurt Busch is 15-1. Edwards is 17-1 to win the 500. Stewart is 18-1 and defending 500 champion Ryan Newman is 40-1. Michael Waltrip is 75-1 and he’s won the Daytona 500 before. Logano hadn’t run a lap at Daytona until he did an Automobile Racing Club of America test there last week, but his odds to win the 500 are 25-1.
Earnhardt Jr. is the second pick at 5-1 for the Shootout. Gordon and Hamlin are 6-1.
Daytona announces fan fest dates
Tickets, which go on sale Saturday, Dec. 20 at 9 a.m., are $15 with autograph session availability limited to only 100 people per driver in advance. To purchase tickets and request access to the special autograph sessions, call 1-800-PITSHOP.
Drivers scheduled to make appearances on Friday, Jan. 16 beginning at 6 p.m. include 50th running of the Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman, two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart, Jeff Burton, Kyle Busch, Reed Sorenson, Aric Almirola, Casey Mears, Greg Biffle, Travis Kvapil, David Gilliland, former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Mike Skinner and Jon Wes Townley.
Scheduled to appear on Saturday, Jan. 17 during the noon - 4 p.m. session include three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, former NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Matt Kenseth, 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup runner-up Carl Edwards, Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, David Ragan, Colin Braun, Erik Darnell, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Paul Menard and Alex Garcia.
In the 4 p.m. – 8 p.m. session on Saturday, Jan. 17, drivers scheduled to appear include former Daytona 500 winners Dale Earnhardt Jr., Michael Waltrip and Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski and three-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday Jr.
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