last five hours. The Pocono Raceway is one of the longest and most demanding
tracks on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit. The track is one of the most unique
tracks on the circuit and the most difficult to negotiate for driver and crew
chief.Every turn on the Pocono Raceway is a different animal and it is
impossible to set a car up to run perfectly on the flat and rough track. Some
crew chiefs have become extremely adept at setting their cars up for the flat
sweeping turns. The best crew chief on this track is Mike Ford. He has a sixth
sense of how to set a car up to win on this track.Ford is Denny Hamlin’s
crew chief and there is a reason that Hamlin scores the highest power ranking
for the Pocono Raceway. Hamlin’s driver rating is 119.4, 13.5 points better
than the next closest driver, Jimmie Johnson with a 105.9. Hamlin is an
incredibly low 3-1 favorite to win Pocono based on Mike Ford’s incredible record
on this track. Johnson, a two time winner on this track is the third favorite
at 8-1.
Tony Stewart is the second favorite according to the Las Vegas
Hilton Superbook with odds of 7-1 to win the 5-Hour Energy 500. Stewart’s
NASCAR power ranking for Pocono is 102.4 and is the third highest ranking among
active NASCAR drivers. Kurt Busch is the only other NASCAR driver ranked above
100 in the NASCAR driver rankings with a number of 101.8. The elder Busch is
inexplicably posted as a 30-1 shot to win Pocono. This makes Busch the perfect
long shot but do not expect him to go off at 30-1.
Two other drivers
worth a look in the 5-Hour Energy 500 are Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon. Both
drivers boast a NASCAR power ranking above 98 with Edwards rated 98.6 and Gordon
rated 98.8. Edwards is an 11-2 shot to win, while Gordon is a nice long shot at
15-1. A track as trying as Pocono is tough on Gordon’s ailing back and he tends
to fade in these summer races. Edwards is always a contender in races as tough
as Pocono, count on him being a contender when the race is in the final
laps.
Final Verdict:
Best Bet: Kurt Busch 30-1
Cover Bet:
Tony Stewart 7-1
Long Shot Bet: David Ragan 40-1








