Micah Roberts’ Sprint Cup driver ratings
MICAH ROBERTS’ SPRINT CUP DRIVER RATINGS
Duck Commander 500
At Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth, Texas
4 p.m. today, Fox (5); race starts at 4:46 p.m.
Rating DriverOddsPractice 1Practice 2QualifiedLas Vegas*
1. Kevin Harvick4/13rd31st2nd1st Dominant in 2015 on the three downforce tracks; using winning Charlotte chassis
2. Jimmie Johnson6/113th2nd5th41st
Four-time winner, including three of past five; won on similar track (Atlanta) in February
3. Kasey Kahne20/12nd1st4th17th
2006 winner; easily best in Practice 1 with fastest 10-consecutive-lap average
4. Brad Keselowski10/110th14th3rd7th
Career-best runner-up at Texas en route to winning 2012 Chase; third last fall
5. Kurt Busch6/19th8th1stDNP
2009 winner; wasn’t great in practice, but he and car rose to challenge during qualifying
6. Dale Earnhardt Jr.10/116th7th25th4th
2000 victory was first career win; sixth or better on the three downforce tracks so far
7. Denny Hamlin12/115th4th18th5th
Swept both 2010 races and has a 10.1 average finish in 19 starts; Gibbs cars on upswing
8. Joey Logano10/117th26th6th10th
Won this race in 2014; slower than expected in practice, but will battle for top-five spot
9. Martin Truex Jr.18/11st17th15th2nd
Career-best runner-up in 2013; among three drivers to finish in top 10 in all six 2015 races
10. Jamie McMurray50/16th3rd10th11th
Career-best runner-up in 2005; hard to trust, but his practice speeds are hard to ignore
* Results from March 1 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the series’ most recent race on a 1.5-mile track, similar to Texas. Atlanta results also can be used to narrow down best candidates to win.
Odds courtesy of Westgate Las Vegas
Micah Roberts, a former race and sports book director, has been setting NASCAR odds since 1995. For more post-practice analysis, visit the Linemakers on SportingNews.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.
