Sports betting players could be treated to a show this Sunday at Pocono Raceway, which will hold its second race in just under two months, the Pennsylvania 500. Carl Edwards won last year’s race, and Tony Stewart will be going for the Pocono sweep, but he’ll have to fend off the team from which he is getting support, and a hungry underdog who missed a famous win last week.Pocono Odds – Sunday, August 2, 2:00 PM ET
Jimmie Johnson won this race back in 2004, and since he has a series-best 8.1 average in seven Pennsylvania 500s, betting services have made him a +520 favorite for this race. Johnson moved into second in the points standings with a win at Indy, and he now has seven top-10s in his last eight races. Some people wonder if the No.48 team has peaked too early, but that’s not the case: this team has won three straight championships. They’re just that good.
Stewart is listed at +600, and he has seven top-10s in 10 Pennsylvania 500s. The No.14 driver who is leading the points came in third at Indy, and he’ll have good memories of the June Pocono race, when he stretched his fuel out to earn the win. Stewart hasn’t finished outside of the top 10 in over two months, and he’s probably one of the best bets of the race.
Two drivers who should be in the Chase, but need a win for momentum’s sake, are Edwards at +800 and Denny Hamlin at +850 in your offshore sportsbook. Edwards has just one top-10 in his last five races, although he did come from the back to finish 15th at Indy, and he came in second to Stewart in the June Pocono race, which wasn’t as kind to Hamlin. The No.11 driver had a fuel-pump problem, and just last weekend at Indy, the gear shift came off in his hand early in the race. He swept the 2006 Pocono races as a rookie, and he’s generally good here.
At +2500, Juan Pablo Montoya seems like a longshot, but he finished eighth in the June race, and he’s coming off a dominant performance at the Brickyard in which he led 116 laps, but committed a late pit-road penalty. Pocono has very tight turns, which is right up Montoya’s alley as he’s one of the top road-course racers in the world. If he gets a rocket like he did at Indy, he won’t make the same mistake. Go with Juan Pablo Montoya in your sports picks.
