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Pro Sports Wrap - by Sam Ruesler

Pro Sports Wrap - April 2009

The eyes of Texas are on NASCAR

April 2nd 2009 21:17
Martinsville shaped up pretty much as we had predicted...with Jimmie Johnson winning holding off teammate Jeff Gordon, who finished fourth. And Denny Hamlin finishing second. Dale Earnhardt Jr. got back on track somewhat with an eighth place finish...lower than we had thought, but still a Top 10 and our final pick Jeff Burton was a disappointing 15th.

The spotlight this week turns to Texas Motor Speedway and Gordon, who is still looking for his first win since 2007. Despite the 47 consecutive races without a win, he is still leading the Sprint Cup standings, as his consistency has been absolutely astounding.

In six races, the No. 24 car has four Top 5 finishes and six Top 10s.
But is Texas where he ends the winless streak?
It's a tough call. His stats here aren't great. It's one of only two tracks Gordon has never won at, though he does have six Top 5s and eight Top 10s in 16 races. Interestingly, it's also the only track where he's finished 43. And he's done that twice. So which Gordon shows up this time.

My best guess is it's a Top 10 for Gordon. He's running too good not to get one, but I don't think he picks up the win.

I like Carl Edwards dominance in Texas, winning both races last year, and winning three total here (the career leader). Just as interesting is that Edwards has run 8 races here. The three wins also represent his only top 10 finishes here. So it's really all or nothing for him here. I'd bet on the all if I had to pick between the two.

This could also be a race the Busch brothers find the winners circle. Neither has won here, but both have been decent.
Kurt has seven Top 10s in 12 starts and Kyle has four Top Tens (three Top 5s) in eight starts. And the way they've run this season, you have to seriously consider them.


The other two drivers I like are Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth, who each have eight Top 10s.

Despite all of that that I just mentioned, for some reason I have a feeling that this is where David Reutimann picks up his first career win.

If you like cautions, don't expect much from Texas. The track had problems in its early days, with drivers complaining about grip among other things. But the track was resurfaced and is one of the better speed tracks around. Very few wrecks and a lot of speed.

This post can also be found at pro sports wrap up
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