Atlanta "scene of the crime"

[Uncle Bill]

NASCAR Betting – Will Edwards, Busch Gun for Keselowski?

By Charles Jay

Sharp NASCAR bettors know that it doesn't help a driver's chances much to get involved with the back-and-forth of putting a rival into the wall, only to have him come back and return the favor, but still the question must be asked as to whether Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch are going to be gunning for Brad Keselowski, either in the Nationwide race on Saturday or the Sprint Cup race on Sunday, both of which will be held at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The featured event is the Emory Healthcare 500, which will start Sunday a 7:30 PM ET, televised on ESPN.

A lot of eyes will be on three racers in Sunday's Emory Healthcare 500; two of whom has a chance to win the Sprint Cup championship and one who doesn't, but won't go home empty-handed at the end of the season. Anyone who bets on NASCAR, or follows it in any way, remembers the dramatic flare-up of tensions between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski on this track during the running of the Kobalt Tools 500. Keselowski had bumped Edwards and sent him back to the garage early in the race, but Edwards, eager to get back out there and extract some revenge, got his car in good enough condition to get back onto the oval, and though he was well out of the race, ran like a madman at Keselowski, until he succeeded in flipping "Bad Brad," who flew into the fence.

There are plenty of NASCAR racers who appreciated the organization allowing the gloves to come off this year, but most of them thought this kind of thing went a little too far. Edwards got "double secret probation," or something like that, and racing went forward. Confrontations continued in the Nationwide Series, where Keselowski is the clear front-runner for the championship but was being challenged by Edwards, who is now 365 points behind. At Gateway International, Edwards put Keselowski into the wall near the end of the Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250, perhaps costing Brad a victory.

Now we're back to the original "scene of the crime," so to speak - Atlanta Motor Speedway - which gives in to fast speeds and has some heavy banking, and many observers are wondering whether something might happen again.

Unquestionably, Edwards has more to protect when it comes to these Sprint Cup races, although he is admittedly protecting it pretty well. He climbed up the ladder in the Cup standings, with the latest jump from sixth to fourth, and he would seem to have a shot at displacing Kyle Busch from third position. Edwards could also drop, with a total of six drivers within 40 points of him, but it would seem his spot in the Chase is secure because Jamie McMurray, who is in 13th place, is almost 300 points behind him.

And oh, speaking of Kyle Busch, he's got his own bone to pick with Keselowski, and vice versa. During the driver introductions prior to the Nationwide race at Bristol a couple of weeks back, Bad Brad called Busch an "a$$" and then the two proceeded to swap bumps during the race, a battle which Keselowski lost by going into the wall. Expect there to be no love lost here, as if Keselowski, who is 25th in the Sprint Cup standings didn't have enough to worry about.

Even though Edwards has finished 37th and 39th in his last two starts in Atlanta, his overall history at the track is not bad at all. In twelve career Cup- appearances there, he has been in the top five six times, with three wins. As for Keselowski, that rather unpleasant experience in Atlanta was his only Cup start at the venue, and he hasn't cracked the top 15 in his last thirteen races, so understandably he is not going to curry much favor from the NASCAR betting public. Just finishing in one piece might be a moral victory for him.

Could be interesting.

Go #17,

Go Roush/Fenway

[SkunkedAgain]

THIS is why I love NASCAR. I don't want to see anyone get hurt, and I don't necessarily care for seeing the big crashes, but the back-and-forth stuff that creates the heated exchanges is what makes me like NASCAR more than any other racing series. I'm glad that they are letting these guys be themselves, because the world knows that a Jimmy Johnson/Jeff Gordon altercation would be quite boring.

I'm excited. I hope to be rocking back and forth in my boat, listening to the MRN guys call the race this weekend.

[harvey lee]

I just don't care for this type racing. One can beat them on the track without causing cautions and taking out a car that was not supposed to be involved.

They have demo derby's for that type racing.

I like to watch a good race and the pit stops to see who was the best and not who can crash who out. I thought that what ravcing is all about and not the other [PoorWordUsage].

[SkunkedAgain]

Harvey, I think that you just described Formula 1.

[harvey lee]

I do not know why NASCAR cannot be that good.