NASCAR Richmond 400 Predictions

NASCAR Richmond – Air Guard 400

It is crunch time for a handful of drivers ‘on the bubble’ to make it into the ‘Chase’ for this season’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship as this is the last race to qualify and there are only two spots still up for grabs. The ‘Chase’ pits the top 12 drivers in the point standings against one another over a 10 race schedule ending on November 21 at Homestead, Florida. The driver with the most points at the end of that race is declared this year’s champion.

This week’s race is the Air Guard 400 at Richmond International Speedway. It is scheduled for Saturday Night, Sept. 11 starting at 7:30 p.m. The following is a look at the top seven drivers in the point standings along with their odds to win this week at Richmond.

Kevin Harvick 12/1

Despite a 33^rd finish last week in Atlanta, Harvick still has a healthy lead in the standings with 3585 points. Earlier in the season at Richmond he started seventh and finished third. Last year in this race he ended up ninth after starting 19^th. Harvick won this race in 2006 after starting fifth. He has 12 top 10 finishes at this track, including six in this race.

Jeff Gordon 10/1

Gordon finished 13^th last week and now has 3366 points. He finished second in the first race here this year after starting fourth. Last Year in this race he started 7^th and finished third. He won this race back in 2000 after starting 13^th. Gordon has 22 top 10 finishes at Richmond with 12 of them coming in this race.

Kyle Busch 4/1

A fifth place finish at Atlanta gives Busch 3325 points. He will go for the season sweep after winning the first race here this season starting from the pole position. Last year in this race he finished fifth after starting eighth. His best finish in this race is second in 2006 after starting 12^th. Richmond has been one of Busch’s favorite tracks given the fact that he has nine top 10 finishes in 11 career races.

Tony Stewart 10/1

Stewart finally got off the schneid this season with a win at Atlanta last week. He currently has 3302 points in the standings. The first race here this year he finished a forgettable 23^rd after starting 18^th. Last year in this race he started 29^th and finished 17^th. Stewart won this race way back in 1999 and has three career victories at this track. He also has four second place finishes and eight other top 10 finishes.

Carl Edwards 12/1

A second place finish at Atlanta gives Edwards 3288 total points. Previously at Richmond this season he started 28^th and finished fifth. Last year in this race he started 10^th and finished 15^th. Edwards’s best finish in this race was in 2004 when he ended up sixth after starting 13^th. He only has four top 10 finishes at this track and only one in this race.

Jeff Burton 15/1

Burton’s fourth place finish last week gives him 3261 points on the year. He finished fourth in the first race here this season after starting 17^th. Last year in this race, he finished 18^th after starting 22^nd. Burton’s only career victory in this race was in 1998 after starting third. He has 15 top 10 finishes at Richmond including six in this race.

Jimmie Johnson 6/1

Johnson finally returned to form with a third place finish last week. He now has 3247 points for the season. Earlier this year at this track he started third and finished 10^th. Last year in this race he started fourth and finished 11^th. Between 2007 and 2008 Johnson won three out of four races at this track including two victories in this race. He only has two other top 10 finishes here over the course of his career.