Bodine takes winning momentum into Michigan

Autoracing Betting Lines

06/08/2010 - Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Camping World Truck. Date: Saturday, June 12. Race: VFW 200. Site: Michigan International Speedway. Track: two-mile oval. Start time: 2:00 p.m. (et). Laps: 100. Miles: 200. 2009 winner: Colin Braun. Television: SPEED. Radio: Motor Racing Network(MRN) /SIRIUS NASCAR Radio.

Todd Bodine padded his points lead to 65 over Aric Almirola after winning last Friday's race at Texas. Bodine led 97 of 167 laps, but had to hold off Johnny Sauter and Ron Hornaday Jr. in a two-lap overtime finish to capture his record-extending sixth victory there. He also ended a 24-race winless streak in the Camping World Truck Series.

"To come out of [Texas] with a win for the stretch, it's awesome, but it's just one win, it's one track and we have to go to Michigan [this] week and beat them up there," Bodine said.

Michigan is the final race before the series' last big break of the season. The next event after Michigan is on July 11 at Iowa. The series will then begin a 10-week stretch.

There will be a guaranteed new race winner at Michigan. No previous winners are on the entry list. Former series champions Ron Hornaday Jr., Mike Skinner and Bodine, along with Kyle Busch, who returns to trucks after taking a week off, have never driven into victory lane at Michigan. All four of those drivers have combined for 109 victories in the series.

A Ford has won five of the previous 10 truck races at Michigan, but the automobile manufacturer has been winless so far this season. The last victory for Ford actually came one year ago at Michigan.

Jack Roush leads all team owners with five victories at Michigan, including wins in the last three races with drivers Travis Kvapil, Erik Darnell and Colin Braun. Roush has no truck entries so far this year.

Michigan has featured quick races and close finishes since the series started competing there in 1999.

Brendan Gaughan's 2003 win at Michigan remains the fastest truck event ever run. Gaughan averaged 154.044 m.p.h. and cruised to an 11.477 margin of victory in a race that wrapped up in one hour, 17 minutes and 54 seconds.

Two years ago, Darnell won there in thrilling fashion. He nipped Johnny Benson by 0.005 seconds, making it the second closest finish in series history.

Thirty-five teams are on the preliminary entry list for the VFW 200.

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Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.