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08/18/2007 - Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Denny Hamlin pulled away from the field after the last round of pit stops and never looked back to capture Saturday afternoon's Carfax 250 Busch Series race at the Michigan International Speedway. The No.20 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet driver crossed the finish line 6.998 seconds ahead of Matt Kenseth.
The victory was Hamlin's second of the season and fourth of his Busch career.
After winning his first Busch pole since 2004, Greg Biffle led the field to the green flag for 125 laps of high-speed racing.
The No.16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford driver was unsuccessful in holding off a charging Brian Vickers, who took the inside lane, on the first lap.
Vickers was still in the first when the initial caution flag of the race came out on lap seven. David Reutimann, who was second in the drivers standings, came down pit road during the caution period to fix a left-front fender problem.
On lap 11 Vickers led Biffle, Hamlin, Kenseth and Kevin Harvick to the restart. Kenseth used a great restart to make his way to the front. On lap 16 Kenseth ducked under Vickers for the lead.
The points leader, Carl Edwards, experienced some trouble when he spun out on lap 24 to bring out the caution flag. Edwards then received a penalty for entering pit road to early, which left him at the back of the field.
Vickers, who retook the top spot just before the caution came out, led the leaders down pit lane for their first pit stops of the afternoon under the caution period. Hamlin won the race off pit road followed by Biffle, Harvick, Kenseth and Vickers.
The race got back underway on lap 28, but four laps later, Tony Stewart brought out the caution flag. Vickers had to stop during the caution because his crew failed to completely fill his fuel tank on his last pit stop.
Kenseth led Hamlin, Biffle, Harvick and Mark Martin to the restart on lap 36. Kenseth held onto the lead, but Hamlin followed close behind.
Kenseth and Hamlin traded the first position back-and-forth a number of times. Kenseth finally won the battle and started to pull away on lap 58. Biffle, Harvick and Paul Menard battled behind these two drivers.
The No.17 Roush Ford driver had almost a one-second margin on Hamlin. That gap was quickly cut into as Kenseth approached lap traffic. And on lap 68 Hamlin took the outside lane to pass Kenseth.
Hamlin was still showing the way as the last round of pit stops approached for the leaders.
The leader came down pit road on lap 77 for his last stop. The rest of the leaders took their last stops during the next few laps. Kenseth had a slow stop which hurt his chance of winning.
When the cycle of green flag stops was complete, Hamlin led Kenseth, Harvick, Biffle and Martin. But the No.20 JGR Chevrolet driver held over a two-second lead as the field spread out.
With 25 laps left the margin for Hamlin was 2.453 seconds. As the lead continued to increase it was obvious it would take a caution flag for someone to have a chance of beating Hamlin.
The remaining laps had very little excitement. There were no more caution flags allowing Hamlin to cross the finish line unchallenged.
Harvick, Jeff Burton and Biffle completed the top-five.
Harvick's third-place finish vaulted him into second place overall, 700 points behind leader Edwards, who finished 28th.
The next race in the series is set for Friday, August 24th at the Bristol Motor Speedway.
<< Red Sox purchase Kielty's contract from minors
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox purchased the contract of
outfielder Bobby Kielty from Triple-A Pawtucket on Saturday.
On August 6, the Red Sox signed Kielty to a minor league deal and in 10 games
with Pawtucket, Kielty
<< Ari's double leads Alkmaar past Venlo
Alkmaar, Holland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brazilian striker Ari collected a pair
of goals and added an assist to lift AZ Alkmaar over Venlo, 4-0, on opening
weekend of Eredivisie play on Saturday.
Alkmaar opened up the scoring in the sixth
<< Vahirua double sinks Lyon
Lorient, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marama Vahirua scored a pair of goals to
help Lorient knock off Lyon 2-1 at Stade du Moustoir on Saturday.
Lyon, the defending six-time league champions, have now dropped two of their
first three game
<< Federer outlasts Hewitt to reach Cincy final
Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roger Federer needed more than 2 1/2 hours, but
gutted out a three-set triumph over Lleyton Hewitt to reach the final at the
Cincinnati Masters.
The top-seeded Federer earned a hard-fought, 6-3, 6-7 (7-9), 7-
Levin and Smith move in front in Montreal >>
Ile Bizard, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Canadian Tour money leader Spencer Levin
and Byron Smith, close friends off the golf course, are tied for the lead
after three rounds of the Montreal Open.
Levin posted a four-under 68 on Saturday
Texans topple Cardinals in preseason play >>
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Schaub completed 9-of-12 passes for 108
yards and ran for a touchdown as the Houston Texans downed the Arizona
Cardinals, 33-20, at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Sage Rosenfels was 8-for-13 f
Mets' Castro placed on DL >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets catcher Ramon Castro was put
on the 15-day disabled list Saturday due to lower back pain.
Castro is the second Mets catcher to be put on the DL in the last week, as he
joined Paul Lo Duca.
Edwards and McNulty share Tradition lead >>
Sunriver, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Edwards and Mark McNulty are tied for
the lead after Saturday's third round of the Champions Tour's fourth major of
the year, The Tradition.
Edwards, the overnight leader, only managed an even-pa
Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.
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