NASCAR Betting: Auto Club 500 Odds Favor Johnson

The Daytona 500 may be the most popular race in NASCAR but the real season begins on Sunday in California with Auto Club 500 odds at 3:00pm EST and can be seen on FOX. Daytona is a restrictor plate mess and what happened last week rarely has any carryover effect to the rest of the season. "In a lot of ways, it is the start of the season,” Denny Hamlin said, "This is when we get into a normal weekend routine and with as big as Daytona is as a single event, it sometimes draws attention away from the long season we have ahead of us." NASCAR betting at online sportsbooks reflect that fact as four-time defending Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson is the 7/2 favorite in Auto Club 500 odds.

Mark Martin and Kyle Busch are co-second choices in NASCAR betting odds at 8/1 while Jeff Gordon is listed at 10/1. Gordon finished second in both races at Fontana last year. Johnson will need to do well on Sunday since he was 35th at Daytona last week. "I'm disappointed that we had the mechanical failure at Daytona because we overcame a lot to get back in position to have a shot at winning that thing," Johnson said. "We were in really good position when our car broke. So, that one's behind us but when I look forward to the rest of the season, California is the first down-force track that we have and a real good indicator of where people are for the bulk of the season.” Johnson has six straight Top 10 finishes at Fontana. The 2010 NASCAR Auto Club 500 can be seen on FOX television beginning at approximately 3:00 pm EST on Sunday.

Last week’s Daytona 500 winner Jamie McMurray will try and carry his success over to this week in Auto Club 500 odds as he is 15/1. It has been a busy week for McMurray but he is ready to go. "I expect to get to Fontana, be able to unload with the setup that Juan ran last year and be really close," said McMurray. Kenseth won at Daytona and at Fontana to start last season but you have to go back to 1997 for the last time a winner repeated in the first two weeks. Kenseth actually has the best numbers at Fontana and is the defending champion.

All is not well with the Kenseth team though heading into 2010 Auto Club 500 odds as Todd Parrott is his new crew chief as Drew Blickensderfer is out after just one race. Kenseth is listed at 15/1 and has not won a race since winning the first two races a year ago. If you are thinking that Dale Earnhardt Jr. might have a good finish at Fontana at odds of 20/1, you might want to think again. His average finish is 22nd. As you consider NASCAR odds keep in mind that Roush has won the past five events at Fontana. That makes Carl Edwards a threat to win as a NASCAR betting longshot in Auto Club 500 odds at 12-1.