Kobalt Tools 500 Odds: NASCAR Betting and Picks

NASCAR heads to Atlanta on Sunday at 1:00pm EST for the Kobalt Tools 500 in the fourth race of the season that can be seen on FOX with Kevin Harvick the point’s leader. Harvick is not the NASCAR betting favorite in this week’s race though. That honor goes to Jimmie Johnson who has won the last two weeks. Johnson is the 9-2 favorite in Kobalt Tools 500 odds at online sportsbooks while Harvick is 10-1 in NASCAR picks. Johnson is getting much of the attention but Harvick has a chance to win this week. He is the only driver to finish in the top five in both races in Atlanta last year.

“We’re really looking forward to Atlanta based on how we ran there [in September],” said Harvick, “It has become one of those tracks that has been really good for us in anything that we have been racing there over the past three or four years. Anything short of being competitive for a win or a top five on the Cup side would be a letdown.” Johnson is definitely capable of winning in NASCAR betting odds for three straight weeks and he is a three-time winner in Atlanta. He has eight top-five and 10 top-10 finishes in his last 13 races at Atlanta. The 2010 NASCAR Kobalt Tools 500 can be seen on FOX television beginning at approximately 1:00 pm EST on Sunday.

"Atlanta really reminds me of Darlington where you just have to be very conscious of what end of the race car is taking the abuse or what tire is slipping and sliding too much," Johnson said. "Every time you slide that tire, you're just taking speed out of the car, and especially off the tail end of the run. You're just trying to be very aware of what tires work and looking for ways to get around that, the balance and the load between all four tires. When you're able to do that, your car typically drives very comfortable and you're going to need that for 500 miles at Atlanta.”

Mark Martin won the pole last year for this race but finished a poor 31st as Kurt Busch got the win. Martin is 8-1 in NASCAR odds while Busch is 15-2. Qualifying and actually racing are two different animals in Atlanta. “The biggest thing is just the way the speed falls off so much,” driver Jeff Burton said. “It’s like it has two personalities. You’ve got this real aggressive, drive hard for qualifying and then when the race starts, you race it like you used to race Darlington.” Burton is 18-1 in Kobalt Tools 500 odds. Johnson is the 9-2 favorite in NASCAR odds at online sportsbooks and he is followed by Jeff Gordon and Martin at 8-1. Kevin Harvick is 10-1and Kyle Busch is 15-2 in NASCAR picks.