Truex Jr. picks pole position for Budweiser Shootout

Autoracing Betting Lines

02/18/2012 - Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martin Truex Jr. selected the pole position for the Budweiser Shootout during Friday night's random drawing at Daytona International Speedway.

Truex Jr., driver of the No.56 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, was the 18th of 25 drivers to select his starting spot for Saturday's 75-lap preseason, non-points race at Daytona.

Kyle Busch picked the outside pole. Brad Keselowski will start third, followed by Jamie McMurray and David Ragan.

Kurt Busch, the defending race winner, Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt Jr., A.J. Allmendinger and Joey Logano will roll off sixth through 10th, respectively.

During the closing minutes of the first practice, scheduled late in the afternoon, a five-car crash occurred when Tony Stewart got into the rear of Kurt Busch and then turned him around coming out of turn three. Allmendinger, Keselowski and Kyle Busch were also caught up in the incident.

"I was pushing the 51 car [Kurt Busch], and he had to move a little bit, but I'm still the one pushing him, so I'm responsible for it," Stewart said.

Kurt Busch, making his debut in the No.51 Chevrolet for Phoenix Racing, will use a backup car.

"It was just a deal where Tony was trying to help, and we were just trying to learn the draft," he said. "A couple of slow cars were emerging in front of us, and I slid up to go around them, and I thought it was smooth, but I got turned around."

Allmendinger, Keselowski and Kyle Busch have also switched to their backup cars.

Stewart's No.14 team were hopeful to have his primary car repaired in time for the race.

Jeff Gordon managed to avoid the incident but did suffer minor damage to his car, which was quickly repaired.

Matt Kenseth led the way in the opening practice with a lap around the 2.5- mile superspeedway at 201.762 m.p.h.

The second and final practice, held in the evening, was curtailed due to rain. Just 12 drivers managed to turn a handful of laps in the opening minutes before the inclement weather forced NASCAR officials to halt action on the track.

Saturday's Budweiser Shootout is scheduled to start at 8:10 p.m. (et).

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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.