Pick 'em: Atlanta
By NASCAR.COM
March 16, 2007
02:47 PM EDT
March 16, 2007
02:47 PM EDT
type size: + -
Each week the staff at NASCAR.COM will pick a race winner, a dark horse for the checkers and the ain't-got-a-chance driver (no scrubs; someone with a Q score).
Our scoring system: Experts receive as many points as the "winner" pick gets in the race.
Kobalt Tools 500
| Writer | Winner | Here's why ... | Dark Horse | No Chance | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Rodman | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Gordon will win at Atlanta because he has a competitive, winning pedigree not only there, but at most intermediate speedways; but even more than that, Gordon has shown a lot of fire this season, despite his impending fatherhood. With two consecutive runner-up finishes this season, there's only place for Gordon to go: Victory Lane. | Dave Blaney | Kevin Harvick | 424 |
| Joe Menzer | Mark Martin | Yeah, well, why not? A Martin victory certainly would keep the season interesting and test his will about getting out of the car at Bristol as scheduled. Plus it would get the NASCAR conspiracy theorists all stirred up, which never fails to entertain. Martin says this is one of his "specialty" tracks and has the track record here to back that up. | Dale Jr. | J.J. Yeley | 365 |
| Duane Cross | Tony Stewart | This season will play out much like 2002 -- and that includes Smoke winning at Atlanta. He's been strong all season; the run to Homestead starts at AMS. | Bobby Labonte | Kurt Busch | 359 |
| Jarrod Breeze | Kevin Harvick | His best finish in the past 10 starts at AMS is 19th. Six of those times he's finished 31st or higher. His average finish in 12 starts is 25.2. No logical reason for a reversal of fortune to his first year, when he finished first and third in 2001. Just a hunch. | Greg Biffle | Kyle Busch | 333 |
| Bill Kimm | Jeff Gordon | The 24 is the hottest car on the track right now with back-to-back second-place finishes. With four wins at this track, Gordon is runner-up no more and will find himself in Victory Lane on Sunday | Greg Biffle | Kevin Harvick | 305 |
| David Caraviello | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing has a long history of success at Atlanta Motor Speedway, thanks in part to the driver of the orange No. 20 car. After struggling at first on the 1.5-mile track, Stewart has notched top-10 finishes in nine of his last 10 starts in Hampton, including his second victory in the fall of last year. | Bobby Labonte | Kurt Busch | 280 |
| Josh Pate | Mark Martin | Why not. The guy says he will only race at Bristol if he wins the Atlanta race. It's destined to happen. And if it doesn't, hell finish second, a foot behind Kevin Harvick. | Jeff Burton | Kyle Busch | 272 |
| Mark Aumann | Carl Edwards | Expect another backflip from Carl Edwards, my pick to click this weekend. In five previous trips to Hampton, he has two victories and has finished outside of the top 10 only once. He's coming off a sixth-place effort at Las Vegas, a similar configuration. | Jeff Burton | Kurt Busch | 219 |
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