Pick 'em: Talladega

By NASCAR.COM
April 26, 2008
05:24 PM EDT

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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.

Aaron's 499

Writer	Winner	Here's why ...	Dark Horse	No Chance	Points

Duane Cross	Kurt Busch	He hasn't done much since Daytona, but remember at Daytona he finished second. He's the best average finisher at 'Dega without a victory ... until Sunday.	Brian Vickers	Casey Mears	1,248
Bill Kimm	Dale Jr.	Something tells me Sunday is the day, it just feels right. It's Junior's 300th Cup start; it comes at Talladega, his best track; Hendrick has won seven of the last eight Talladega races. It all adds up to a win for the No. 88 and an end to the 70-race drought.	Kurt Busch	Jeff Burton	1,244
Joe Menzer	Jeff Gordon	I figure everyone else is going to pick another Hendrick Motorsports driver who recently opened his own nightclub in Charlotte. (Has anyone heard about that yet?) The truth is that it's past time for Gordon to make a stand this season, and he's got a great track record there.	Kurt Busch	Clint Bowyer	1,230
Raygan Swan	Tony Stewart	In the spotlight this week, Tony Stewart will prove why he is one of the most wanted drivers in the sport.	Reed Sorenson	Kyle Busch	1,222
Josh Pate	Tony Stewart	It's just that kind of weekend. When Stewart is in the spotlight, he tends to outshine it. And this week has been all Tony Stewart, from contract talks to track performance.	Kurt Busch	Kyle Busch	1,199
Dave Rodman	Tony Stewart	Being the paragon of focus that he is, Tony will flush the cesspool of rumors he's been surrounded by this week and take his first Talladega victory.	Brian Vickers	Jeff Burton	1,127
Jarrod Breeze	Kurt Busch	Busch has the best average finish (10.0) of any active driver at Talladega. He has finished seventh, third, third and seventh in four starts in the 2 car. Busch hasn't been in contention for a win since finishing second at that other restrictor-plate track. Still, he's only 58 points out of 12th in the standings.	Greg Biffle	Elliott Sadler	1,053
Mark Aumann	Tony Stewart	He's finished second six times there, so if anybody's due, it's him. Toyotas were impressive all day at Daytona, even if they didn't show it in the finishing order.	David Reutimann	Jeff Burton	1,047
David Caraviello	Tony Stewart	The perpetual Talladega bridesmaid finally gets his due, and ratchets up the leverage in contract negotiations.	Kurt Busch	Ryan Newman	1,034