Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick are tied at the top of the standings but anyone in the top nine still has a great chance to win the Chase this season. Even Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin are not out of contention although they do need to make up some ground.
Jimmie Johnson 7-1
It is money time for J.J. and he is rounding into top form. He nearly won last week before finishing second and there is no reason to think he won’t be right there for the win on Sunday.
Jeff Gordon 7-1
Gordon has one win and seven top ten finishes in the last nine years in this race.
Carl Edwards 8-1
He is very much in the race for the title this year and Kansas would be a perfect spot to take over the points lead.
Kyle Busch 8-1
Is Kyle ever going to step up and prove he is worth taking in a Chase race?
Kurt Busch 9-1
Okay, Busch won last week but he is not good enough to win in back-to-back weeks unless someone wrecks and gives him the race.
Everyone Else
Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick are listed at 11-1 in NASCAR odds while Brad Keselowski is 14-1. Also worth a look are Greg Biffle and Denny Hamlin at 20-1. Kasey Kahne is 25-1; Dale Earnhardt Jr. is 30-1 along with Clint Bowyer, Ryan Newman and Mark Martin who are also 30-1. At 40-1 are David Ragan, Martin Truex Jr., Jeff Burton, Brian Vickers, Joey Logano, Juan Montoya, David Reutimann, AJ Allmendinger and Jamie McMurray. All other drivers are part of the field at 30-1. The one longshot in this group worth a look in Hollywood Casino 400 odds is Biffle. He has finished in the top four in this race in six of the last seven seasons.
Greg Biffle won this race last year and he also took the checkered flag in 2007. Tony Stewart won in 2006 and in 2009 while Jimmie Johnson won the race three years ago. In the history of this race at Kansas, starting up front has been important as the winner has come from a top-five starting position just about half the time including two wins from the pole.
