NASCAR\u2019s Sprint Cup series takes a trip up the Pennsylvania Northeast Extension this week for its first stop of the season at Pocono Raceway for the running of the Pocono 400. <\/p>\n
NASCAR Sprint Cup- Pocono 400 Preview and Prediction<\/strong><\/p>\n Race: Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway<\/strong> Sunday\u2019s race is set to get underway at 1 p.m. and it will be broadcast nationally on TNT.<\/p>\n Jimmie Johnson needed 12 races to get his first Sprint Cup victory of the year, but he only needed one more to double-up his win total with a victory last Sunday at Dover.<\/p>\n Brad Keselowski kept things interesting by taking second and for the second week in a row Matt Kenseth finished third.<\/p>\n The following is a look at my top favorite, contender and longshot to win this Sunday\u2019s race based on odds provided by Sportbook.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it is not broke then do not fix it\u201d is the theme of this week\u2019s race with the Oddsmakers opening Jimmie Johnson<\/strong> as a +500 favorite to keep his sudden winning streak alive. Why would you bet against the No. 48 car after dominating the series over the past few weeks.<\/p>\n This team is now in fourth place in the Sprint Cup standings with 436 total points and it is just one of three race teams with multiple wins this year. Johnson only adds value to his odds as the defending champion of this event.<\/p>\n It was his third career Sprint Cup victory at Pocono as part of an average finishing position of 8.8 at this track.\u00a0<\/strong> Dale Earnhardt Jr.<\/strong> has been fairly quiet the past few weeks with a 19th<\/sup>-place finish at Charlotte and a ninth-place finish at Dover, but I like the added value in his +1200 odds to win this week.<\/p>\n The No. 88 car is currently fifth in the standings on the strength of a win at Daytona and five additional top-five finishes so overall form remains strong.<\/p>\n The main reason I like Junior\u2019s chances to win this week are five top-10 finishes in his last six trips around this track in a Sprint Cup race. He finished third in last year\u2019s event and then followed that up with a fifth-place finish in the second race here in 2013.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Greg Biffle<\/strong> is one of those drivers that remains \u201cunder the radar\u201d for most of the season, but still manages to post a win or two along the way.<\/p>\n So far this season, the No. 16 car has once again been flying low in 16th<\/sup> place in the standings, but it has posted a fifth-place finish at Darlington and a second-place finish at Talladega. Biffle comes into this week\u2019s race as a prohibitive +4000 longshot to win, but he did finish second in the Pocono 400 last season.<\/p>\n He does have one career Sprint Cup win at this track with a victory in the second race of the 2010 season.<\/p>\n
\nDate: Sunday, June 8, 2014\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>
\nTime: 1 p.m. (ET)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>
\nBroadcast: TNT<\/strong>
\nOdds By\u00a0Bovada<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nThe Favorite (odd of less than 10\/1)<\/h3>\n
\n[ad-8757089]<\/p>\nThe Contender (odds from 10\/1 to 19\/1)<\/h3>\n
The Longshot (odds 20\/1 or greater)<\/h3>\n
Odds from\u00a0Bovada<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n