Final New Hampshire Driver Ratings Following All Practice Sessions

Micah Roberts Top 10 Driver Ratings
Lenox Industrial Tools 301
New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Sunday, July 17, 2011 - 10:46 am (PDT)

Rating    Driver     Odds     Practice 1   Qualified    Practice 2    Practice 3

 1. Jimmie Johnson 5/1         24th            28th             9th             1st      
Three-time winner, including last year; using eighth-place Richmond chassis. Killed it during Happy Hour.
 2. Clint Bowyer 15/1             1st              12th             2nd            23rd               
Two-time winner, including 2010; best 10 consecutive lap average in practice 2.            
 3. Tony Stewart 12/1            2nd              2nd              1st            22nd                
Two-time winner, the last coming in 2005; second best 10 consecutive lap average in practice 2.            
 4. Denny Hamlin 6/1            10th            14th              6th             9th                               
2007 winner; leads all drivers with 7.6 average finish. Runner-up in two of last three NHMS races.
 5. Jeff Gordon 8/1                13th             7th               4th            13th
Three-time winner, the last coming in 1998. 14 top-five finishes in 32 career starts.                               
 6. Kyle Busch 8/1                 19th           19th              12th           20th                        
2006 winner while driving for Hendrick Motorsports; using third-place Michigan car.      
 7. Ryan Newman 25/1          3rd              1st              14th            3rd                         
Two-time winner, site of where he won his first career race at in 2002; average finish of 13th.          
 8. Kurt Busch 10/1                6th              4th              20th           10th    
Three-time winner has finished last six NHMS races 13th or better; debuts new car this week.
 9. Kevin Harvick 8/1             12th           18th              10th           11th                        
2006 winner that finished fifth in both 2010 races; using winning Martinsville car this week.
10. Jeff Burton 30/1               17th            6th                7th             4th                                  
Four-time winner, the most of any driver at NHMS. Had perhaps his best final practices of 2011.

Note: Phoenix and Richmond races can be useful data in handicapping New Hampshire. Although the each have different layouts, the one similarity is the relatively flat banking. Through the years, if a driver does well on one, he usually does well on all the others during the same season. Jeff Gordon won at Phoenix while Kyle Busch took Richmond.
              
Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book.

Micah Roberts, a former race and sports Director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. For more Roberts insights and post-practice analysis on the race, go to VegasInsider.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.

Stewart and Johnson Top Speed Charts in Final New Hampshire Practices

Johnson fast!!!

Three-time New Hamsphire winner, Jimmie Johnson, with a lap speed of 129.591 mph, led the way with the fastest lap during the final New Hampshire practice session. Johnson not only had the best single lap time, but he also led the way with the fastest 10 consecutive laps.

Juan Pablo Montoya was second fastest with a lap speed of 129.292 mph, and was followed by Ryan Newman (129.278), Jeff Burton (129.169) and Brad Keselowski (129.156).

Rounding out the top-ten fastest in “Happy Hour” were Joey Logano (129.112), Brian Vickers (129.059), Martin Truex Jr. (129.007), Denny Hamlin (128.959) and Kurt Busch (128.920).

Top-5 Final New Hampshire Practice Speeds:
#48-Johnson 129.591
#42-Montoya 129.292
#39-Newman 129.278
#31-Burton 129.169
#2-Keselowski 129.156
slowest: #46-Darnell 127.040 & #32-Bliss 127.036.

Fastest 10 Lap Average:
#48-Johnson 128.755
#31-Burton 128.669
#20-Logano 128.463

Stewart Fastest in Saturday's Early Session

Stewart ready to roll!!

Two-time New Hampshire winner, Tony Stewart, with a lap speed of 129.169 mph, was the fastest during the second Cup practice session at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Stewart also had the second fastest 10 consecutive lap average.

Second fastest behind Stewart on the speed chart was Clint Bowyer with a lap speed of 129.156 mph. Bowyer ended up posting the fastest 10 consecutive lap average making him a strong candidate to win his third New Hampshire race and second in a row.

Stewart and Bowyer were followed by Brad Keselowski (129.151), Jeff Gordon (128.976) and Martin Truex Jr. (128.972) in single lap times.

Rounding out the top-ten fastest in practice were Denny Hamlin (128.924), Jeff Burton (128.902), Paul Menard (128.841), Jimmie Johnson (128.837) and Kevin Harvick (128.758).

The interesting driver out of the bunch is Jeff Burton who has been struggling everywhere all season. He is a four-time winner on the track, but hasn't done so since 2000. But it's hard to deny his performance on the track during practice along with how well his teammates have run.

Top-5 from Saturday's first New Hampshire Practice:
#14-Stewart 129.169
#33-Bowyer 129.156
#2-Keselowski 129.151
#24-Gordon 128.976
#56-Truex, Jr. 128.972
slowest: #7-Wimmer 126.215 & #60-Skinner 125.990.

Fastest 10 Lap Average:
#33-Bowyer 128.421
#14-Stewart 128.287
#31-Burton 128.239

Practice Speeds From Saturday