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03/11/2010 - Sao Paulo, Brazil (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The IndyCar Series -- with new title sponsor IZOD -- kicks off its 2010 season this weekend in Brazil, marking the first time the series competes in a South American country. With 17 races on the schedule, this year should feature another great tug of war among several drivers for the championship. The fight for the title has come down to the last lap of the season-finale the past four years, so don't be surprised if that's the case again on October 2 at Homestead.
WILL GANASSI'S REIGN CONTINUE?
Dario Franchitti capped off his return to IndyCar in 2009 with his second championship. Franchitti edged 2008 series champion and Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon by 11 points.
After winning his first title with Michael Andretti's team in 2007, Franchitti joined Ganassi and moved over to NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series competition the following year, but his efforts in stock car racing did not go as well as he expected.
His IndyCar comeback was nothing short of success with five victories for the '09 season.
"I think that the Indy car I jumped in was a good one, and Team Target puts really good cars out and that definitely made my job easier," Franchitti said. "I've been doing it for so long before that as opposed to when I went to stock cars which was learning something completely new. This was going back to learning something that was instinct for me. It was all I'd ever really done, so it was a lot easier, and I love driving those cars."
Franchitti and Dixon made Ganassi the head of the class last year with a combined 10 wins.
Dixon became the winningest driver in the series last August when he collected his 20th career victory at Mid-Ohio. Sam Hornish Jr. held the previous record with 19.
Hornish is the only driver with three series titles, but Franchitti and Dixon have the opportunity to match that record this year. Dixon won his first championship in 2003.
PENSKE POWER
Once again, Team Penske will be Ganassi's biggest threat in IndyCar. Penske will field three cars this season, adding Will Power to its stable of full- time drivers. The team has not been a three-car operation since 1994 when Al Unser Jr., Emerson Fittipaldi and Paul Tracy finished 1-2-3, respectively, in points. All three drivers combined for a record-setting 12 wins that year when IndyCar was sanctioned by CART.
Ryan Briscoe had a sensational season with Penske last year, winning three times and finishing just 12 points behind champion Franchitti. Despite missing the first race of the season due to his federal tax evasion trial, Helio Castroneves won two races, including the Indianapolis 500, and finished fourth in the standings. Power ran a limited schedule for Penske last year. After finishing third on the Toronto street circuit and winning on the Edmonton street/airport course, Power appeared to be one of the hottest drivers in the series until a horrifying wreck in practice at Sonoma, CA curtailed his season.
Penske has high expectations entering the Sao Paulo street circuit. Briscoe, Castroneves and Power have each claimed victories on temporary road courses over the last three seasons.
"It's been a long off-season, and I think we're all ready to get 2010 underway in Sao Paulo," Briscoe said. "Team Penske has worked really hard over the last few months, and we're prepared for what we hope will be a great season. We got off to a strong start in preseason testing, and now it's time to see what we can do when we see the green flag."
Penske recently unveiled the new look of the its cars during last month's open test at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL. All three Penske cars this year will feature a sleek black and white color scheme. This will be the first time since 1990 the team will not race its red and white livery.
OTHER COMPETITORS
After a disappointing season last year, Andretti made significant changes to his four-car stable. During the off-season, he took sole ownership of Andretti Green Racing and changed the name to Andretti Autosport.
Andretti also brought on board Tom Anderson as the team's senior vice president of racing operations. Anderson served as managing director of Chip Ganassi Racing from 1990-2000 and helped lead Ganassi to four consecutive CART titles from 1996-99.
After her three-race stint in NASCAR's second-tier series in February, Danica Patrick returns for another full season in IndyCar. Patrick recorded 10 top-10 finishes, including a third-place run in the Indy 500, en route to her career- best finish of fifth in points last year. Andretti had served as her race strategist, but Anderson moves into the role this season.
Patrick is expected to compete in 10 more Nationwide races this year, with her next event scheduled the last weekend in June at New Hampshire.
This year, Ryan Hunter-Reay joins Tony Kanaan, Marco Andretti and Patrick at Andretti. Hunter-Reay currently is slated for a limited number of races, but Andretti is working on a full-time ride for him.
Kanaan, the 2004 series champion, is looking to rebound after his first winless season last year. He started the season with top-five finishes in the first three races but faltered from there. Kanaan hopes his winning ways return when he races in front of his home crowd this week.
"As a Brazilian getting ready to open the season in Brazil, it is hard to explain the excitement and the pressure that I'm feeling," Kanaan said.
Marco Andretti is a long-shot for the title, but could turn in some top-notch performances during the year.
Many seats were swapped during the off-season. Justin Wilson has found a new home with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. Last year, he gave Dale Coyne Racing it first win in 25 years of IndyCar competition. Milka Duno takes over Wilson's ride at Coyne, while Hideki Mutoh has left Andretti's organization and joined Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. E.J. Viso is on board with KV Racing Technology after a two-year stint with HVM Racing.
NEWCOMERS
Takuma Sato, Mario Romancini, Ana Beatriz and Simona de Silvestro will make up this year's rookie class.
Sato, who competed in Formula One from 2002-08, makes his IndyCar debut in Brazil, driving for KVRT. Romancini landed a ride with Conquest Racing after graduating from the Firestone Indy Lights Series in '09.
The series will have four female competitors this year, with Beatriz from Brazil in a Dreyer & Reinbold car and de Silvestro from Switzerland driving for HVM.
INDYCAR'S NEW TOP BOSS
Randy Bernard, a longtime top executive at Professional Bull Riders, Inc., recently was named as the new chief executive officer of the Indy Racing League, which is the sanctioning body of the series.
Bernard headed PBR for the last 15 years. Under his leadership, attendance for stand-alone rodeo bull-riding events increased 12 percent and ratings with television partner VERSUS rose nearly 30 percent last year.
VERSUS will televise 12 IndyCar races this year.
"I truly believe I can make a difference with the Indy Racing League, and I see tremendous potential," Bernard said.
Bernard began his role with the IRL on March 1. His appointment came eight months after Tony George resigned as CEO of the governing body. George founded the IRL in 1996.
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<< Western Athletic Conference Tournament Recaps
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Dwight Howard
LaDainian Tomlinson Favorite to be 2007 NFL MVP
With the first NFL preseason game less than two weeks away, it is time to start thinking about football once again at MySportsbook.com. Reigning NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson is currently the 5-1 co-favorite to win the award again alongside Super Bowl MVP Peyton Manning.
This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone after his all out assault on the record books last season. For those suffering from amnesia or were under a rock last football season, all L.T. did last season was set the NFL record for rushing touchdowns (28), total touchdowns (31) and total points scored (186) to go along with his 1815 rushing yards and 508 receiving yards. At 6-1, Tom Brady is next in line which isn’t surprising considering all of the firepower the Pats added over the off-season. With the addition of Randy Moss, Donte Stallworth and Wes Welker; it would be quite difficult for Brady’s numbers not to improve from last years 3529 yards and 24 touchdowns. There appears to be some decent value in Drew Bees at 10-1 considering he probably would have won the award last year if it wasn’t for L.T.’s record breaking season.
There is no reason to think the Saints will come back to earth this season and playing in a weak NFC, they should have as good a shot as any to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. At 15-1, Donovan McNabb could also be worth a look. Remember, many felt he was the MVP of the first half of the season before going down with a season ending injury. Reportedly, he is in great shape and well ahead of schedule to return to form. Also, he could have some added motivation to put up big numbers this season with the Eagles using their first pick in the draft on McNabb’s future successor Kevin Kolb.
Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to check out the complete odds for NFL MVP as well as all of the new football related futures. With the popularity of NFL futures, these betting lines will be sure to change as the money comes in; get the early sports lines now.
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Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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