Bank of America 500 Preview - Picks to Win

Race: Bank of America 500
Date: Saturday October 15, 2011
Track: Charlotte Motor Speedway
Time: 7:30pm
Channel: ABC

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Well, Kansas proved to be very lucky for some drivers and very unlucky for others. Carl Edwards somehow managed to pull out a top 5 finish after spending much of the day in the back or a lap down. Jeff Gordon, on the other hand, had a very poor end to a strong run after blowing his motor with 4 laps to go, which is a rarity in the Hendrick garage. That being said, Gordon slipped further back in the points with his grip slipping on the championship.

Jimmie Johnson certainly had a good weekend, dominating much of the race and pulling into victory lane at the end. He's coming on strong, but still not the points leader. He needs to pull ahead of Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards if he wants to make it 6 in a row!

Johnson will have a good chance to do that this weekend, as we head to Charlotte, formerly known as the House of Jimmie. It was sponsored by Lowe's in the past, hence Jimmie's house, but regardless, he still runs strong here. This is one of those tracks that Jimmie excels on. Despite his success, he will have a lot of holding off to do here in the name of Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, and the other guys who typically excel on these big time tracks.

Some of the guys that I would recommend keeping a close eye on would include defending champ from the Spring, Kevin Harvick, as well as Kurt Busch. These guys are fighting for a championship. Kurt Busch does very well here and could use a boost after a lackluster performance at Kansas. Kevin Harvick essentially got lucky on Sunday, but his success at Charlotte Motor Speedway is not luck. Finally, another name to watch is non-Chase contender Kasey Kahne. He basically has nothing to lose and has been coming on very strong to say the least in the last few weeks. If he can maintain that momentum, I really think that he has a shot this weekend at winning.

When it comes down to it, though, I am going to have to go with Jimmie Johnson. It would be silly not to pick him at one of his best tracks. He is coming off a win at Kansas and certainly loves Charlotte. He's going to be a tough one to beat when it's all said and done. Do not count out either of the Busch brothers, Kahne, or Edwards. They are all going to be strong contenders this weekend, but this is ultimately Jimmie's race to lose.

Here are your top 12 in the points after Kansas:

1. Carl Edwards
2. Kevin Harvick
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Brad Keselowski
5. Matt Kenseth
6. Kurt Busch
7. Tony Stewart
8. Kyle Busch
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
10. Jeff Gordon
11. Ryan Newman
12. Denny Hamlin

There are only 4 points separating Johnson and Edwards. There is only 1 point between Harvick and Edwards. From 1st to 8th, there are only 20 points total separating that field. Jeff Gordon and Dale Jr. are looking a little dismal in their hopes for the championship this year being more than 40 points back at this point, but who's to say it can't happen?

Regardless, this really is a battle between those top 3 drivers right now. They are really in to win it and need to do everything possible to get strong finishes and avoid DNFs at all costs. Charlotte is a track-position kind of track, so it will be interesting to see the strategies that play out this Saturday night!

Virginia's Pick to Win the Bank of America 500: Jimmie Johnson

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