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08/22/2009 - Sonoma, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dario Franchitti edged Ryan Briscoe in Saturday's qualifying at Infineon Raceway to take the pole position for the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma.
Franchitti overcame a mishap during the Fast Six segment - the third and final session in qualifying - when he missed a turn and spun into the dirt. He cleaned the dirt off his tires in the closing minutes before turning in a lap around the 2.303-mile, 12-turn road course in one minute, 16.7987 seconds. Franchitti recorded his fourth pole of the season and the 10th of his IndyCar Series career.
"Sometimes you have to hang on to it as well, and sometimes you have to wheel around," Franchitti said after winning the pole at Sonoma for the second time. "Today I had a pretty good car. In a couple corners I had to commit to them and hang on, but in general the car was really good. I'm very happy to get the Target car on the pole for the race."
Franchitti's first pole here came in 2007, the same year he won the IndyCar championship. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver also denied Briscoe and Helio Castroneves from giving Team Penske a one-two on the front starting grid at Sonoma for the second straight year.
Briscoe finished .05 seconds behind Franchitti to take the outside pole.
"I'm a little bit frustrated," said Briscoe, who also started second in last year's race at Sonoma. "There was a couple of times when I was quicker, but I was having a few braking issues here today. I was struggling a little bit to get some consistency."
Castroneves, who started on the pole and won at Sonoma last year, qualified third, while Marco Andretti and Hideki Mutoh, both from Andretti Green Racing, rounded out the top-five.
Graham Rahal qualified sixth, followed by Tony Kanaan, newcomer Franck Montagny and Mike Conway. Scott Dixon, the current points leader, was a surprising 10th after struggling throughout qualifying.
"It was pretty dismal, actually," Dixon said. "The saving grace was Dario winning the pole, which is fantastic. It helps us keep some points off those Penskes. We'll have to go off-strategy tomorrow and try something a bit different."
Dixon currently holds a three-point lead over Briscoe and a 19-point advantage over his Ganassi teammate Franchitti.
The preliminary 24-car field has been trimmed to 22 entries after Will Power and Nelson Philippe were involved in a serious crash during practice earlier in the day at Sonoma. Power sustained two compression fractures in his lower back, while Philippe suffered an open fracture to his left foot. Both drivers also sustained concussions. They were transported to nearby Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. They will be hospitalized for at least overnight.
Sunday's 75-lap race is scheduled to start around 5:50 p.m. (et).
<< Massacre in reverse: Youkilis spurs Sox rout of Yanks
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Junichi Tazawa got the win in his first start
against the Yankees and Kevin Youkilis hit a pair of homers while tying a
career-high with six RBI, as the Red Sox crushed New York, 14-1, in the
middle
<< Sim three clear in Kansas
Overland Park, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Sim, the Nationwide Tour's
leading money winner, carded a six-under 65 Saturday to take a three-stroke
lead after three rounds of the Christmas in October Classic.
Sim finished 54 holes
<< Mets recall LHP Misch, designate INF Green
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets have recalled lefty
reliever Pat Misch from Triple-A Buffalo and designated infielder Andy Green
for assignment.
Misch has appeared in 13 games for the Mets this season and holds
<< Rapids burning to start winning streak vs. Fire
Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Fire host the Colorado Rapids on
Sunday afternoon in an important match-up for the Major League Soccer teams.
The Fire (9-5-8) are currently in second in the Eastern Conference table, but
two l
Garcia, Riley lead delayed Wyndham Championship >>
Greensboro, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sergio Garcia and Chris Riley were tied atop
the leaderboard Saturday when the third round of the Wyndham Championship was
suspended due to darkness.
Garcia and Riley are tied at 13-under par through 10 h
Federer reaches Cincy final; Djokovic ousts Nadal >>
Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time winner and top-seeded Roger Federer
defeated Andy Murray in straight sets on Saturday to advance to the final at
the $3 million Western & Southern Financial Masters.
The world No. 1 Federer
Solheim Cup tied with singles to go >>
Sugar Grove, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michelle Wie has proven to be a good
captain's pick for Beth Daniel.
Wie and Cristie Kerr parred the final hole against Maria Hjorth and Anna
Nordqvist, but it was enough for a 1-up victory t
L.A. earns road point with scoreless draw at D.C. >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Galaxy earned a valuable
road point at Major League Soccer rivals D.C. United on Saturday night, three
days after earning a road win at Chicago, 2-0.
The Galaxy (8-4-11) are now 4-0-2
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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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