TRACK: Michigan International Speedway (2 mile Oval) DISTANCE: 156 Laps – STAGE 1: 40 Laps, Stage 2: 45 Laps, FINAL STAGE 71 LAPS, 312 Miles)
WEATHER: RAIN 0%, 87 degrees high

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Kevin Harvick (+350)

He has three straight August wins in Michigan, all in his last four starts in the Irish Hills. He won on Saturday. Why not a sweep?

Denny Hamlin (+600)

He has had a fast race car this season and was sixth on Saturday. That came after being second and third in the two stages. He can make adjustments overnight.

Brad Keselowski (+800)

He’s never won on his homestate track before but he’s been close. Keselowski, has four top six finishes in his last five tries including a runner-up on Saturday — his third straight top two on the season. These are good odds to get him at.

Ryan Blaney (+800)

Four top 10 finishes in his last five Michigan starts and a ton of speed this year makes me believe Blaney will be among the ones to beat. He looked quietly good in a fourth place finish on Saturday.

Martin Truex Jr. (+850)

Three straight third place finishes on the season and four in the last five races. We didn’t get to see how good of a car he has but he rebounded to finish third on Saturday for his third straight top four in Michigan.

Kyle Busch (+900)

Seven straight top 10 finishes including five consecutive top fives there now. Busch, got a 312 mile practice session on Saturday, so worth a look on Sunday.

Sleepers

Kurt Busch (+2200)

Eight top 12 finishes in his last nine Michigan tries including three top six finishes in his last five overall. He was runner-up last spring and 10th on Saturday.

Erik Jones (+3000)

Worth it here. He had top 10 pace all day on Saturday.

Consumers Energy 400 Race Preview

The first race of the doubleheader weekend is down. Race 2 will take place on Sunday. The only thing we have to go by for a unique weekend like this is Pocono which saw the same cars that were strong on Saturday, were also strong on Sunday. With Michigan having more real estate to pass on, I expect the same to bode true on Sunday afternoon.

That’s why guys like Kevin Harvick (4 top 2 finishes in last 5 Michigan starts), Kyle Busch (7 straight Michigan top 10’s), Martin Truex Jr. (5 top 6 finishes in last 7 Michigan tries), Chase Elliott (3 runner-ups, 8 top 10’s in 9 Michigan tries), Ryan Blaney (4th on Saturday) and Brad Keselowski (2nd on Saturday and 3 straight top 2’s on the season) will be the ones to beat.

The key is though, Hendrick Motorsports hasn’t won a race at Michigan since 2014 while Ford has won the last last five. Toyota hasn’t won at Michigan since 2015 as that’s their lone MIS win in their last 17 tries.

The Ford guys should be the ones to watch.

Key Stat

Three of the last four Michigan winners have come from a top three starting spot. Furthermore, the last 10 have come from the top 12. Now, with an invert, the top guys from Saturday are coming from midpack on Sunday. Does that change the outcome?

They Said It

“The double header was actually really smooth at Pocono,” Erik Jones said of the last doubleheader weekend. “We had a tough weekend because we got wrecked on Saturday so we had to go to a backup car for Sunday and start from the back. That made our day a little longer. The double header I thought went really smooth. It was cool to go out there and race back-to-back days. I felt as a driver it was fun. I enjoyed it and I think Michigan will be the same thing. It’s going to be cool just to go out there and run back-to-back days. I’ll have two opportunities to win at my home track. It’s cool to have two opportunities to win on back-to-back days. We saw it in the Xfinity Series with back-to-back winner on both doubleheader races they had so that would be a cool opportunity and cool thing to do in the Cup Series.”