Patrick making Sprint Cup debut in 2012 Daytona 500

Autoracing Betting Lines

11/04/2011 - Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Danica Patrick's much-anticipated Sprint Cup Series debut will take place in the February 26 Daytona 500.

Patrick and Stewart-Haas Racing co-owner Tony Stewart revealed Patrick's limited schedule in Sprint Cup next year during a press conference held at Texas Motor Speedway, the site of this weekend's races in all three NASCAR national touring series.

The former IndyCar driver will compete in at least 10 races next season, with two of them to be decided at a later date. She will drive the No.10 Chevrolet for SHR, with GoDaddy.com sponsoring her efforts.

After the Daytona 500, Patrick is scheduled to race at Darlington (May 12), Bristol (August 25), Atlanta (September 2), Chicagoland (Sept. 16), Dover (Sept. 30), Texas (November 4) and Phoenix (Nov. 11).

Patrick is also running a full-time schedule in the Nationwide Series next year, driving the No.7 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports. She is competing in the final three Nationwide races this season -- Texas, Phoenix and Homestead.

"I'm excited," Patrick said. "There's a lot that I'm worried about, but on the other hand, as I've felt with my Nationwide races so far, it's that expectation levels at some times are not quite as high. You have the ability to make mistakes. There's going to be mistakes, and there's going to be learning curves. It's about making the most complete future possible with the limited schedule of experience."

Prior to the start of his NASCAR career in 1998, Stewart captured four USAC championships and the 1997 IndyCar Series title. He is a two-time Sprint Cup champion (2002 and '05) and has claimed 42 career race wins, with his most recent victory last Sunday at Martinsville Speedway. Stewart is currently second in the championship Chase standings, eight points behind leader Carl Edwards.

"It's been a fun journey for me, and I think that what's going to make such a fun journey for Danica, knowing the things that she's going to be experiencing from the Indy cars to the Cup cars, the same thing that I had to go through, too," Stewart said. "It's a nice feeling for me knowing that when she talks about something I'm going to understand it, from first-hand experience."

SHR is currently looking for a crew chief for Patrick.

Whether or not Patrick will compete in next year's Indianapolis 500 has yet to be determined.

Stewart is hopeful Patrick's limited schedule next year will prepare her for a full-time effort in NASCAR's premier series in 2013.

"I'm just worried about how far into this 10-race deal it's going to be before she absolutely hates me, because of where I'm sending her," Stewart quipped.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.