NASCAR odds: Aaron's 499

NASCAR visits Talladega on Sunday afternoon for the Aaron's 499, the second restrictor plate race of the season.

Jeff Gordon, the second favorite at WagerWeb.com, has been dominant here lately, as he swept both races at the super speedway last season. In last spring's Aaron's 499, Gordon moved past the late Dale Earnhardt into sixth on the all-time win list.

Gordon's fall race victory there was sixth overall at the track, breaking his tie with Dale Earnhardt Jr. for most wins by an active driver. In addition, it was Gordon's 12th restrictor-plate victory of his career and 80th career win overall. Gordon's victory also gave car owner Rick Hendrick the most owner wins (10) at Talladega Superspeedway, breaking a tie with Richard Childress.

"I love coming here," said Gordon. "I love racing with 10 (laps) to go and it's wild and crazy like that. And I think the fans here get to see an awesome show."

Jimmie Johnson, who has one win (May 2006), four top fives and five top-10 finishes at Talladega, says if someone could design a track perfect for the Car of Tomorrow, it would be this one.

The COT performs best at a wide track where drivers can take advantage of the large hole that the COT punches in the air, Johnson explained. The COT bogs down at Daytona a bit because handling is so important there. That isn't the case at four-lane-wide, never-lift-your-foot Talladega."I think it's going to be three- and four-wide racing. That's because of the new surface and that the (COT) package works so well on the track," he said.

It wouldn't be wise to overlook Carl Edwards this week. In the eight races this season - a list that includes a superspeedway (Daytona), four intermediate tracks (California, Las Vegas, Atlanta and Phoenix) and three short tracks (Bristol, Martinsville and Texas) - Edwards has three victories, four top fives and five top 10s.

"I feel like I've got the best car out there right now, and I've just got to drive it the best I can," Edwards said. "The way it's going so far, if I do my job right and communicate to the guys, we've got a really fast race car."

If it hadn't been for a 100-point penalty issued by NASCAR for having a loose oil tank cover following his victory at Las Vegas, Edwards would be second in points, 74 behind Jeff Burton. This week will be Earnhardt Jr.'s 300th career Sprint Cup Series start. He doesn't have a win yet this year, but he has six top-10 results and has been out front for six of eight races. He is the betting favorite at WagerWeb.com.

Denny Hamlin, meanwhile, has four consecutive finishes of sixth or better.

"We're running really strong and that's what counts," said Hamlin. "You try to keep knocking down these top-five finishes, and if you can do that you'll start peaking in the Chase and that's what we want to do."

Richard Childress Racing teammates Burton, Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick are first, fifth and eighth in the Cup points - and for good reason. Burton is the only driver in Cup to have finished all 2,699 laps this season, while Bowyer and Harvick are tied for second with 2,697 laps completed.