Two races into the 2019 NASCAR season, Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Erik Jones stand alone in one stat category, so of course, they made things interesting.
After the season-opening Daytona 500 and Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Busch and Jones are the only drivers who finished in the top 10 in both races. Busch and Jones finished second and third, respectively, at Daytona to their winning teammate Denny Hamlin. And in last weekend’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Busch came in sixth and Jones was seventh while Brad Keselowski won the race for the second time in three seasons.
It’s barely a streak after just two races, but can Busch and Jones keep it going this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway? Aside from having teammate bragging rights, Busch upped the ante a little by putting down $100 to whoever keeps the streak going the longest.
Kevin Harvick has the best odds to win Sunday’s race at 9/2, while Busch is tied with Martin Truex Jr. at 11/2, according to VegasInsider.com. Jones is in a three-way tie with Aric Almirola and Kurt Busch at 25/1.
Busch has one win and two poles in 15 starts at his home track, plus three top-10 finishes in his last four Las Vegas races. He also has 12 seasons of full-time experience in the NASCAR Cup Series and 11 years on Jones, who’s in his third full-time season at the top of the sport.
In Jones’ three starts at Las Vegas, he finished eighth in this race last season. But he wrecked just after the halfway point in the track’s fall race in September after winning the pole.
Because of experience, we’re going to give the edge here to Busch, who’s looking for his first Vegas win in a decade. Of the last six races at the 1.5-mile track, Keselowski won three times, Kevin Harvick won twice and Martin Truex Jr. won once.
The Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway is Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
