Betting NASCAR can be rewarding

One attractive thing about betting on NASCAR races is the type of money that can be won.

Just look at the odds available for Sunday’s Sprint Cup Lifelock 400 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Mich.

This season’s top driver, Kyle Busch, who already has several wins this season -- four Sprint Cup, four in the Nationwide Series and two in the Craftsman Truck Series -- is listed as the favorite at a whopping +425, according to beted.com.

Busch, who holds a 21-point lead over Jeff Burton in the Sprint Cup standings, has had six career starts at Michigan Speedway and led a total of 40 laps in two top-10 finishes.

But Busch is coming off a disappointing finish last week at Pocono Raceway, where he crashed and ended up in 43rd place.

Carl Edwards has the second-best odds for Sunday’s race at +450, followed by Greg Biffle at +700, Jimmie Johnson at +725, Matt Kenseth at +900 and Dale Earnhardt Jr. at +950.

At Sportsbetting.com, Biffle holds down the role as the favorite for the race with 4-1 odds, followed by Kyle Busch, Edwards and Earnhardt at 5-1, Kenseth at 6-1 and Johnson at 8-1.

In group proposition bets, Busch is a big favorite in the Toyota group at -110, followed by Denny Hamlin at +130, Tony Stewart at +135 and J.J. Yeley at +800, according to VegasInsider.com.

In the Hendrick group, Johnson is the favorite at +105, followed by Earnhardt at +125, Jeff Gordon at +145 and Casey Mears at +700. In the Roush group, Edwards is the favorite at -125, followed by Biffle at +165, Kenseth at +190 and David Ragan at +325.

Pro hockey

This week, the Kings fired coach Marc Crawford after he led the team to the lowest point total in the NHL’s Western Conference last season. Did it have an impact with Las Vegas? Stop laughing.

Oddsmakers still do not give the Kings much of a chance of ending their Stanley Cup drought next season, giving the team 80-1 odds of winning the league championship, according to Sportsbetting.com.

The Detroit Red Wings, who defeated Pittsburgh to win the Stanley Cup this season, are listed as the favorite for 2008-09 at 5-1, followed by the Penguins at 6-1. The Ducks, who won the Stanley Cup in 2007, are at 8-1.

--

lonnie.white@latimes.com