Ambrose edges Villeneuve for Nationwide pole at Montreal

Autoracing Betting Lines

08/28/2010 - Montreal, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marcos Ambrose outran Canadian Jacques Villeneuve in the closing minutes of qualifying to take the pole for Sunday's NAPA Auto Parts 200 Nationwide Series race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Ambrose, who won the most recent road course race in the series three weeks ago at Watkins Glen, NY, set a new track qualifying record at the 2.710-mile, 14-turn course in Montreal with a lap of 1 minute, 40.458 seconds (97.079 m.p.h.) for his second pole of the season and the fourth of his Nationwide career.

"I just made the entire population of Canada really mad with one little Australian," Ambrose jokingly said. "It would have been a great story if Jacques would have been on the pole, but it's a great racetrack, and Jacques is a fierce competitor. I've been a hero of his, watching him do all of his [Formula One] and IndyCar stuff, so to be matched up with him on the front row tomorrow is really going to be exciting for us."

Ambrose has led the most laps in the first three races at Montreal, but victory has eluded him here.

Villeneuve and Ambrose ran in the eighth and final group in qualifying. Both drivers swapped the provisional pole position before Ambrose topped Villeneuve on his final lap.

"I just knew the second lap was not quick enough, and I needed to put a good one in," Villeneuve said. "I pushed a little too hard in the hairpin, and then lost a few tenths [of a second] there. It was close, but it was fun. This track is where you can lose a lot of time with the tiniest mistake."

The Montreal track is named after Villeneuve's late father.

Joey Logano qualified third, followed by Carl Edwards and Boris Said.

Jason Leffler, Paul Menard, Brad Keselowski, the current points leader, Max Papis and Brad Coleman completed the top-10.

Keselowski holds a 313-point lead over Edwards.

Stanton Barrett, Kevin O'Connell and Pierre Bourque failed to qualify.

The 200-mile race at Montreal is scheduled to start shortly after 2:30 p.m. (et).

Footvall365 Autoracing Betting News

<< 49ers NT Franklin signs tender
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Francisco 49ers announced Saturday nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin has signed his franchise tender. A number of sources have placed the tender's value at close to $7 million for the eighth-year pro. Fr

<< Red Sox activate Okajima from DL
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox activated pitcher Hideki Okajima from the 15-day disabled list on Saturday. Okajima had been out since August 6 with a right hamstring strain. Before the setback, he was 4-3 with a

<< Toulouse continues perfect with win over Nancy
Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - French Ligue 1 leaders Toulouse continued its perfect start to the 2010-11 season with a 2-0 win over Nancy on Saturday. Midfielders Etienne Capoue and Franck Tabanou scored second-half goals to lead Toulouse

<< Rangers put P Francisco on DL
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers placed closer Frank Francisco on the 15-day disabled list Saturday with a strained right latissimus dorsi muscle. The right-hander suffered the injury in Friday's game aga

<< Victorino, Blanton and bullpen get Phils past Padres
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shane Victorino provided a much-needed offensive spark with two hits and two RBI for the Phillies, who defeated the San Diego Padres, 3-1, in the second of three games at PETCO Park. Victorino, who

OU's Wilson finding new ways to make a difference >>
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -Corey Wilson may not be able to run out and catch a pass for Oklahoma. Walking can still be a struggle for the receiver who injured his spinal cord in a car accident last year.That doesn't mean he can't make a difference for his

Brown, Lions rally past Browns >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aaron Brown rushed for a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns as Detroit rallied past Cleveland, 35-27, in preseason action from Ford Field. Matt Stafford played three quarters and went 13-of-17 for 141 yards

Richard's Kid does it again to capture Pacific Classic >>
Del Mar, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Richard's Kid came from the back of the pack Saturday to successfully defend his crown in the $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar. The victory puts Richard's Kid automatically into this year's Breeder

Stakhovsky comes back to take New Haven title >>
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sergiy Stakhovsky bested Denis Istomin in the finale of the $750,000 Pilot Pen Tennis event to capture his fourth career ATP Tour title. Stakhovsky, seeded ninth, rebounded from a first-set loss to take a 3-

RSL, TFC share points at BMO >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC battled to a scoreless draw in Major League Soccer action at BMO Field on Saturday night. With the draw, RSL (11-4-7) is unbeaten in six league fixtures, while improv

Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

Get free 2009 Super Bowl Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online Super Bowl betting VISA Mastercard