Sadler expects to depart RPM at season's end

Autoracing Betting Lines

07/10/2010 - Joliet, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Elliott Sadler said he does not plan to return to Richard Petty Motorsports for the 2011 Sprint Cup Series season.

Sadler spoke with the media on Friday at Chicagoland Speedway. The 35-year-old driver said that he doesn't fit in the racing organization's future plans.

"At this moment, I do not expect at all to be back with this organization," he said. "I'm okay with that, because I'm a huge fan of Richard Petty's. He deserves to be a part of this sport for a long time. He brings a lot to this sport as far as the fans are concerned."

Sadler did not indicate what his plans are for the future, but said he recently has spoken with some teams.

"I feel really good in the area my career is going next year," he said. "I've had a lot of good talks with a couple of different car owners during the last two months. We'll see where it takes us. I should know something here in the next month or month and a half on what my future will be for next year."

Prior to the start of the 2009 season, Sadler signed a contract extension with RPM to remain as driver of the No.19 car through the remainder of this year.

He has three career Cup victories, but has not won since September 2004 when he drove for Robert Yates Racing. He has finished no better than 22nd in points since 2005.

Currently 28th in the standings, Sadler's best finish after 18 races this season is 17th, which came last month at Sonoma, CA. He will start 16th in Saturday's 400 mile race at Chicagoland.

Earlier this week, RPM named Todd Parrott as the new crew chief for Sadler's team. Parrott previously served as his crew chief at Yates from 2003-05. He led Sadler to a ninth-place finish in the inaugural championship Chase in '04.

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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.

Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.