This month’s Century Poll reveals that Kevin Harvick is the odds-on favorite to once again advance to the championship round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
Conversely, Dale Earnhardt, Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Newman are the drivers least expected to reach the final round, according to poll results.
The Century Poll is made up of 100 voters -- 50 from the NASCAR media corps and 50 from the NASCAR garage, including team owners, drivers, crew chiefs and crew members, as well as track officials and sponsor/public relations/manufacturing representatives.
The October poll question was: Of the 12 remaining drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, who will be the final four to race for the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway?
Harvick was an overwhelming pick, receiving 95 of 100 votes, including a near-unanimous 49 of 50 among garage voters.
Matt Kenseth was the second most popular choice, earning 92 of 100 votes, followed by Joey Logano (77 votes).
An interesting sidelight about Logano’s selection: while he received a near-unanimous 45 of 50 media votes, only 32 of the 50 voters in the NASCAR garage believe he’ll reach the final round.
The fourth driver that voters expect to reach the final round at Homestead-Miami Speedway was Kyle Busch, who earned 63 of 100 votes.
The exact combination of Harvick, Kenseth, Logano and Kyle Busch was submitted on 37 ballots, 24 of those coming from the media.
All 12 remaining Chase drivers received at least one vote from both garage and media panels.
Here’s the voting breakdown:
Kevin Harvick:
49 (garage)
46 (media)
95 total votes
Matt Kenseth:
47 (garage)
45 (media)
92 total votes
Joey Logano:
32 (garage)
45 (media)
77 total votes
Kyle Busch:
29 (garage)
34 (media)
63 total votes
Denny Hamlin:
18 (garage)
10 (media)
28 total votes
Carl Edwards:
8 (garage)
5 (media)
13 total votes
Kurt Busch:
5 (garage)
3 (media)
8 total votes
Jeff Gordon:
5 (garage)
2 (media)
7 total votes
Brad Keselowski:
3 (garage)
3 (media)
6 total votes
Ryan Newman:
1 (garage)
3 (media)
4 total votes
Martin Truex Jr.:
2 (garage)
3 (media)
4 total votes
Dale Earnhardt Jr.:
1 (garage)
2 (media)
3 total votes
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