Las Vegas Weekly

August 26, 2009 · 12:35 PM

Johnny Avello compiles odds on Top Chef contestants

By Robin Leach

Showgirls line up alongside judges Tom Colicchio and Padma Lakshmi during the first episode of Top Chef: Las Vegas.

Photo: Trae Patton/Bravo TV

For the first time, Las Vegas odds-maker Johnny Avello is taking on the outcome of Bravo’s Top Chef, whose new Season 6 is set here in Las Vegas. Johnny, director of race & sports at Steve Wynn’s resort casinos, is a veteran odds-maker who has been booking odds on TV shows for more than 20 years. He has been featured on TV programs such as Good Morning America and Extra and is the only local odds-maker.

Johnny has compiled the first odds for Top Chef’s Season 6, his first foray into cooking competition shows. We must point out that Johnny’s odds are created for entertainment purposes only and not for gaming purposes.

The initial odds, which are shown below with this week’s odds, are formulated from information shown on Top Chef’s Web site. The odds are updated weekly and posted Thursday mornings based on how contestants fared. Other professional information and opinion is figured into the formulas.

The next set of odds will be posted tomorrow, but meantime, here’s how you can score along with the 17 contestants as they pop up all over the Las Vegas valley, including Nellis Air Force Base and Rick Moonen’s RM Seafood at Mandalay Bay. Tonight’s episode is a battle of the sexes as the boys compete against the girls in a dueling Las Vegas tradition of bachelor and bachelorette parties!

Here are the contestants, followed by the initial odds and this week’s odds:

Michael Voltaggio, 11/1, 4/1; Jennifer Carroll, 20/1, 5/1; Kevin Gillespie, 8/1, 6/1; Michael Isabella, 25/1, 8/1; Ron Duprat, 7/1, 10/1; Bryan Voltaggio, 15/1, 12/1; Mattin Noblia, 10/1, 14/1; Jesse Sandlin, 12/1, 18/1; Eli Kirshtein, 22/1, 20/1; Laurine Wickett, 14/1, 22/1; Hector Santiago, 18/1, 24/1; Preeti Mistry, 6/1, 25/1; Ash Fulk, 35/1, 28/1; Eve Aronoff, 5/1, 30/1; Ashley Merriman, 30/1, 35/1; and Robin Leventhal, 28/1, 40/1.

The debut episode of Season 6 aired last week, and the second episode airs tonight. The premiere, complete with feathered and sequined showgirls in the kitchen, was No. 1 in its time period on cable and the most-watched cable broadcast of the day! Our celebrity chef Tom Colicchio, recipient of no less than five James Beard Awards and who operates Craftsteak at the MGM Grand, serves as head judge for the program. Last week’s debut featured Wolfgang Puck as one of the guest judges. Future guest judges include our Vegas heroes Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud.

We’ll have photos from tonight’s show posted here at Vegas DeLuxe tomorrow.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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