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NASCAR Update: The Chase at a glance
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Published: October 3, 2008
Jimmie Johnson
Points: 5,575 (1st). Talladega best: 1st (fall 2006)
Car (team): No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)
Last week: Johnson, the two-time defending champion, proved he's still the man to beat, leaping into first place with a victory at Kansas, his fifth win of the season.
After Kansas: "I wish we could say we were holding out and waiting for this part of the season, but we've been so far behind that we've just been playing catch-up and things have come together at the right times," Johnson said.
Carl Edwards
Points: 5,565 (2nd). Talladega best: 5th
Car (team): No. 99 Office Depot Ford (Roush Fenway Racing)
Last week: Went for broke during the final lap at Kansas Speedway, trying to pass Jimmie Johnson on the apron only to slide up the track and into the wall. Recovered quickly to finish second.
After Kansas: "It was very frustrating finishing second," Edwards said. "We just did the best we could. Wins here feel so good just because of how many people come here that I know and grew up with."
Greg Biffle
Points: 5,545 (3rd). Talladega best: 13th
Car (team): No. 16 3M Ford (Roush Fenway Racing)
Last week: Proved he's in it to win it, finishing a strong third behind at Kansas. Heads to a track, however, where he has struggled during his Sprint Cup career.
After Kansas: "At the end there, it felt like Dover all over again, me and Jeff Gordon fighting for third and fourth place," Biffle said. "It was a pretty hard-fought battle, but I ended up getting by him on the last lap going to the stripe."
Jeff Burton
Points: 5,454 (4th). Talladega best: 3rd
Car (team): No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet (Richard Childress Racing)
Last week: Another top 10, his 15th of the season, but Burton has steadily lost ground to the top three during the first three weeks of the Chase. He needs to find some magic at a track where he has yet to win.
After Kansas: "We just have to find a way to make some speed," Burton said. "Mile-and-a-half tracks have been our weak point. When they drop the green (flag) with 40 laps to go, it just kills us."
Kevin Harvick
Points: 5,439 (5th). Talladega best: 2nd
Car (team): No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet (Richard Childress Racing)
Last week: Had his ninth straight top 10 (finishing sixth at Kansas) and remains one of the Chase's most pleasant surprises. Will need to get it going quickly, however, to make a charge at the top.
After Kansas: "We just need to find one more small thing, and I think we could grab a win," Harvick said. "We are running solid week in and week out, and we still have the front runners in our sights."
Jeff Gordon
Points: 5,432 (6th). Talladega best: 1st (six times)
Car (team): No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)
Last week: Remained winless in 2008 after fourth-place finish at Kansas but crept up another two spots in the Chase despite battling a serious head cold all weekend.
After Kansas: "We didn't have enough for those leaders, but we had a really solid and strong effort," Gordon said. "We were racing all the guys we're racing in the Chase anyway, so it's just all about solid performances and trying to get that win."
Clint Bowyer
Points: 5,411 (7th). Talladega best: 9th
Car (team): No. 07 Jack Daniels Chevrolet (Richard Childress Racing)
Last week: Slipped a spot after 12th-place finish at Kansas, thanks in part to a costly speeding violation on pit road that dropped him to 16th on a restart with less than 50 laps left.
After Kansas: "I just kept making mistakes all day long; guess I sped off of pit road there at the end and pretty much ruined our chances at a good finish," Bowyer said. "The Jack Daniel's Chevrolet was fast. We tried hard and dug deep but the driver kept making mistakes."
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Points: 5,385 (8th). Talladega best: 1st (five times)
Car (team): No. 88 AMP Energy-National Guard Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)
Last week: Earnhardt Jr. picked up a spot in the Chase but still finished behind nine other Chase drivers on his way to 13th place.
After Kansas: "I think an average driver would have finished about 35th," Earnhardt Jr. said, jokingly. "I told my guys that. I don't know, we had fun regardless. The car wasn't that good. We just made the best of it."
Matt Kenseth
Points: 5,383 (9th). Talladega best: 3rd
Car (team): No. 17 DeWalt Tools Ford (Roush Fenway Racing)
Last week: The guy who said he wondered if he could even be competitive in the Chase has his answer. His second straight top-5 finish shows that the Roush Fenway formula is working.
After Kansas: "With 10 races to go in the Chase and being so far behind from New Hampshire, you just can't afford to have any mistakes," Kenseth said. "We'll just move on from here and dig hard next week, and try to get ‘em again."
Denny Hamlin
Points: 5,332 (10th). Talladega best: 3rd
Car (team): No. 11 FedEx Chevrolet (Joe Gibbs Racing)
Last week: Got back on track a little bit with an 11th-place finish, working his way through the field after qualifying 30th.
After Kansas: "We fought handling all day, but made gains and to finish 11th makes for an OK day," Hamlin said. "It's not what we needed to fight for a championship, but for the day we'll take it, hopefully put it behind us and look ahead to Talladega."
Tony Stewart
Points: 5,320 (11th). Talladega best: 2nd (six times)
Car (team): No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet (Joe Gibbs Racing)
Last week: Pretty much removed himself from the Chase with a 40th-place finish. Got tangled up with Brian Vickers on lap 191 and damaged the splitter, losing valuable laps while it was fixed.
After Kansas: "We've just not had any luck all year," Stewart said. "It seems like the races that we do get ourselves in good position, then toward the end something bad happens and we get out of that position."
Kyle Busch
Points: 5,264 (12th). Talladega best: 1st (spring 2008)
Car (team): No. 18 M&Ms Toyota (Joe Gibbs Racing)
Last week: His Chase woes continued with a 28th-place finish, as fuel pressure and handling problems made the going rough. The once seemingly invincible Busch is now just playing out the string.
After Kansas: "It was just really inconsistent," Busch said. "Sometimes it was loose, sometimes it was tight. I couldn't get it to turn in the center of the corner and it just turned into a long day."
Points leaders
Sprint Cup (non-Chase)
13. David Ragan 3,369
14. Kasey Kahne 3,362
15. Ryan Newman 3,147
16. Martin Truex Jr. 3,106
17. Brian Vickers 3,105
18. Kurt Busch 2,906
19. Jamie McMurray 2,877
20. Bobby Labonte 2,833
Nationwide
1. Clint Bowyer 4,392
2. Carl Edwards 4,196
3. Brad Keselowski 4,124
4. Mike Bliss 3,906
5. David Ragan 3,886
6. David Reutimann 3,791
7. Kyle Busch 3,736
8. Mike Wallace 3,499
9. Jason Leffler 3,490
10. Marcos Ambrose 3,456
11. Jason Keller 3,382
12. David Stremme 3,376
13. Kelly Bires 3,157
14. Steve Wallace 3,149
15. Bobby Hamilton Jr. 3,090
16. Scott Wimmer 2,675
17. Kenny Wallace 2,674
18. Kevin Harvick 2,535
19. Denny Hamlin 2,316
20. Brad Coleman 2,271
Trucks
1. Johnny Benson 2,858
2. Ron Hornaday Jr. 2,857
3. Matt Crafton 2,694
4. Erik Darnell 2,634
5. Mike Skinner 2,631
6. Rick Crawford 2,612
7. Todd Bodine 2,601
8. Jack Sprague 2,456
9. Dennis Setzer 2,395
10. Terry Cook 2,366
11. Chad McCumbee 2,311
12. David Starr 2,290
13. Brendan Gaughan 2,162
14. Colin Braun 2,145
15. Ted Musgrave 2,099
16. Shelby Howard 1,997
17. Donny Lia 1,924
18. Brian Scott 1,908
19. Kyle Busch 1,847
20. Justin Marks 1,781
Remaining races
Sprint Cup
Oct. 11: Bank of America 500, Concord
Oct. 19: TUMS QuikPak 500, Martinsville, Va.
Oct. 26: Pep Boys Auto 500, Hampton, Ga.
Nov. 2: Dickies 500, Fort Worth, Texas
Nov. 9: Checker Auto Parts 500, Avondale, Ariz.
Nov. 16: Ford 500, Homestead, Fla.
Nationwide
Oct. 10: Dollar General 300, Concord, N.C.
Oct. 25: Memphis (Tenn.) 250
Nov. 1: O'Reilly Challenge, Fort Worth, Texas
Nov. 8: Arizona.Travel 200, Avondale
Nov. 15: Ford 300, Homestead, Fla.
Trucks
Oct. 18: Kroger 200, Martinsville, Va.
Oct. 25: Georgia 200, Hampton
Oct. 31: Silverado 350, Fort Worth, Texas
Nov. 7: Casino Arizona 150, Avondale
Nov. 14: Ford 200, Homestead, Fla.
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