NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
  • Peg It on GarageMonkey
CUP: Championship Race Dwindles
Jimmie Johnson has a 41-point lead midway through the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship Chase...
Tom Jensen  |  Posted October 17, 2010   Charlotte, NC
Four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson is still the man to beat. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Three races into the Chase for the Sprint Cup and the buzz was that this was both the closest and the most wide open championship race since the Chase format was introduced in 2004.

But now, just two races later, the same thing has happened that’s happened in most years recently: The field is down to three legitimate title contenders after the Bank of America 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

And it’s no coincidence that the three are Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin, the two drivers with the most race victories this season, and Kevin Harvick, the regular season points leader. The cream truly has risen to the top.

Here’s how the 12 Chase drivers compare following the BofA 500, race No. 5 of 10 in the Chase.

1. JIMMIE JOHNSON, Hendrick Motorsports, 3rd place in the race — The four-time champion rebounded from a potentially disastrous spin on Lap 34 to post his fourth consecutive top three finish. He remains the man to beat, though his two closest pursuers aren’t far back. 5,843 points.
VIDEO: Cup - Charlotte Jamie McMurray Wins at CMS (Image: SPEED)

2. DENNY HAMLIN, Joe Gibbs Racing, 4th — Right now, Hamlin remains very much in the championship discussion, as he trails Johnson by just 41 points. On the other hand, this is the fourth race in a row where Johnson has finished ahead of Hamlin. With Martinsville coming up, Hamlin will have his best chance at winning again. 5,802 points.

3. KEVIN HARVICK, Richard Childress Racing, 8th — A decent night for Harvick, but both of the drivers ahead of him in points finished ahead of him in the race. One bad race and he’ll be out of contention, too. His margin for error right now is none and none. 5,766 points.

4. JEFF GORDON, Hendrick Motorsports, 23rd — Battery troubles and a pit-road speeding penalty mean Gordon is now nearly one full race behind Johnson. The Drive for Five will continue in 2011. 5,687 points.

5. KYLE BUSCH, Joe Gibbs Racing, 2nd — Busch was furious with himself for leading the most laps but failing to seal the deal at Charlotte. He now has 82 victories in NASCAR’s top three divisions but has won just one of 55 Chase races he’s been in. 5,666 points.

6. TONY STEWART, Stewart-Haas Racing, 21st — The combination of a little bit of collision damage early on and a bad time on pit road resulted in a disappointing finish for the two-time champ. 5,666 points.

7. CARL EDWARDS, Roush Fenway Racing, 12th — Believe it or not, the 12th-place finish by Edwards was the worst of the four Roush Fenway Racing Fords in the BofA 500. 5,643 points.

8. GREG BIFFLE, Roush Fenway Racing, 5th — Biffle used pit strategy effectively Saturday night, using two-tire pit stops to pick up valuable track position on several occasions. 5,618 points.

9. KURT BUSCH, Penske Racing, 30th — It was a miserable race for Busch, who spun early and frankly was uncompetitive for the entire weekend. Disappointing, given that he swept both races here in the spring. 5,806 points.

10. JEFF BURTON, Richard Childress Racing, 20th — Another subpar result for Burton, who now has finished 15th or worse in four of the five Chase races. He might be the biggest disappointment in the Chase so far. 5,804 points.

11. MATT KENSETH, Roush Fenway Racing, 6th — The 2003 Sprint Cup champ started out slowly but he and crew chief Jimmy Fennig found the handle in the closing laps, when Kenseth was surprisingly racy. 5,587 points.

12. CLINT BOWYER, Richard Childress Racing, 17th — Not a great night for Bowyer, as he fell to 300 points behind Johnson. It’s been a tough Chase so far for the Kansas native. 5,543 points.

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100 and e-mail him at Jensen is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of Speed,” and has appeared on numerous television and radio shows. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association and an NMPA Writer of the Year.

Play Fantasy Racing - Cup Edition!
tom_jensen's avatar

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tom Jensen

MORE BY THIS AUTHOR
Advertising | Jobs | Feedback | FAQ | Terms of Use | NEW Privacy Policy | Ad Choices | Site Map
Fox Sports | FUEL TV | FX Network | National Geographic | IGN | AskMen
The Motor Sports Authority, SPEED and associated logos are registered trademarks of Speed Channel Inc.
All Rights Reserved © Speed Channel, Inc. 2013

All external links will open in a new browser window. SPEED.com does not endorse external sites.