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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Stats Give Martin Hope
Mark Martin is the only possible driver to challenge Jimmie Johnson for the Championship...
Rick Minter  | http://www.RacinToday.com  |  Posted November 19, 2009   Homestead, FL
Mark Martin (Right) is 108 points behind Jimmie Johnson (Left) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points as they head to Homestead-Miami Speedway and the season's last 2009 event. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Some Thursday NASCAR observations:


Now it’s down to Champions Week at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where in some years there have been nail-biting points races to be decided. Not this year.

The one last big question remaining to be answered this Sprint Cup season is whether Mark Martin can overcome the 108 points that separate him from his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson, who is poised to become the first NASCAR driver ever to win four straight championships.

According to NASCAR’s statisticians, it’s not only possible, it’s been done before – nine times, most recently two weeks ago at Texas Motor Speedway where Martin made up 111 when Johnson crashed early and finished 38th.

No stats were provided on the likelihood of lightning striking twice in the same place, so to speak.

Martin’s the only driver still in the running for the title, as Jeff Gordon will be officially eliminated once the race starts, the other nine drivers in the Chase having done what looks like a synchronized swoon compared to the three Hendrick Motorsports drivers at the top of the chart.
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When it comes to racing in the Chase, Johnson has changed the way teams once pursued championships. There was a time that consistent finishes somewhere in the top 10 were plenty to take a title, but Johnson has been winning his titles in large part by winning races and leading lots of laps.

He has 18 wins in Chase races since the format was adopted in 2004. His closest challengers, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards , have just six apiece.


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