By Dick Mittman
allstate400atthebrickyard.com
Monday, November 8, 2004
The first NASCAR "Chase for the NEXTEL Cup" is down to put-up-or-shut-up time with two races remaining and four drivers bunched within 48 points of each other at the top of the standings.
That's just what was hoped for when rules for the tradition-breaking 10-race shootout for the title were announced last winter.
Kurt Busch continues to lead, by 41 points over four-time NASCAR and Brickyard 400 champion Jeff Gordon. Dale Earnhardt Jr. pulled into third in the standings, 47 points behind Busch, after winning the Checker Auto Parts 500 on Nov. 7 at Phoenix. Jimmie Johnson is fourth, 48 points back of Busch.
Busch overcame a stalled engine during a pit stop on Lap 222 while leading to work his way back up to 10th at the finish and keep himself in the driver's seat to win his first championship with races remaining Nov. 14 at storied Darlington Raceway and the season finale Nov. 21 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
But it won't be easy.
Breathing heavily on the exhaust of Busch's Sharpie/IRWIN Industrial Tools Ford are Gordon, Earnhardt and Johnson. Gordon placed third at Phoenix after being passed by Ryan Newman near the end, while Johnson, who had won the prior three races, came home sixth.
Gordon led the points at the 26-race cutoff before the Chase, and Busch trailed by 296 in seventh place. But in the points revision to kick off the 10-race showdown, Busch was only 30 behind. Busch then won the Chase-opening race at New Hampshire and jumped into a tie for the lead with Earnhardt.
Busch slipped to a point behind to Gordon after Race 2, then fell to 13 in arrears in Race 3 as Earnhardt assumed the top spot. But that was the race, at Talladega, where Earnhardt uttered an obscenity in a post-race television interview and was deducted 25 points as part of his penalty. Busch went from 13 down to 12 ahead in the front position.
The lead expanded to 29 the next race and slipped to 24 the following race over second-place Earnhardt. Then came the pivotal sixth race at Martinsville Speedway, where Busch claimed fifth place and Earnhardt dropped out in 33rd. Gordon placed ninth and advanced to second but Busch's lead blossomed to 96 points.
This allowed Busch to survive his only non-top-10 finish, a 42nd place at Atlanta, to stay in front by 59.The 10th place at Phoenix, where he struggled, too, was a blessing.
"It's a great way to breathe in some fresh air, and, of course, move forward and focus on what the big picture is," he said.
Gordon picked up 31 points on Busch at Phoenix. He held a 57-point lead after the first 26 races of the season and has lost 98 points in the first eight races of the "Chase." Still, four-time Brickyard 400 winner Gordon is in a solid position to win the championship in the final two races and put himself within two of matching the record seven won by Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt.
Gordon has won six times at Darlington during his illustrious career.
Veteran Mark Martin, 2002 champion Tony Stewart and Newman, who won his ninth pole of the season at Phoenix, technically still are in the hunt trailing Busch by 102, 142 and 150 points, respectively. But it would take a total flop by all four leaders in the last two races for any of the fifth- to seventh-place drivers to get to the front.
Elliott Sadler, 2003 champion Matt Kenseth and Jeremy Mayfield all are more than 300 points behind and all but eliminated from the "Chase."
THE CHASE
1. Kurt Busch 6,191 (Chase finishes: 1-5-5-6-4-5-42-10)
2. Jeff Gordon -41 (6,150; 7-3-19-13-2-9-34-3)
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr. -47 (6,144; 3-9-1-9-3-33-33-1)
4. Jimmie Johnson -48 (6,143; 11-10-37-32-1-1-1-6)
5. Mark Martin -102 (6,089; 13-2-15-20-13-12-2-15)
6. Tony Stewart -142 (6,049; 39-6-6-14-10-15-9-8)
7. Ryan Newman -150 (6,041; 33-1-16-33-14-3-17-2)
8. Elliott Sadler -322 (5,869; 8-20-22-4-7-32-36-38)
9. Matt Kenseth -336 (5,855; 2-32-14-17-11-16-41-36)
10. Jeremy Mayfield -355 (3,836; 35-7-38-5-30-6-26-21) ***
2005 tickets: The 12th Brickyard 400 is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 7, 2005. Customers who are upgrading or purchasing Brickyard 400 tickets for the first time should act quickly to increase their chances of obtaining their desired seats.
To purchase tickets, camping or parking, contact the IMS ticket office at (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area, (317) 492-6700 locally or log on to www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com.
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