Inside Looking Out: Big Names Fighting for Life at Richmond

As the Sprint Cup Series moves to Richmond International Raceway, one very important question remains … well, OK, maybe two: The first being will we even have a race? If Tropical Storm Hannah continues on its track and soaks the Carolinas and most of the eastern seaboard as many weather models suggest, it could be iffy. The second question, is who, amongst those on bubble, will actually make it into NASCAR Chase for the Championship after the transfer event?

There has not been much talk of this to date — perhaps due to the recent dominance of Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson — but looking at the standings, there may not be many big names on the outside looking in, although those currently in the Chase are certainly vulnerable to falling out.

8th  Tony Stewart  — 138 points ahead of 13th
Ever since announcing he was leaving Joe Gibbs Racing to form his own team with fellow Hoosier Ryan Newman, Smoke has quietly picked up steam. Back-to-back second-place efforts at Pocono and Watkins Glen and an eighth-place run at Bristol have helped to solidify his spot in the Chase as he shoots for a third Cup title.

Stewart won the first Cup race of his career at Richmond as a rookie in 1999, and has victories at the three-quarter mile oval in ’01 and ’02. He placed fourth in May and, barring any unforeseen terminal failures, should be safely in the 12-car field.

9th  Matt Kenseth  — 109 points ahead of 13th
2008 has been a roller coaster of emotions and results for Matt Kenseth. With Robbie Reiser stepping down as crew chief to oversee all of the Roush Fenway entries, Kenseth has been working with former car chief Chip Bolin. Struggling earlier in the year, the No. 17 team endured a stretch of five races where it finished 30th or worse four times. Since then, the Killer Bees have regained their form to resemble the model of consistency that we have come to know.

A streak of nine races from Darlington to Chicago witnessed Kenseth finish out of the top 10 only once. The DeWalt team has since scored two top 5s in the last three events, but heads to a track that rewarded it with a 38th-place finish in May.

10th  Jeff Gordon — 102 points ahead of 13th
If there is one car that is most susceptible for failure among drivers currently in the Chase, it is four-time series champion Jeff Gordon. What once again began as Gordon’s “The Drive for Five,” the 2008 season has been an exercise in frustration.

He has yet to win this season and has not even been in contention since a runner-up finish at Martinsville. He had a car that looked as if it had something for the field at Michigan three weeks ago, but then ran into teammate Jimmie Johnson, consequently cutting a tire, and knocking down the wall.

Gordon and crew chief Steve Letarte cannot get on the same page in making the miserable new Car of Tomorrow handle. Gone is the No. 24 team’s ability to pull a rabbit out of its hat with some late-race magic. When the car is slow, it usually stays that way, with the driver getting more and more frustrated with each successive lap stuck in traffic.

Some claim that Gordon has slowed down and his focus is away from the track. Nothing could be further from the truth. Gordon and his team have tested more this season than ever before in his career in an effort to get the DuPont Chevrolet back into contention. However, another bad night could spell doom for the 24 team.

11th  Denny Hamlin — 93 points ahead of 13th
The driver who two weeks ago said his team didn’t deserve to be in the Chase after a blown motor at Michigan International Speedway — a malfunction that left Hamlin teetering with a 26-point advantage over 13th place — is suddenly back on the right track and heading to a race he had all but won in May. Hamlin led 381 laps then, but succumbed to a blown tire late in the event.

He has a lone win this year at his home track at Martinsville and is always extra motivated when running in his home state of Virginia. What Hamlin does not need is another blown motor, cut tire, fuel pickup issue or intermittent ignition — problems that have plagued his No. 11 outfit throughout the season. While Hamlin is on the cusp of falling out, he should be safely among the 12 Chase contenders based on his Richmond performance in May.

12th Clint Bowyer — 17 points ahead of 13th
Seeing Clint Bowyer sitting in 12th place, I am reminded of the scene from “Top Gun” where the admiral is chewing out Maverick and Goose. Turning to Anthony Edwards’ character he barks, “And you (insert colorful explicative here) … you’re just lucky to be here!”

Bowyer would do well to stand at attention like Goose and reply, “Thank you sir!” While the pilot of the No. 07 Chevy holds a tenuous points lead in the Nationwide Series, he’s been all over the map on the Sprint Cup circuit.

Last year’s Chase darling, Bowyer won the first event of the 10-race shootout at New Hampshire and came home an impressive third in the final 2007 standings. Bowyer was the benefactor of Hamlin’s blown tire at Richmond in May (along with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch’s dust-up) as he held on to win the 400-miler — his only Cup victory of the season.

Bowyer currently sits 17-points ahead of David Ragan in 13th. While he started 2008 off strong, ripping off seven top 10s and a win in the first 10 races, he has recorded just one top 5 and five top 10s in the last 15 events. Although that does not scream championship contender, Bowyer performed about the same last season when he made an improbable run at the title.

13th and 14th  David Ragan (17 points back) and Kasey Kahne (48 points back)
That brings us to the first driver on the outside looking in: David Ragan. The driver who Ken Schrader once likened to “a dart with no feathers” has matured in a very short period of time. Having taken the reigns of the iconic No. 6 Roush Fenway Ford that was once driven by Mark Martin, Ragan has settled down to be a consistent driver who maintains his equipment and stays out of trouble.

Ragan’s five top-5 finishes and nine top 10s thus far eclipses what he was able to compile all of last season. A 30th-place run at Watkins Glen interrupted what had been a determined march up the ladder, however, rebound runs of third, 10th and 13th show him on the brink of a Chase spot in only his second season on tour.

Kasey Kahne lurks 48 points behind Bowyer in 12th. Kahne has two wins and a pole to his credit in 2008, but much like the automaker for whom he drives, has since fallen on hard times with two 40th-place runs in the last three races. With the roller coaster performance that he has ridden this year in his No. 9 Budweiser Dodge, it is not out of the question that those girls from the Allstate commercial pile their SUV into the side of his car this weekend and crumple a fender, ruining his shot at a Chase slot. Kahne is definitely a longshot who needs a little help from Bowyer, but he runs well at Richmond, as his 2005 win attests.

Prayers and best wishes go out to all of those who live on the Southeastern coast that may lie in the path of Tropical Storm Hannah.

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