CHASE IS ON FOR NINE RIDERS IN HUNT SPOTS IN 10-DRIVER PLAYOFF WILL BE AT STAKE SUNDAY IN FONTANA.Byline: Louis Brewster Staff Writer FONTANA - Horsepower and chassis setup will be pivotal factors for the nine NASCAR NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla. Nextel Cup The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series is NASCAR's top racing series. It was formerly known as the Strictly Stock Series (1949), Grand National Series (1950-1971), and the Winston Cup Series (1972-2003). drivers jockeying for a position in the Chase for the Championship in Sunday's inaugural Pop Secret 500 at California Speedway The California Speedway is a two-mile, low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in Fontana, California, similar to that of "sister track" Michigan International Speedway. It is located approximately 40 miles east of Los Angeles on the site of the former Kaiser Steel mill. . Only two races - Sunday's in Fontana and next week's in Richmond, Va. - remain before the battle for the championship begins in New Hampshire New Hampshire, one of the New England states of the NE United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts (S), Vermont, with the Connecticut R. forming the boundary (W), the Canadian province of Quebec (NW), and Maine and a short strip of the Atlantic Ocean (E). later in the month. Under the new championship format introduced in January, only the top 10 drivers will be eligible to compete for the title. Going into the 25th of 36 Nextel Cup races, only 16 drivers are still alive for a spot in the so-called ``playoff.'' Three drivers - points leader Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is a professional American race car driver. He was born in Vallejo, California, raised in Pittsboro, Indiana, and currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. , Jimmie Johnson This article is about NASCAR driver. For the football player, see Jimmie Johnson (American football). For people named Jimmy Johnson, see Jimmy Johnson (disambiguation). and Dale Earnhardt This article is about the elder Dale Earnhardt. For his son, see Dale Earnhardt, Jr.. For the racing team he founded, see Dale Earnhardt, Inc.. Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. Jr., winner of Saturday night's race in Bristol, Tenn. - have earned a spot in the Chase. Tony Stewart For other persons named Tony Stewart, see Tony Stewart (disambiguation). Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart (born May 20, 1971) is an auto racing driver who was born in Columbus, Indiana. He has won championships in sprint cars, Indy cars, and stock cars. , defending series champion Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch (the next three in the standings) will remain in the top 10 regardless of Sunday's performance as they are more than 156 points ahead of 11th place. Based on the difference of a first-place finish of 190 points (including 10 bonus points for leading the most laps) to 34 points for being last, there could be a swing of 156 points during Sunday's race. The next nine drivers are separated by 146 points, creating the scramble. Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Bobby Labonte and Ryan Newman could lose their top-10 rankings as they are being pressed by Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin, Jeremy Mayfield, Dale Jarrett and Jamie McMurray. Casey Mears needs a strong performance Sunday to keep his slim hopes intact. Only Earnhardt, Kenseth, Stewart and Sadler have been in the top 10 all season. Newman made the biggest jump Saturday night, going from 13th to back into the top 10 with his runner-up finish. Newman became just the third driver to enter the top 10 in the point standings since Bobby Labonte moved from 12th to 10th after the April 25 race in Talladega (Ala.) 16 races ago. Kahne dropped to 11th in the standings, a mere 26 points behind Newman. Martin and Mayfield, who was 10th two weeks ago, are both 35 points behind 10th, with Jarrett and McMurray 45 points from the cutoff. With the exception of Stewart, all drivers in the current top 10 have had one or more top-10 finishes in their past three Cup starts at the Speedway. Stewart, who was second in the Stater stat·er 1 n. A resident of a particular state or type of state. Often used in combination: Lone Star staters; farm staters; the struggle between slave staters and free staters. Noun 1. Bros BROS Brothers BROS Benefits and Retirement Operations Section (King County, Washington) BROS Barnes and Richmond Operatic Society (London, UK) . 300 Busch race in May, has finished 16th or worse in his past three California Cup races, and Sadler has finished 21st or worse in all six of his races at Fontana. It's even worse for Harvick. The Bakersfield native has finished 25th or worse in three of his four races at the Speedway. Mayfield won the second of his Cup races at Fontana in 2000 but has experienced mostly woes since then. He did not finish in 2002 (38th) or 2003 (35th) but was 14th in the May race this year. The points race tightened over the past month as Johnson struggled while on top, not finishing three events. Those trailing Gordon might not get that opportunity at Fontana. Gordon won the May race, his third victory as a driver, and also won the 2002 race as a car owner with Johnson. Gordon has scored five top-five California finishes, best among all drivers. He's also averaged a 5.875 finish in eight races and has led 410 laps, more than twice as many laps as any other driver. Though the race for the top 10 is all important, the consolation prize for 11th isn't all that bad. The 11th-place driver will get a total of $970,103, an increase of more than $400,000 from 2003. That also includes a $250,000 bonus and a spot on the front table at the Nextel Cup awards banquet in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of in December. Louis Brewster, (909) 483-9363 l-brewster(at)dailybulletin.com CAPTION(S): photo, 2 boxes Photo: Mark Martin, left, and Jamie McMurray are on the outside looking in with two races to go before the inaugural Chase for the Championship begins. Bob Brodbeck/Associated Press Box: (1) TRACK INFORMATION (2) WEEKEND SCHEDULE |
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