Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson will lead the 10 title contenders as they head to NHIS. Credit: Autostock

New Hampshire means back to racing for top 10

RICHMOND, Va. -- Now that the Race to the Chase is finally over, the focus shifts from who is going to make it in the Chase for the Nextel Cup to who is going to win the Nextel Cup championship.

Jeff Gordon

Because of NASCAR's unique format, 10 drivers can say they have a shot at the title, from points leader Jeff Gordon to 10th-place Ryan Newman. Only 45 points separate the top 10, and with 10 races left to determine the champion, the title is up for grabs.

Is there a favorite? Is there a darkhorse? Does the approach change? Does the pressure mount? Is the Chase a game of survival?

The questions remain unanswered as the 10 drivers plunge into the great unknown of NASCAR's first playoff system.

"I personally think that 10 races is more than you think," said Gordon, who officially leads the standings by five points over teammate Jimmie Johnson. "I don't know if we, as a team, know any other way to race. If you're racing in the old points system, the you'd start to change how you approach races. If you were behind a lot, you'd start taking more risks trying to gain those points you need.

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"But the way this system is, I think we just go out there and race the same way we've been racing all year long, which is basically to win. But if you don't have the car to win, you get the best possible finish you can. This team is not going to do any different."

Most of the teams in the top 10 will likely take the same approach, for changing now seems counterproductive. And most drivers are confident in their chances, for their teams have been preparing all season for this moment.

Matt Kenseth

"It started the day after the banquet last year, really," said defending series champion Matt Kenseth, who is fifth in points. "You're always preparing cars all year and trying to everything the best you can and be running good. It's not like you don't try all year and you run bad and then all of a sudden you're just going to run great for 10 races.

"You're going to see the same guys running good and the same guys running bad. It's just like Week 2 or something right now. It's like going to Rockingham in February. Everybody's still all bunched up, you don't really know who's going to be the guy yet, but you can look at the year, how it's gone and kind of get some trends and patterns and see the guys that are going to be to beat."

Elliott Sadler figures Mark Martin is the favorite. Johnson agrees.

"(Martin)'s probably been one of the strong starts of late," Johnson said. "Between Mark and Kasey Kahne and the 38, they've been pretty solid week in and week out. Kasey missed, Mark's in. Mark's got a lot of momentum on his side. Nothing against Kasey Kahne, but he was a sleeper in my eyes, and if he made it in the final 10 he was going to be a serious threat.

"I think Jeremy (Mayfield) is going to be a threat but Kasey has just had that consistent run. In the big picture, the 9 not being in there is good for the rest of us."

Mayfield, Kahne's teammate, got in the Chase with a dominant victory at Richmond last weekend. Newman slipped in at Richmond, too, as did Martin.

Mark Martin

Martin has run well the last month or so, but a mistake at Bristol and a blown tire at Indianapolis hurt his chances at getting in the Chase. But now that he's in, Martin can let loose.

"We have a lot of good race tracks coming up where we can contend to win," Martin said. "And regardless, we're going to go out and win us some more races here, and that's what really special: making the Chase, No. 1, and, No. 2, winning races.

"We did one of those, and let's go win some races and worry about the points when they stack up."

That approach could serve Martin well, for "points racing" might not work the last 10 races. If you coast too much to make sure nothing breaks, you could get out-run.

"These last 10 races, you're not going to be able to have any failures," Gordon said. "If you do have some kind of a problem, it's going to be crucial how fast you can react to it and how well you can come back and get as many points as you possibly can. I don't think you can be overly aggressive, but you can't be conservative either."

Elliott Sadler

One poor finish might cost a driver the title.

"I'm a multi-subscriber to that theory," fourth-place Tony Stewart said. "You're just not going to be able to have a bad night. You look at the competition in this series and you look at the guys that made the top 10, these are guys that are very capable of putting together strings of top-five finishes for 16 weeks at a time."

Whatever happens, it should be exciting.

"I think a lot of people are not going to give and take as much because every point counts," said Sadler, who is sixth in points. "We're only 25 points out. We can go and have a top-five and we can come out with the points lead - that's what I love about this championship chase, and it should be fun."