Tony Stewart (right) and Kurt Busch congratulate Jeremy Mayfield after the Rock and Roll 400. Credit: AP

Nextel Cup Chase profiles

Go inside the Chase and read indepth analysis on how each of your favorite drivers made the cut for the race to the championship. Visit the driver pages each week to get updated news, stats, videos and more!

Some days you're chicken, and the next day you're feathers. That's pretty much how Jeff Gordon's 2004 race to the Chase went. More

A sure-fire championship contender at the start of the season, Jimmie Johnson got off to a slow start in 2004, falling out of the top 10 in points for the first time in nearly two full seasons. More

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. opened the 2004 Nextel Cup season like a house afire, winning the Daytona 500 and streaking to 10 top-10 finishes -- including victories at Atlanta and Richmond. More

Tony Stewart won twice, at Chicagoland (amid controversy) and at Watkins Glen, and he was as steady as a Ridgid Tool workbench along the way. More

Despite the fact that he's had a few more short-circuits in 2004 than he did in his championship season of 2003, Matt Kenseth was again Mr. Consistency in his Race to the Chase. More

After nearly fulfilling all the promise of his first season with Robert Yates Racing, Elliott Sadler became a potent contender for race victories and the Chase for the Nextel Cup. More

Kurt Busch has been as dominant at times as Jeff Gordon, touchier at times than Tony Stewart and a sparring partner for Jimmy Spencer at least once. More

If ever there was a driver who deserved a chance at a championship, it is Mark Martin. He's contended before and lost, once on a questionable point penalty and again on a late-season surge Stewart. More

Jeremy Mayfield's drive to the Chase for the Nextel Cup in 2004 resembled nothing so much as a boxer outclassed for 14 rounds rallying to upset a heavily favored opponent with a single, knockout blow. More

After eight victories and nearly every pole position that was up for grabs in the 2003 season, Ryan Newman was one of the four or five drivers everyone figured would be in the catbird's seat for 2004. More