Kasey Kahne is confident about his team's ability to land him in the Chase. Credit: Autostock

Kahne, Biffle depending on solid runs at Michigan

Both drivers shocked at standings, say now is time for turnaround

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- What a difference two months can make.

Greg Biffle was 10th in the standings last time the series came to Michigan. Credit: Autostock

GFS Marketplace 400 Lineup Pos. Driver Speed Time 1. J. Burton 187.936 38.311 2. E. Sadler 187.071 38.488 3. M. Kenseth 186.804 38.543 4. R. Newman 186.799 38.544 5. K. Harvick 186.509 38.604 6. G. Biffle 186.403 38.626 7. C. Mears 186.027 38.704 8. J. Johnson 185.970 38.716 9. D. Hamlin 185.720 38.768 10. S. Marlin 185.696 38.773 • Complete lineup, click here Front rowJeff Burton captures his fourth Bud Pole of the NNC season First impressionElliott Sadler has a strong run in his Evernham debut Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

After winning June's rain-shortened 3M Performance 400 at Michigan International Speedway, Kasey Kahne was a solid third in the standings, 244 points ahead of 10th-place Greg Biffle.

Biffle, who finished fourth that day, was in the middle of a stretch of seven races where he finished no worse than eighth.

Now both drivers find themselves needing to recapture some Michigan magic this weekend to order to keep their fading Chase hopes alive.

With six finishes of 22nd or worse in his last seven starts, including last-lap disasters at Indianapolis and Watkins Glen, Kahne suddenly finds himself 54 points behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the 10th and final spot in the Chase.

"I wouldn't have expected we'd be 11th going into this weekend, but that's racing," Kahne said. "It's a humbling sport and it's all about the ups and downs. That's what makes it so good."

Kahne's qualifying lap was good but not great. At 185.300 mph, he'll start 15th in Sunday's GFS Marketplace 400 (2 p.m. ET, TNT).

"It was just loose and slid around too much," Kahne said. "I think it'll be good in the race, hopefully."

Kahne realizes that with four races to go, he can control his own destiny.

"If we run as well at the upcoming four tracks as we did earlier in the year, we're not going to need anybody to screw up, we're not going to need anything to go wrong," Kahne said. "We're just going to make it ourselves into the Chase. I think we can do that, and the rest will be over with."

At the same time, Kahne knows one more misstep will ruin what started out as a dream season.

"There's no room for error right now," Kahne said. "We just need to do our thing and not make any mistakes and just be smart about everything we do. Everything has changed since then, and I wouldn't have expected it to change like it has."

Now 13th in the points, Biffle's situation may be more dire. He trails Earnhardt by 180 points after finishing 24th at Pocono, 33rd at Indy and 38th at Watkins Glen.

However, he's shown an uncanny ability to get to the front at Michigan, where he's won twice and posted four top-fives in seven career starts. Plus, he'll start sixth after turning a lap of 186.403 mph in Friday's qualifying.

"I didn't think it was going to be that good after I went across [Turns] 1 and 2," Biffle said. "I felt like I left a little bit there. I made a mistake, I got a little high coming off of 2.

"I'll have to go back and watch the tape and see where I could have improved a little bit, but overall we're real happy with that lap. That was a great lap for us."