Jeff Gordon waits in his car while crew members attend to car's fuel pump. Credit: CIA Stock Photo

Bad fuel pump at Kansas drops Gordon in Chase

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Jeff Gordon's bid to take the Nextel Cup points lead survived a 130-mph jaunt through the Kansas Speedway grass, but it couldn't overcome the failure of a $200 fuel pump.

Gordon, who entered Kansas as one of the hottest drivers in the Nextel Cup garage, finished 39th after mechanical problems sent him packing on Lap 239 of the Banquet 400 at Kansas.

Teammate Terry Labonte gives Jeff Gordon a push into the pits. Credit: Autostock

Chase for the Nextel Cup After Kansas (3rd of 10 races) Pos. +/- Driver Behind 1. -- Jeff Burton Leader 2. +2 Denny Hamlin -69 3. +3 Mark Martin -70 4. -1 Matt Kenseth -84 5. -- Kevin Harvick -96 6. -4 Jeff Gordon -120 7. -- D. Earnhardt Jr. -123 8. -- Jimmie Johnson -165 9. +1 Kyle Busch -233 10. -1 Kasey Kahne -273 • Unofficial standings, click here • Kansas results, click here Running dryJeff Gordon has fuel problems and gets a push onto pit road Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836 SUPERSTORE •   2006 Chase driver hats!

The finish dropped Gordon from a close second to a distant sixth in the standings, 120 points behind the streaking Jeff Burton, who finished fifth.

About the only thing encouraging about the finish is the fact that Talladega looms on the Nextel Cup schedule. Gordon has won two of the past five races there.

"You can't give up. Talladega is a great track for us," Gordon said. "We win together and we lose together. It is obvious how disappointing it is. You only get so many opportunities to win a championship."

On Lap 15, Gordon was forced to go through the grass to avoid the spinning Dodge of Ryan Newman. Despite the grassy fly-by, his car never wavered, and Gordon eventually spent 159 laps in the top 10, where he was running when the fuel pump let go.

"We had that problem where we had to go through the grass and drove all the way back up to fifth," Gordon said. "I thought we were setting sail for another Chicago, [but] we lost the handle a little bit."

Gordon was trying to make it to the end of the race by stretching his fuel, and he initially thought that he had run out of gas.

Not so, said crew chief Steve Letarte.

"We knew that we didn't run out of gas, but it could have been something as dumb as a fuel line or something," Letarte said. "We took the line off the carburetor; there was no fuel there so we know that it was the fuel pump."

With seven races remaining, Gordon knows time is running out, but the team always likes to point out the tremendous rally launched by teammate Jimmie Johnson, who made up seven spots in six races in 2004, only to lose the title by eight points.

"You're not going to tell me I am out until I am mathematically out," Letarte said. "I have seen way too much stuff. If you win seven races, you'll probably win the championship."