Points important, but race victories not overlooked

The countdown is reaching its conclusion. And it isn't as if Carl Edwards and his team needed a reminder.

The margin this week is 754 points. Next week it's likely to be a little bit more. Ever since his five-race stretch of no top-10s, considered the season's biggest drought for Edwards, he's been back on point: a second at Richmond, a sixth at Dover.

Kansas is the next stop for this parade lap. It's sort of a home race for Edwards. Although the Busch Series extends its arms closer to Edwards' childhood traces with a race at Gateway, the Kansas event can be a Midwesterner's dream -- swooping racetrack, high speeds, multiple grooves, lots of room to race.

And it can be another way to chip away at a career moment.

By the Numbers

Greg Biffle knows how to get around Kansas. But as he's seen, running up front doesn't translate into victory.

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"We have six races left and want to gain as many points as possible and make it count," said Edwards, who could clinch the Busch Series championship as early as the Charlotte race in two weeks. "These last races are at very good tracks and we will make it exciting for the fans."

The excitement in terms of a points battle may start for second place.

That's where David Reutimann sits, regaining the spot last week with a 10th-place run when his closest competitor, Kevin Harvick, didn't race. Both drivers entered Dover tied for second. Now Harvick, last year's Kansas winner, is 134 points behind Reutimann.

Twenty points back of Harvick is Jason Leffler, the torchbearer for Busch Series regulars. But with the Yellow Transportation 300 at Kansas on deck (3 p.m. ET, ESPN2), the No. 36 team needs to shift gears. It hasn't been strong at the 1.5-mile tracks. Leffler has three top-10s on intermediate tracks this season, and that's lumping the unique Darlington (sixth) and Gateway (fourth) into the group. His true intermediate top-10: Nashville, when he was third.

"Our goal is to turn that around this weekend," Leffler said. "We're bringing a brand-new car to the track this weekend, so I'm looking forward to climbing in and seeing what I can do."

Those are the same sentiments for Edwards' team. And, believe it or not, both teams are focused on the same thing: despite big-picture implications, it's a race victory that makes the glands salivate.

"We are focused on the big picture, but are determined to get the best finish possible," said Edwards' crew chief, Pierre Kuettel. "Kansas is a very important track to Carl and the whole team is determined to get him back into Victory Lane in front of his home crowd."

Ragan hoping for some luck
David Ragan sits fifth in the Busch Series standings and is leading the rookie standings, 24 points ahead of Marcos Ambrose. But everything isn't grand for the Roush Fenway Racing driver.

He was 39th three weeks ago at Richmond, and 32nd last week at Dover. Now he heads to Kansas, where he's never run -- in a car, at least.

"I am very disappointed in our finish last weekend and I really want to bounce back strong this weekend at Kansas," Ragan said. "I had a sixth-place finish at Kansas in the trucks last year, so I am hoping I can build upon that success."

Testing, testing, no COT
This weekend the Cup Series is back to the regular car after consecutive Car of Tomorrow races. And with a paired event at Kansas, that means more Cup drivers in the field.

Nineteen Cup regulars are on the entry list for Saturday's Busch race.

"This weekend, since it's not a COT race in the Cup Series, we will be able to transfer more data and information to the Cup car by running the Busch race," said Kasey Kahne, who will drive the No. 9 Dodge on Saturday. "It has been a challenge to switch back between the Charger and the COT Avenger because the handling of the two is different."

Baby Ambrose doing fine
Last week was a time rush for Marcos Ambrose. This week he's on a mental rush.

The Busch Series rookie and his wife Sonja welcomed their second child, Adelaide, into the world on Sunday.

"It's been a big week for our family with the arrival of Adelaide and I really have to thank my team, sponsors and everyone both in the United States and in Australia who has been supportive of Sonja and me and sent their best wishes," Ambrose said. "I'd love to give the girls a good result this weekend. With Sonja, Tabitha and now Adelaide, I'm a very lucky guy, even if I finish last this weekend."