You want drama? Check out the Truck Series notes from NASCAR Media:

• Johnny Benson leads Ron Hornaday by six points after 23 races, the smallest margin in series history with two races remaining. (The previous closest was seven points, Bobby Hamilton over Dennis Setzer, in 2004.)

Hornaday trailed Mike Skinner by 51 points after 23 races in 2007 but recovered to win the championship, and overcame the second-largest deficit in series history. Only Travis Kvapil, in 2003, came from further back after 23 races -- 69 points.

• In head-to-head competition at Phoenix over the past three seasons, Benson tops Hornaday in Driver Rating (118.7 vs. 112.0) and Average Finish (3.7 vs. 5.7).

Benson won the race in 2006; Hornaday finished second in 2005 and 2007 and won in 1998 and 1999.

• Top-10 positions in final 2008 championship standings are anything but decided. Twenty-three points is the difference between fourth-place Erik Darnell and seventh-place Rick Crawford. Seven drivers remain mathematically in contention for the 2008 championship.

“

We're driven by the ability to go make another dollar and make more money.

”

-- DALE EARNHARDT JR.

All that on-track excitement ... in less races ... and without the benefit of the Chase.

Maybe Dale Earnhardt Jr., the driver, is on to something:

"What's happened is we have saturated the market with race after race after race," Earnhardt said at Texas. "The NFL, they do such a great job. I hate to keep comparing to them and using them as examples but they do the best job. They give you just enough to keep you wanting more. The season ends before you want it to. You get just enough to get excited and then it's all over and there's such a long wait. The model works."

Yes, it does. And then reality set in for Dale Jr., the team owner:

"We're driven by the ability to go make another dollar and make more money and there's no way we would ever trim it down," he continued. "But when we were a 28-race schedule, some of you here were around at that time, the sport was giving you just enough to get really excited about the next season.

"When we were racing at 12 o'clock people were racing home from church to get to see the start of the race. We've just made it too easy and too much. We sort of lost a lot of the substance that we really had before and the character the sport, I think, has waned a little bit but it's part of the times, too."

Love him or loathe him, Earnhardt is a straight-thinker.

"I don't think it's all our fault, I think it has a lot to do with a lot of other things going on," he added. "The temperature of the world out there and the economy. I think the model that the NFL has is the perfect one and I feel like that's really our best bet for the most amount of success and to maintain it, I think, also that's the best way.

"We've already passed the point of no return. No way we would ever trim the schedule back. There's no way we would change what we really already have here."

And that includes the Chase, which became a hot-button issue last week after it was suggested a change to the point system wouldn't be a bad thing. And despite a lot of cyberink being wasted on the topic, the Chase is here to stay. But what if this system were in place:

• Trim the season to 30 races (only one race at Fontana, Pocono, Michigan, Atlanta, Loudon and Martinsville).
• Starting field of 43 cars.
• No top-35 guaranteed starting position.
• Qualify in race trim -- "run what you brung," as they say.
• Rain on qualifying day? Top 43 in points have random draw for starting position. (Yes, the fans' best solution is "just qualify the next day," but track schedules are tight as a tick on a coon dog, so not feasible.)
• OK, so if it rains during Speedweeks at Daytona before the top 43 is set? The top 43 from the previous season take the green. ... Yep, that means no past champion provisional.
• Green flag is at 1 p.m. ET. TV / radio can get all its yammering out of the way while fans are coming home from church.
• Race winner receives 43 points, second place gets 42, third place 41, etc.
• No Lucky Dog. The field is frozen at yellow so there's no racing back to the stripe (safety, safety, safety!) -- and restarts are single-file with lap-down cars at the rear of the field.

That's as simple as I can make it, but if there is to be any change it would be bonus points for only the top five drivers -- 50 for first, 20 for second, 15 for third, 10 for fourth, five for fifth.

But what do I know? I'm just a fan with time on his hands ...

Realistically, NASCAR is not going to "Jimmie proof" its playoff system. No system will ever be "Insert Driver's Name proof." But that doesn't mean what NASCAR has can't be better.

Yes, celebrate Rick Hendrick, Chad Knaus, Jimmie Johnson and everyone associated with the No. 48. They have set the bar, no question, during the past five years. Even when Kurt and Tony were winning the title, you knew the 48 was to be reckoned with.

But let's consider the possibilities of keeping the fan base engaged from Daytona through Homestead without gimmick-like tactics. What if the 43, 42, 41, etc. system were in place, you ask? Well, here's how it would have played out (sans the bonus points for top-five finishes; that provision was added after Mark Aumann crunched the numbers):

And if the system were in place for 2008? Well, it would be a bit tighter than 106 points (chart at right). Also understand that no system is going to make everyone happy, and no system is going to guarantee a close points race 'til the end. It's just not possible.

As it is, everyone started the season knowing the rules. Everyone drove under them for the first 26 races, and the last eight in the Chase. It is what it is.

Again, I digress. Celebrate the accomplishments -- and hope that your favorite driver's team makes the necessary adjustments to make a leap forward next year.

After all, we need something to keep us occupied for 12 months, especially since The Ex List has been canceled.

Bump-and-run thoughts after Texas ...

Winner
• Carl Edwards gassed the field and then crew chief Bob Osborne credited the Ford engine. ... Where can I get one of those fuel-efficient NASCAR engines, Bob?

Loser
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. stalled his car on pit road during his final gas stop and finished 20th after running in the top 10 most of the day.

Lucky Dog
• Edwards, for being able to run the final 69 laps without having to stop for fuel. And there's no truth to the rumor that post-race inspection was all of "Yeah, it has four wheels; you're good to go."

Who's hot
• David Gilliland, literally. "I meant to get him [Juan Montoya] loose, I didn't mean to wreck him and ruin both of our days," Gilliland said. "It was just one of those racing deals, you know. I wanted to come down behind him and I just misjudged and clipped him there." Riiiight ...
Raygan Swan has the details

Who's not
• Jimmie Johnson, figuratively. "It's like getting kicked in the [groin] over and over," Johnson said. "That sucked." C'mon, dude -- call it a mulligan ...
David Caraviello has the details

(Neither is Phillip Fulmer. Guess it's time to fire up that U-Haul that I've promise to drive if UT ever canned the Great Pumpkin. My guess is that with that $6 million buyout, he can afford Mayflower ...)

In case you missed it ...

• After winning Saturday's Nationwide race at Texas, Kyle Busch donated $100,000 to Sam Ard, a former Busch Series champion who is suffering from Alzheimer's disease and financial difficulties. That should earn Busch a pass the next time you want to boooooo the driver, but it probably won't.

• Jamie McMurray has three top-10 finishes in the past four races, including his only top-five finishes of the season (fifth at Charlotte; third at Texas).

• David Ragan posted his sixth consecutive top-15 finish. He has 1,035 points in the Chase, more than Matt Kenseth (973), Tony Stewart (962), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (927), Denny Hamlin (925) and Kyle Busch (858).

• Martin Truex Jr. has four consecutive top-15 finishes. After finishing eighth on Sunday, he now has six top-15 runs in seven starts at Texas.

• David Reutimann posted his first top-10 finish since Richmond. He'll never be the pitchman that Mikey is, but Reutimann has rightfully become the on-track face of Michael Waltrip Racing.

• Mark Martin's 12th-place finish was his 30th top-15 in 47 starts during the past two seasons. Driving the No. 5 for Hendrick in 2009, go ahead and pencil in Martin for the Chase next year ....

Moving on to Phoenix

Date	Track	Time	TV
Sept. 14	Loudon	1 p.m.	ABC
Sept. 21	Dover	1 p.m.	ABC
Sept. 28	Kansas	1 p.m.	ABC
Oct. 5	Talladega	1 p.m.	ABC
Oct. 11	Charlotte	7 p.m.	ABC
Oct. 19	Martinsville	1 p.m.	ABC
Oct. 26	Atlanta	1 p.m.	ABC
Nov. 2	Texas	3 p.m.	ABC
Nov. 9	Phoenix	3 p.m.	ABC
Nov. 16	Homestead	3 p.m.	ABC

All times ET

• OK, so the drama is building! Two races remaining! Only 106 points separate leader Jimmie Johnson from second-place Carl Edwards! Phoenix, here we come! ... And yeah, Johnson's 6.0 average finish in 10 races -- including two wins, five top-five finishes and eight top-10s -- leads all active drivers. Edwards' numbers: three top-fives and five top-10s with an average finish of 14.5 in eight starts. But it could happen! The lead could be double-digits heading to Homestead!

Johnson can clinch his third consecutive Cup Series championship at Phoenix; he needs to finish with a 196-point lead over second place. If Johnson leaves Phoenix with a 162-point lead, he would need only to start the season finale at Homestead to clinch the title. (Again, take the green, make a hard left into the grass and cue Kool & The Gang.

There's a party goin' on right here
A celebration to last throughout the years
So bring your good times, and your laughter too
We gonna celebrate your party with you

Bottom line: If Johnson finishes seventh or better in each of the final two races, he will win the championship no matter how any other driver finishes.

• The great thing about PIR: There's really no clear-cut favorite. Jeff Burton, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick lead the pack with two wins. Six drivers have at least five top-five finishes. Fourteen have at least five top-10s. Still, there are those you know will be there at the end. Just don't be surprised if it's Mark Martin. Or Denny Hamlin. Or even Martin Truex Jr.

• Phoenix is one of 12 tracks (seven of which are in the Chase) at which Jimmie Johnson averages a top-10 finish. (Homestead is a woeful 13.4! There is hope for a dramatic finish!)

• After finishing fourth, first and fifth in his first three races at PIR, Bill Elliott has one top-10 finish in his last 16 starts at the track (and none in the past 13).

• I can't believe it's the end of this week's column and there hasn't been a mention of Greg Biffle. He was the runner-up in the fall race at Phoenix last year and finished ninth in the spring. Only four other drivers finished both races in the top 10 in those races: Jeff Burton, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. ... and, of course, The Man, The Myth, The Legend -- Jimmie Kenneth Johnson.

And finally ...

According to Stats Inc.: With the upcoming presidential election, the search is on for signs as to who will be our nation's 44th president. One infamous predictor is the Washington Redskins' result in their final home game prior to Election Day.

Between 1936 and 2000, a Redskins victory in their last home game before Election Day meant the incumbent party kept control of the White House. A Redskins loss meant the election went to the party not in power. However, in 2004, the Redskins lost a home game to the Green Bay Packers on the Sunday before Election Day, yet George W. Bush and the Republicans retained control of the White House.

A lesser known predictor of White House triumph belongs to the Cincinnati Bengals. In nine of the past 10 elections, the Bengals have tied their fate to the Democratic candidate.

Since 1968, if Cincinnati won its last contest prior to Election Day, the Democratic contender for the White House also was victorious. If Cincinnati lost its last contest before Election Day, the Democrat also lost. The lone exception came in 1988, when the Bengals defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on Nov. 6, yet two days later Michael Dukakis lost the election to George H.W. Bush.

The Bengals won on Sunday; the Redskins play on Monday night. Get out and vote on Tuesday.

Lasting image

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Will the real Carl Edwards please stand up?

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.