Edwards getting another chance to make good in '09

It was a relatively content Carl Edwards who took to the dais following the season-ending Sprint Cup race at Homestead this past November. He seemed OK, if not completely satisfied, with the just-concluded season he had had.

His positive attitude probably was due in part to the fact that while he had finished second to Jimmie Johnson in the final standings, his series-best nine victories had him thinking that 2009 would be the season of Carl.

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Carl Edwards is counting on his previous Chase experience to help him in 2009 and why he's going to have to apply all he's got to win the championship.

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If only he could have known.

The 2009 season has been the season of Carl's disappointment. The kind of disappointment which goes with the inability to win even one race. The inability to build any kind of consistent momentum and the inability to be regarded as a heavy threat to win the championship.

But the season is not yet over. In fact, the most important part of the season lies ahead. The Chase begins this Sunday with the Sylvania 300 (1 p.m. ET, ABC) at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Edwards knows that if he should be able to establish the momentum and get a victory or two during the final 10 races of the year, he may yet turn this into his season.

"The first season of 2009 is over and we've achieved our goal, so now we just have to take advantage of the points being reset and make the most of it," Edwards said this week. "We've just got to go do it. We've got to buckle down and take the gift that is the reconfiguration of the points and make the most of it."

Those reconfigured points put Edwards just 40 points behind Chase leader Mark Martin.

That deficit is velum-thin when you consider the NASCAR point-paying structure, the fact that 10 races remain and the fact that Edwards is one of the best stock-car drivers in the world.

"I'm real excited about it and, hopefully, we can have some good runs and get back up there the way we know we can run," Edwards said.

History lines up in Edwards' corner.

A year ago, he won three times in the Chase -- at Atlanta, Texas and the season finale at Homestead.

His average career finish in Chase races is 12.2. That is third-best among his competitors, and just three-tenths away from Jeff Gordon in second place.

The news and numbers are not quite as good at New Hampshire, as Edwards never has won there and his average finish is 13.5. But, a year ago in the New England forest country, he started second, finished third and led 61 laps.

"Hopefully, we can run like Greg [Biffle, his Roush Fenway Racing teammate] and I ran a year ago," Edwards said. "We went in there and Greg won, and I finished third and that's what we need to do. We just need to get off to a good start. So much can happen, especially with double-file restarts there. That could be rough, so we've got to stay out of that stuff.

"I think the biggest challenge this weekend will be double-file restarts and getting our setup right. It's a short race, so qualifying will be important. It's just the regular stuff we deal with at Loudon trying to get track position." (Continued)