Past two races reminders that it's about winning

Jamie McMurray could not sleep on the night before qualifying for the Brickyard 400, but his restlessness had nothing to do with nerves. Over and over again, he ran qualifying laps around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in his head, trying to get down a rhythm. He thought he had a legitimate shot at the pole, and was crushed the next day when he qualified in fourth position. He went back to the motorhome, where wife, Christy, picked up on his frustration, and offered sage words of advice.

"Heck with the pole," she told her husband. "Win the race."

Christy and Jamie McMurray celebrate at Indianapolis.

Win the race. What a novel concept in this era of Chase berths and postseason positioning, where the biggest push isn't necessarily to get to Victory Lane, but to get inside the top 12 in points following the fall event at Richmond. It gets overlooked these days, as the clock counts down to championship contention and the races blend one into another, forming stepping stones toward a larger prize. But the past two Sprint Cup races have offered clear reminders that winning on a given weekend can bring so much joy, relief, and accomplishment in and of itself, regardless of any bigger picture. David Reutimann and McMurray have shown us that, indeed, it's all about winning the race.

As it stands now, it appears neither driver will make the Chase. With five races remaining until that ballyhooed cutoff event on Sept. 11, McMurray is 16th in points, 151 back of the 12th and final position, while Reutimann is 18th, 177 points out. To get in, either driver would have to be near-perfect from here on out, and get a lot of help from the competitors ahead of them. And even if that unlikely scenario unfolded, then what? As promising as McMurray and Reutimann have been at times this season, neither has shown the sustained strength that would indicate they're capable of challenging the likes of Denny Hamlin or Jimmie Johnson during that final 10-race span.

And yet, if you think McMurray and Reutimann are wallowing in disappointment these days over their respective point positions, you're kidding yourself. Two weeks ago at Chicagoland Speedway, Reutimann muscled past Jeff Gordon and then outran Carl Edwards to score a victory that erased any lingering doubts about his win in the rain-shortened triumph in the Coca-Cola 600 the year before. It was such a significant achievement, a line of drivers approached Reutimann in Victory Lane to offer congratulations, and his crew chief was left fighting back tears. It's quite doubtful that a similar scenario would unfold should Reutimann sneak into the Chase as the 11th or 12th driver five weeks from now.

Then there's McMurray, who's living the most charmed existence of any driver in NASCAR, even if he's likely to become the first Indianapolis winner to miss the Chase. Only three drivers have swept the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 in the same season, and now he's one of them. The Daytona victory hit him like an emotional sledgehammer, left him misty-eyed, and swept him up in a post-race media blitz that made him known beyond his sport. The unabashed glee in the Brickyard victory was easy to see, in how McMurray, his wife, and his team principals stuffed themselves into the pace car for the traditional winner's ride around the race track, and in the way his crewmen climbed over one another to kiss those dirty but beloved bricks. (Continued)