White Flag
A NASCAR BLOG BY Rea White
Cup championship still up for grabs
Don't be too hasty in wrapping up NASCAR’s Chase For The Sprint Cup this season.
While Jimmie Johnson is certainly in command, the next couple of tracks could wreak havoc on the standings.
Martinsville Speedway, the .526-mile oval in Virginia, is a tight little paperclip where cars have little room to maneuver. Throw in the double-file restarts that NASCAR has now instituted in races and those final laps could alter the finishing order dramatically.
Then drivers head to Talladega Superspeedway, where they can quickly become a victim once more. The restrictor-plate track features swarms of cars racing in tight packs. All it takes is one slip by a competitor and a melee ensues. Cars pile into one another at high speed, often ending the outing for several involved. And everyone has seen how even on the final lap, a potentially strong finish can go awry either through contact with another car or by getting shuffled out of the drafting line.
Certainly Johnson has history in his favor at Martinsville, where he has five wins. But even he and crew chief Chad Knaus are quick to caution that anything can still happen. Johnson needs to stay out of trouble in the next two races to maintain his Chase pace. If he does that, the title race will most likely be a mere technicality in the final weeks of the season.
Rea White
Rea White has been covering NASCAR full time since 1998. She has been an associate editor at NASCAR Scene since 2002.
Latest Tweets
Poll PositionView All
Which has been most detrimental to NASCAR television ratings and attendance this season?
Promotions
-
Play "WIX Filters' Pick 3" stock car fantasy and win prizes. Season 2 is now in session!
-
Tweet your thoughts about each race and join the conversation with other fans.
-
Drive an authentic NASCAR Sprint Cup car at the NASCAR Racing Experience.
-
Make weekly pics for the Chase and be entered to win weekly SPEED Merchandise.
Comments
1 response to "Cup championship still up for grabs ".
STP43FAN said:
Oct 22, 2009 at 5:41 PMKeep telling yourself this, yet in the end it's impossible to believe. Johnson is bulletproof and there is nothing in history to believe that "anything can happen." It has to be seen - a season where the Hendrick cars dominate the championship then collapse in ruins over the final five races - to be believed. Anything-can-happen, my foot.
Report as AbuseReport Abuse
This feature is intended to allow you to report comments that are abusive in terms of foul/vulgar language, harassment, racial/religious prejudice and any words/phrases of a related nature. This feature should not be used to report users who simply make a comment about your favorite driver, with which you do not agree. Commenting is a forum in which we can all express our opinions. Reporting abuse of others should be done with this in mind.
» Confirm Abuse Report