Checker Auto Parts 500 News and Notes

Who's Hot / Who's Not : Outside The Chase

The Lone Star State proved a lonely place for drivers out of the playoffs Sunday, as nine Chase drivers finished the race in the Top 11. One by one, some of the best hopes to sneak an upset win at Texas crashed themselves out of contention, showing instead why this wasn’t the year they proved capable of challenging for that championship trophy.

But amidst the smoke of an ugly day for this large group of underdogs, some longtime veterans kept up steady streaks that left them leaving with a Texas-sized smile. Who were they, and what man ahead of them is charging hard to stake his claim on the 13th spot in the standings? Find out below in this week’s edition of Who’s Hot … and Who’s Not, non-Chase style.

Hot / Not Update : How The Atlanta Edition Crowd Fared At Texas

Last week’s lone Hot spot was an early contender at Texas; having won there in the spring of ’06, Kasey Kahne was gunning hard for a repeat performance. But a flat tire midway through helped extend a winless streak that’ll reach 40 races with the drop of the green flag at Phoenix; the No. 9 car wound up 18th, two laps off the pace.

At least Kahne retained a small amount of heat in his late season streak up the standings, though. Drivers Reed Sorenson and Michael Waltrip weren’t so lucky; labeled Warm in last week’s edition, they cooled off considerably with weekends they’d quickly like to forget. Sorenson’s day ended in the haze of a wreck with David Gilliland; he hit the inside wall hard and wound up 40th, out of the race before the halfway point. Waltrip didn’t even make it that far; the recent strength of the No. 55 team turned sour when his NAPA Toyota failed to qualify Friday night.

Such an icy Cool feeling also extended to Mark Martin – he got caught in the tail end of a multi-car wreck, winding up behind the wall for repairs. The car he made contact with was none other than Gilliland; last week’s Cold selection was involved in multiple accidents with a loose-handling Ford, and hobbled home a disappointing 28th. Considering those performances, perhaps Sam Hornish, Jr., got spared a disappointing day – car owner Roger Penske chose not to enter the Indy Car star turned NASCAR rookie at Texas, leaving his Cold streak intact – for now.

Hot

Ryan Newman’s faulty engine briefly halted his momentum at AMS, but solid pit strategy Sunday has him flaming hot once again. The No. 12 team didn’t have a winning car at Texas, but made the most of it; a late two-tire stop put the Alltel Dodge out front, and Newman quietly steered his car home to a fifth-place finish. The run left him just 68 points behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. for the 13th spot in the standings, and he’s got a great shot of catching the No. 8 team for that honor; with three Top 5 finishes in the last five races (and a fourth near-miss at Charlotte) Newman is clearly the hottest non-Chaser as of late.
Ricky Rudd is back to running respectable in the final few races of his storied career.

Warm

The heartwarming career of Ricky Rudd has only two races remaining, but I’m happy to report the driver of the No. 88 is doing everything he can to go out on a high note. In the four races since returning from a separated shoulder, Rudd’s put together three runs of 17th or better, including a 15th place result in Texas; the Snickers Ford wound up on the lead lap after getting the Lucky Dog not once, but twice. It’s that kind of luck that had evaded this team all season long; but with Rudd’s retirement close at hand – as well as that of car owner Robert Yates – this team is giving it all they’ve got to give their leaders a proper sendoff.

Elliott Sadler had a season to forget behind the wheel of the No. 19 Dodge; however, a crew chief change Sunday provided a welcome boost of momentum. With Josh Browne replaced by Rodney Childers from teammate Scott Riggs’ machine, the head wrench put together one of the best hot rods of the season for Sadler. After qualifying a ho-hum 19th, a quiet yet consistent race left him running with the leaders and 12th by the checkered flag. It was the second straight Top 15 for a team looking to feed off the momentum of teammate Kasey Kahne.

“It’s fun when you’re making progress, and we’ve done that in recent weeks,” Sadler said. “We want to turn those Top 15 finishes into Top 10s these final two races.”

Cool

Mike Skinner failed to qualify the No. 36 Bill Davis Racing car at Atlanta, but what he did at Texas was nothing short of remarkable. In a tough title battle of his own over in the Craftsman Truck Series, you wouldn’t blame Skinner for failing to give a Cup substitution role his undivided attention; however, not only did he qualify the 360 OTC Toyota this week, he did so in impressive fashion, clocking in 14th with a team that’s made less than half the races this season. Then, he drove the car to just its fifth Top 25 of the year; finishing 24th, three laps off the pace, he looked plenty capable of driving at the Nextel Cup level once again.

Brian Vickers is frustrated, and it’s easy to figure out why – Toyota’s most experienced “young gun” has failed to qualify thirteen times this season, and when he has made the field, he’s never sure how competitive that car’s going to be. On Sunday, it wasn’t; off the pace from the very start, Vickers went laps down early en route to finishing a distant 23rd. More importantly, he’s finally letting his emotions show, evident by several of his post-race quotes concerning the mechanical state of his vehicle:

“We had a lot of brake issues, which is getting really frustrating, and when I’m at the end of my rope, it breaks,” he said afterwards. “We ran our brakes a lot here today and I don’t know why — I can’t explain it.”

“We’ve had enough problems this year, and it’s time to get them fixed.”

Cold

The Wood Brothers hired Bill Elliott for two reasons; the security of the Past Champion’s Provisional, and their unwavering confidence the NASCAR legend could pull them out of their hole in owner points – even at 52 years old. Alas, their faith has not been rewarded; caught up in a wreck not of his making, Elliott was 36th at Texas, the third time in four races he’s finished 34th or worse. With the No. 21 team a staggering 127 points out of the Top 35, it’s going to take a minor miracle now for them to lock up an exemption for the beginning of ’08 – but ironically, the continued comfort of that Past Champion’s Provisional may keep Elliott in this ride for the beginning of next year.

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Who's Hot / Who's Not In The Chase : Texas Edition

They say everything is bigger and better in Texas, and that adage certainly proved true for Jimmie Johnson, as he continued his quest for back-to-back Nextel Cup Championships. Once again, Johnson and the No. 48 team found themselves at the front of the field when it came down to money time, as he ran down Matt Kenseth in the closing laps to score his ninth win of the season and third in a row. Not even his teammate / co-owner / mentor Jeff Gordon can seem to tame the No. 48 juggernaut; with just two races remaining on the schedule, he’s fallen behind his streaky teammate. But at least the two superstars have pulled away from the crowd; barring some freakish incident, the battle for the title is all but officially down to the two cars from the Hendrick stable. Johnson, with his new Stetson cowboy hat in hand, now heads to Phoenix trying to increase his 30-point lead over Gordon.

Behind them, there are other Chase drivers fighting to finish as high as possible, all of them trying hard not to end the season quietly. So, who left Texas still kicking, and which drivers are already out to pasture? Read this week’s Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in the Chase to find out.

Hot

Jimmie Johnson: With his third straight win, Johnson was finally able to take over the point lead from teammate Jeff Gordon. By pressing Matt Kenseth in a spirited battle up front, Johnson had some nervous moments at Texas; but in the end, he gained 15 critical points while laying it all out on the line to gain that one extra spot. Now, he’s up by 30 heading to PIR, another track that Johnson has yet to win at; but with four straight Top 10s there and the incredible run this team is on, it’s probably only a matter days until he remedies that.

Jeff Gordon: For the first time in the Chase, Gordon finds himself outside the top spot in the standings. Once again, the No. 24 team had to fight and make adjustments during the race to secure a Top 10 finish, coming home 7th after a second straight disappointing week. He’ll need to regroup quickly; Gordon finally earned his first win at Phoenix earlier this year, and with the hot streak Johnson is on, he’ll likely need to sweep if he wants to head to Homestead with the top spot in hand.

Matt Kenseth: Finally, Kenseth is putting in the kind of finishes that might have given him a chance for a second title. His fifth place finish at Martinsville kicked off a string of three straight Top 5s, which hit a high note this weekend at Texas when he was a handful of laps away from victory. Sitting 10th in the points, Kenseth is mathematically out of contention; but with two Top 5s in the last three races at Phoenix, he still might score win number two of ’07.

Warm

Clint Bowyer: Still in third place, Bowyer is the only driver with a serious snowball’s chance in Phoenix to steal the title from Johnson or Gordon. But his 19th place finish at Texas – his first finish outside the Top 10 in the last four races – didn’t do him any favors, a flat left rear tire all but deflating an unlikely title bid. Heading into the penultimate race of the year, he is 181 points behind Johnson, and doesn’t have an impressive track record at Phoenix to make the picture look any better. Among the 12 Chasers, Bowyer’s average of 20.5 is the lowest at PIR.

Kyle Busch: Once again, the No. 5 over the wall team cost Busch a shot at victory. Could it be they aren’t giving their best to their driver leaving at the end of the season? Whatever the case, Busch’s race-high 153 laps led went for naught when he could only fight his way back to fourth at Texas. Moving forward, Busch is a former PIR winner and has three Top 10 finishes in five starts; perhaps he can still overcome his team’s shortcomings to get that final win at Hendrick Motorsports. Just don’t count on it.

Jeff Burton: Like his former teammate Matt Kenseth, Burton is finding his groove too late in the season to make it really count. After struggling with poor finishes and bad luck early in the Chase, he has scored three Top 10s in the last four weeks to climb to seventh in the standings. All that means now is Burton’s the highest ranked driver officially out of the title hunt; however, there is a chance he can steal the limelight from Johnson and Gordon this weekend at Phoenix. A two time winner there, Burton hasn’t finished worse than 15th in the last 12 races held at the track.

Kevin Harvick: With his tire misfortunes out of the way, Harvick is finally starting to rack up some decent finishes in the final few races of the season. Sunday at Texas, the credit for Harvick’s tenth place finish goes to his crew; they continually put in impressive stops and helped Harvick gain valuable track position. Now, with Top 10s in two of the last three events, Harvick gets to try to do something he hasn’t done since Daytona… win a points-paying race. Harvick swept both PIR races last year and was tenth earlier in 2007; so, look for Harvick to be strong this weekend.

Kurt Busch: Sunday’s race at Texas was definitely an adventure for Busch. After starting sixth, Busch was up and down in the running order all day long due to varying pit strategy. An extra stop for a flat tire put him a lap down at one point, but he was able to show just how strong his car was by battling back to finish eighth for the second straight week. It’s hard to handicap Busch’s chances at Phoenix; it’s a track where he has previously won, but he has finished outside the Top 15 on his last four occasions there.

Cool

Tony Stewart: Stewart was still showing a never say die attitude about his chances at the title, but with an 11th place finish at Texas that dropped him to sixth in the standings, it’ll only be one more week before that ship has officially sailed. Other than a 30th place finish at Atlanta, Stewart’s finishes the last five races have been respectable, but nowhere close to what he needed to stay in the game. Most importantly, he has failed to lead a lap in the last four races, just another reason he finds himself 373 points behind Johnson heading to Phoenix. Stewart’s record at PIR is mixed; he won his first time out in 1999, but has struggled at times since then. However, the No. 20 car was runner up to Gordon here back in April, and led a race high 132 laps; so there is a shot Stewart will be able to grab win number four of the season and gain a few spots in the standings.

Carl Edwards: Perhaps Edwards stayed up too late Saturday night celebrating his Busch Series championship, but whatever the cause, he was a non-factor at Texas on Sunday. The car was off from the start, and Edwards quickly found himself being lapped by the leaders. Finally, the crew found an issue with the sway bar, but the damage was done; he finished three laps down in 26th, dropping to fifth in the standings as a result. However, this is one driver that should have no problem bouncing back; in four of the last five Phoenix races, Edwards has run in the Top 10.

Martin Truex, Jr: There hasn’t been much for the No. 1 team to cheer about over the last five races, but they were finally able to secure a finish that showed how strong they have been running the last couple of weeks. Truex led 16 circuits on Sunday before ending up third, good enough to get out of the Chase cellar and into 11th in the points. Looking ahead, Truex has limited experience at Phoenix, and his best finish to date is a 12th place run in this race last year. But with a little luck, he should be able to better that mark this weekend.

Cold

Denny Hamlin: With his third finish of 20th or worse in the last four races, Hamlin now has the distinction of being last in the Chase; that’s not exactly the position Hamlin or many fans foresaw as the playoffs began in September. But things haven’t gone well for the sophomore as of late, who was near the top of the standings for most of the regular season. Hamlin does have two chances left to get his second win of the year; should this team regroup, he has a decent shot at Phoenix. He’s run well in the CoT events this year, and he’s finished third in the last two races run at PIR. The title long ago turned into a pipe dream for Hamlin; but surely, he’ll be motivated not to finish the Chase in last place.

Just one race will remain after Sunday’s race at Phoenix. Can anyone else step up to the plate and challenge Jimmie Johnson for the win? Will Jeff Gordon regain the top spot, or is he just laying back to make his move at Homestead, boosting the sinking television ratings in dramatic fashion? Speaking of television, will we see more drivers than just Johnson and Gordon throughout the course of the race? We’ll just have to wait until next week to find out Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in the Chase.

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Checker Auto Parts 500 preview
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

Only two races remain on the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup tour-season and Jimmie Johnson has taken a nice 30 point lead over teammate Jeff Gordon following Johnson’s win at Texas last week. The win was Johnson’s third in a row and 9th overall on the season. Gordon finished a respectable 7th, but gained 39 less points than Johnson.

This week the two Hendrick drivers will battle it out in Phoenix, a place where Gordon won for the first time ever in April. In that race, Johnson finished 4th. Should the same scenario unfold as it did in April the two teammates would find themselves tied going into the final race at Miami. That would turn out to be some battle.

Johnson will be going for his 4th consecutive win, a feat last accomplished by Gordon in 1998 when he reeled out 13 wins in Richard Petty-like fashion. Gordon has been very strong of late, but just not good enough to hold the hard charging Johnson. Gordon has come with 3 straight top 10 finishes yet has lost 98 points to Johnson in the chase.

Gordon does have some positive history on side this week. Fifteen times this season, back-to-back races have resulted in Gordon “out-pointing” Johnson by more than 30 points. Twice, Phoenix was involved. Below are the 15 instances:

The possibility of Gordon winning again is pretty strong just because they will be driving the “Car of Tomorrow” again where no one has been more consistent than Gordon, including the accomplishments of Johnson.

To get a better feel for what we’ll see this week in Phoenix we can look at the past results from 3 different tracks that use the same set-ups. Phoenix, Richmond, and New Hampshire are all tracks that run similar to each other. If a team runs well on one of the tracks they are more inclined to do well at the other two. Even before the COT, drivers like Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Jeff Burton, and Dale Earnhardt Jr have all done equally well during a stretch at each of the 3 tracks. Last season Kevin Harvick took it up a notch by sweeping Phoenix and also winning at New Hampshire and Richmond.

The April Phoenix race was a long time ago. It was a time when teams were still getting used to the COT, at least everyone other than Hendrick Motorsports. The best gauge for this weeks race may be to take the last Richmond and New Hampshires races. That recent history and performance should be more telling than the actual Phoenix race from April which was run at night. Richmond was the last race of the regular season and New Hampshire was the first race of the chase. Jimmie Johnson won at Richmond with Gordon finishing 4th. At Loudon, Clint Bowyer won his first career Cup race with Gordon 2nd and Johnson 6th.

In each of those two races it was apparent that Ford’s are a long ways away from being close with their COT program. Six of the top 7 finishers at Richmond were Chevy’s and the top 6 Loudon finishers were Chevy’s. Tony Stewart joined Johnson and Gordon as the only drivers to make the top 6 in each race.

We’ll stay with the Chevy theme this week and go with Gordon to win and tighten the Chase up and setting the stage for one final week of hoopla to close the season out.

TOP 5 Finish Prediction:

1) #24 Jeff Gordon (5/1)
2) #20 Tony Stewart (7/1)
3) #07 Clint Bowyer (15/1)
4) #48 Jimmie Johnson (5/1)
5) #5 Kyle Busch (9/1)

RacingOne Power Rankings

Kyle Busch has joined his Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon at the top of this week's edition of the RacingOne Power Rankings.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Looks even stronger than he did a year ago on his way to his first career Cup title.

Last Week's Position: First

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Johnson has finished seventh or better in his last four starts.

2. Jeff Gordon: Two races left to figure out how to derail his teammate and swing the momentum over to the 24 team's side.

Last Week's Position: Second

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Phoenix is Gordon's second-best track on the circuit based on his 8.2 finishing average.

3. Kyle Busch: Has been a major factor in the last month but now only has two races left to try an get another during his Hendrick tenure.

Last Week's Position: Fifth

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Busch has one win and three top 10s in five starts.

4. Matt Kenseth: Is there anybody else in the series who will race as clean as Kenseth during the closing laps?

Last Week's Position: Seventh

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Kenseth is coming off his fourth top five in 10 starts.

5. Jeff Burton: Rebounded from early trouble in Texas to post a solid finish.

Last Week's Position: Sixth

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Burton has three top 10s in six starts with Richard Childress Racing.

6. Kurt Busch: Somehow came home with a top 10 in Texas after suffering through a variety of problems.

Last Week's Position: 10th

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Busch, the 2005 winner, has a finishing average of 16.7 in his three starts with Penske Racing.

7. Clint Bowyer: Faced with the impossible task of trying to run down the Hendrick juggernaut at the top of the standings.

Last Week's Position: Fourth

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Bowyer holds a 20.5 average finish in four starts.

8. Tony Stewart: Made it look easy during the Chase last year when he won three times, but this year has been a different story.

Last Week's Position: Ninth

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Stewart has one win and two runner-up finishes in 11 starts.

9. Martin Truex Jr.: Was in the catbird seat if Kenseth and Johnson wrecked in the final laps at Texas but still a solid third-place finish.

Last Week's Position: 13th

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Truex Jr. has yet to lead a lap or finish in the top 10 in three starts.

10. Kevin Harvick: A top 10 at Texas an okay showing but has really disappeared during the Chase.

Last Week's Position: 11th

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Harvick is coming off three consecutive top 10s, including two wins in 2006.

11. Denny Hamlin: Showed some signs of life at Texas up until the point where he took himself out of the race.

Last Week's Position: 12th

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Hamlin has finished third in his last two starts to lower his finishing average to 13.2.

12. Carl Edwards: From penthouse to the outhouse best describes his weekend at Texas.

Last Week's Position: Third

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Edwards has posted an average finish of 6.6 in his last five starts.

13. Ryan Newman: Scored his third top 10 of The Chase with a fifth-place finish at Texas.

Last Week's Position: N/R

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Newman's last top 10 came in 2004 when he finished second.

14. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: No blown engine or lost rear wheel added up to a good day for Junior the way things have gone lately.

Last Week's Position: 15th

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Earnhardt Jr. has posted two wins and five top 10s in 10 starts.

15. Jamie McMurray: His ninth-place finish at Texas was his first top 10 since Dover in September.

Last Week's Position:N/R

Phoenix International Raceway Fact: Finished ninth at Texas for his first top 10 since September.

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Checker Auto Parts 500 PreQ

This story is getting old. Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon rank as the No. 1 and No .2 drivers on the PreQ forecast. Yawn. The duo has been dominating the series over the course of the Chase for the Championship with half of the championship contenders already eliminated from contention. A few more will be eliminated with the start of the Checker Auto Parts 500 this Sunday. Johnson has been especially dominant winning three straight races while taking over the points lead from Gordon by 30 points. He is now in the driver’s seat as the series heads to Phoenix International Raceway where he is averaging a 7th place finish in eight career starts – second to only (surprise, surprise) Gordon who is averaging a 6th place finish the last 12 starts at the track. Expect Hendrick Motorsports to be the cream of the crop in the desert once again.

Kurt Busch went to victory lane at Phoenix in the spring race during the 2005 season. That was the first year that Phoenix went on the schedule twice a year. When the series went back to the track in the fall Busch was a participant in the Chase for the Championship and looking forward to a repeat performance of his spring win. Things didn’t go quite according to plan for Busch as he was arrested in the area before the race which lead to his early release from Roush Racing as he was already signed on to run the #2 Miller Lite Dodge for Penske Racing in 2006. Busch missed the last two races of that season but has rebounded with Penske making the Chase this season. He is looking to move up in the standings with a good run at the track. He has posted back-to-back top 10 finishes and can move up quite a few positions with another top 10 run. Don’t count out Busch at Phoenix.

Kasey Kahne has been running much better in the second half of the season but is still searching for his first win of the year after leading the series with six wins in 2006. Kahne is finally getting cars that will run up front but is still not producing near enough top 10 finishes. He has, however, been running in the top 20 in a consistent basis recording six consecutive top 20 finishes including three of his eight top 10 finishes. Kahne had the poorest run of his career at Phoenix in the spring race but finished each event in the top 10 last seasons. All in all he has three top 10s in six career starts for an average finish of 15th place. He could be a dark horse in this race as he would love nothing more than to make it to victory lane before the end of the season.

Although Clint Bowyer is still mathematically alive for the championship hunt not very many are considering him a potential title winner. Bowyer had his poorest finish of the Chase last weekend at Texas when he placed in the 19th position. That shouldn’t be considered all that bad of a day but when Johnson and Gordon are consistently finishing in the top 5 you are going to lose more and more points. Bowyer will likely see any of his championship hopes come to an end this weekend as he has not run especially well at Phoenix in his career. He does have a 5th place finish to his credit at the track but in three other starts has not finished in the top 20 as he is averaging a 21st place finish in his career at Phoenix. Bowyer has proven he belongs with NASCARs elite but he will be racing for 3rd place in the point standings over the final two races.

When the Chase for the Championship began Casey Mears was running, and finishing, up front on a consistent basis. Those fortunes have turned in recent events as he is averaging a 21st place finish over the last three races. Mears also has plenty of problems at Phoenix with a 31st place average finish in seven career starts. His best finish of his career at Phoenix is just 20th place while finishing outside the top 30 four times. He had one of his worst runs of the season in the spring race at Phoenix and with his downturn and poor history at the track it is doubtful he will be in contention for a top 20 finish. Leave him off your roster for this race.

www.profantasysports.com

A glance at the 12 drivers in the Chase for the Nextel Cup championship
November 7, 2007

DRIVER: Jimmie Johnson

TEAM: Hendrick Motorsports

CAR: No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: First, 6,382

POSITION CHANGE: Plus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Johnson won his ninth race of the season - and third in a row - to move past teammate Jeff Gordon into the points lead. He took the lead after Texas last year, and held on for his first Nextel Cup title.

SPEAKING: ``Thirty points is good, and if I can maintain it or stretch it, it would be a lot better. I just know that I won at Texas, he finished seventh, and it was like a 40-point swing. So if I finish eighth at Phoenix and he wins, he's back in the lead. I'm not ready at all to say we're in control of this thing,'' Johnson said.

DRIVER: Jeff Gordon

TEAM: Hendrick Motorsports

CAR: No. 24 Dupont Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: Second, -30

POSITION CHANGE: Minus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Gordon wasn't great at Texas, finishing eighth to lose his lead in the standings. But he now heads to Phoenix, where he won during the spring.

SPEAKING: ``Thirty points isn't that much. The biggest thing right now is we're getting beat and they're the ones winning the races. We have to put pressure back on them and outperform them. They're on a roll right now and we've got to answer this weekend,'' Gordon said.

DRIVER: Clint Bowyer

TEAM: Richard Childress Racing

CAR: No. 07 Jack Daniels Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: Third, -181

POSITION CHANGE: None

WHAT HAPPENED: Bowyer finished 19th at Texas because of two late pit stops to correct a loose wheel. His title chances all but over, Bowyer will try to win at Phoenix, site of his 2005 Nextel Cup debut.

SPEAKING: ``Phoenix is definitely one of my favorites. I usually run well and I really enjoy racing there. We're taking the car that we won with at New Hampshire, so hopefully we can go to Phoenix this weekend and win again,'' Bowyer said.

DRIVER: Kyle Busch

TEAM: Hendrick Motorsports

CAR: No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: Fourth, -339

POSITION CHANGE: Plus 2

WHAT HAPPENED: Busch led a race-high 153 laps and was in position to win until a slow final pit stop. He rallied back to finish fourth, and is trying to move up one more spot in the standings to give Hendrick a 1-2-3 finish in the final points standings.

SPEAKING: Busch did not comment after the race.

DRIVER: Carl Edwards

TEAM: Roush Fenway Racing

CAR: No. 99 Office Depot Ford

CHASE POINTS: Fifth, -357

POSITION CHANGE: Minus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Edwards wrapped up the Busch Series championship on Saturday, but struggled the next day in the Cup race. He finished 26th, three laps down.

SPEAKING: ``Last week at Texas we had some bad luck with a sway bar malfunction, but hopefully all of that is behind us and we can get a solid top-five this weekend,'' crew chief Bob Osborne said.

DRIVER: Tony Stewart

TEAM: Joe Gibbs Racing

CAR: No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: Sixth, -373

POSITION CHANGE: Minus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Stewart spun during the race when he was nudged by Casey Mears, but didn't damage his car. He finished 11th.

SPEAKING: ``It'll be interesting to watch Jeff and Jimmie go for it, and I don't think you can count Clint Bowyer out of this thing yet. He's a guy that can still do it. He's hung in there this whole Chase, and if those two guys make a slip, he's right there and in a position to take advantage of it. It's really a three-horse race,'' Stewart said.

DRIVER: Jeff Burton

TEAM: Richard Childress Racing

CAR: No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: Seventh, -431

POSITION CHANGE: Plus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Burton finished sixth, best of the RCR entries, but was mathematically eliminated from title contention.

SPEAKING: ``We're using Phoenix as a place to go and try to get better at the one-mile race tracks. We've worked hard on that program, but the other two (RCR) teams have done a better job than we have. We're definitely going to lean heavy on our teammates and try to learn something,'' Burton said.

DRIVER: Kevin Harvick

TEAM: Richard Childress Racing

CAR: No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: Eighth, -439

POSITION CHANGE: Minus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Harvick finished 10th, his third top-10 of the Chase, but was mathematically eliminated from title contention. He's the defending race winner at Phoenix.

SPEAKING: ``I think Phoenix is a measuring stick for us. If we go there and we are off a little, we know that we need to go back to the drawing board and work on our stuff,'' Harvick said.

DRIVER: Kurt Busch

TEAM: Penske Racing

CAR: No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge

CHASE POINTS: Ninth, -453

POSITION CHANGE: None

WHAT HAPPENED: Busch finished eighth for the second straight race and was mathematically eliminated from title contention.

SPEAKING: ``We look at (Phoenix) as a final shot this year to win a CoT race and we'll be doing everything we can to do that,'' Busch said.

DRIVER: Matt Kenseth

TEAM: Roush Fenway Racing

CAR: No. 17 Dewalt Tools Ford

CHASE POINTS: 10th, -454

POSITION CHANGE: Plus 1

WHAT HAPPENED: Kenseth lost a side-by-side battle for the win to Johnson, and was mathematically eliminated from the Chase.

SPEAKING: ``Texas was a tough one to take, but, looking back on it, it was a pretty good finish for us. We never really had a top-five car until the end of the race. I don't think I could've done anything different that would've helped us win the race besides wrecking, and that's never a good option,'' Kenseth said.

DRIVER: Denny Hamlin

TEAM: Joe Gibbs Racing

CAR: No. 11 Fed Ex Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: 11th, -524

POSITION CHANGE: None

WHAT HAPPENED: Hamlin battled Kenseth for the lead, but contact between the cars sent Hamlin into the wall and he finished 29th.

SPEAKING: ``It's just the story of our Chase. I was driving hard. I was driving a lot harder than I probably typically would at that stage of the race. It bit us in the end. I just misjudged there with Matt,'' Hamlin said.

DRIVER: Martin Truex Jr.

TEAM: Dale Earnhardt Inc.

CAR: No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet

CHASE POINTS: 12th, -524

POSITION CHANGE: None

WHAT HAPPENED: Truex started from the pole and finished third for his best finish in two months.

SPEAKING: ``We have had good cars every race and we just haven't been able to finish where we have ran, so it feels good,'' Truex said.

Matt McLaughlin's Driver Handicaps : Checker Auto Parts 500K

Driver Handicaps – Phoenix “2” Edition

Jimmie Johnson – Johnson came home second in this race last year, and has four straight Top 10 finishes at Phoenix. He also finished second here in 2003.

Jeff Gordon – Gordon won this Spring’s Phoenix race from the pole to finally score his first Cup victory here. He’s run very well at the track, collecting 14 Top 10 finishes in 17 Cup starts for an average finish of eighth. He also won a Busch Series race here in 1999.

Clint Bowyer – Bowyer finished fifth here in the Spring race last year, but his other three Phoenix starts have yielded finishes outside the Top 20. This track is where Bowyer made his Nextel Cup debut back in 2005, finishing 22nd.

Kyle Busch – Busch won here in 2005, ironically enough on the same weekend his brother was busted for a suspected DUI. After a disastrous 2006 in the Arizona desert, Busch rebounded with a seventh place finish here in the Spring.

Carl Edwards – Edwards has finished eleventh or better five races in a row here, but he’s never been able to lead a lap in Cup competition. Edwards did win a Busch race at Phoenix in 2005, and has Top 10 finishes in all seven of his Busch and Truck Series starts at the track.

Tony Stewart – Stewart won here in 1999 – his Phoenix Cup debut – and finished second here this Spring. Along the way, he’s posted Top 10 finishes in seven of his eleven career Cup starts, averaging a tenth place finish at the track.

Jeff Burton – Burton won back-to-back races in the desert in 2000 and 2001 – back when I thought Phoenix was still part of Mexico, and the Cup series visited just once a year. He’s averaging a twelfth place finish at the track for his career; but he hasn’t led a lap here since that ’01 win.

Kevin Harvick – Harvick swept both Cup races at Phoenix in 2006. Last year, he dominated the Fall event, leading 252 of 312 laps; he’s also won two CTS events and a Busch race here.

Kurt Busch – Busch won the Spring Phoenix race in 2005, but wasn’t around to defend his title that Fall after a little Falling out with the Phoenix Sheriff’s department. He has Top 10 finishes in five of his nine Cup starts at the track overall.

Matt Kenseth – Kenseth won here in 2002, and has five Top 10 finishes in ten Phoenix Cup starts. Those good runs have been offset by three DNFs, however.

Denny Hamlin – Hamlin has finished third in his last two Cup races at Phoenix, and won his first career pole in the series here in the Fall of 2005.

Martin Truex, Jr. – This hasn’t been one of Truex’s better tracks. After three Phoenix Cup starts, he’s averaging an 18th place finish with no laps led on the one-mile oval.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – Junior won back-to-back races at Phoenix in 2003-04, but hasn’t led a lap here since. After ten career Cup starts in the desert, he’s averaging just a 17th place finish with two DNF’s.

Ryan Newman – Newman has run both second and third here, but those were his only two Top 10s in ten career Phoenix Cup starts. He’s averaging a miserable 22nd place finish overall at the track.

Casey Mears – Never running better than 20th at Phoenix, Mears isn’t setting the world on fire here; he’s got just a 31st place average finish after seven career starts at the track. That’s not going to get your mug on a trading card anytime soon…

Greg Biffle – Biffle finished 2nd here in 2005, but his other six Phoenix finishes were outside the Top 10 … most of them decidedly so. His average finish here is a mediocre 20th place.

Kasey Kahne – It’s feast or famine for Kahne at Phoenix. The driver’s three Top 10s here are offset by three lackluster runs of 17th or worse.

Jamie McMurray – After eight Phoenix Cup starts, McMurray is still looking for a Top 10 result. His average finish in those eight races? A dismal 25th.

Bobby Labonte – Labonte is batting slightly better than .500 at Phoenix as far as Top 10 finishes go (Nine for 17). Even better, he’s got five Top 10s in his last six Cup starts at the track.

J.J. Yeley – Yeley is averaging a 23rd place finish after three career starts at this track; the sophomore’s never been higher than 20th.

Juan Pablo Montoya – Montoya’s entry in two Busch and one Cup race at Phoenix hasn’t yielded the sudden influx of Hispanic fans to the grandstands some folks envisioned. Maybe that’s because he hasn’t finished better than 20th in any of those races?

www.frontstretch.com

Fantasy Picks 'N' Pans : Phoenix Edition

NASCAR heads to the Desert Southwest for their second trip to Phoenix International Raceway this weekend, as the Chase for the Nextel Cup has winnowed down to merely a two horse race. While six drivers are still mathematically alive, just Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon remain with a realistic chance to take home the trophy come November 18th. Hopefully, your team’s in the same boat as those two, battling hard for a title after thirty-four races filled with your fair share of ups and downs.

Or maybe you find yourself grouped with the rest of the drivers, who are going for the weekly one-hit wonder – a win … and nothing else. With so little on the line for the majority of the field, Phoenix poses the potential for some serious beating and banging, with more than a few dustups along the way to the checkered flag. The desert heat and the setting sun will certainly only add to the already hot temperatures inside the cars.

With time running short, can your fantasy team survive this November firestorm? Read on to discover how to work through the heat and humidity of the Arizona desert, learning who to start and who to sit in this week’s edition of Fantasy Picks ‘N’ Pans.

Cami’s Race Rewind:

Kevin Harvick completed the Phoenix sweep with his dominating performance in the Checker Auto Parts 500K. Harvick, who started second in the race, led 252 of 312 laps last November en route to his fifth victory of the 2006 season. But the win didn’t come as easy as it looked on paper; the race was red flagged when Jeff Green crashed with a handful of laps to go, forcing the No. 29 team to endure the stress of a green/white/checkered finish. With point leader Jimmie Johnson right behind, Harvick was under pressure; but in the end, he held his position to keep his minimal Chase hopes alive one final week. Johnson’s second place run still proved good enough to extend his point lead to 63 over Matt Kenseth; he finished a distant 13th. Denny Hamlin, Jeff Gordon, and Carl Edwards rounded out the Top 5 finishers.

Mike’s Keys to the Race:

Phoenix is sometimes called a short track on steroids. It’s a one-mile tri-oval, with two tight turns (one and two) to go along with two sweeping ones (three and four). In between, there is a bend in the backstretch that can be critical for setting the car up for turns three and four. The oddly-shaped facility has 11 degrees of banking in turns one and two, compared to only nine degrees on the backstretch and throughout turns three and four.

Those different angles mean Phoenix is all about compromise; with virtually no way to make the car handle well at both ends of the track, you’ve got to strike a healthy balance with what you got. Generally, the teams will try to make three and four the better end of the track, so that they can take the greatest advantage of the passing opportunity when they get back around to turn one.

With this being the final Car of Tomorrow race of the season, look for the teams that have shown well in the previous CoT races to be strong all over again. As in the Spring, the Hendrick and Gibbs teams will run near the front, followed closely by DEI.

Mike’s Picks:

Crank ‘Em Up:

Jimmie Johnson is on fire. He’s got the point lead, he’s won three races in a row, and he’s heading to a track where he is second in average finish only to his teammate and championship nemesis Jeff Gordon. Johnson has raced at Phoenix eight times throughout his career – and he’s finished no worse than 15th in any of those starts. Six of those eight races, he’s finished in the Top 10, and in the last two, he’s wound up second and fourth. With destiny in his hands, look for Johnson to put even more of a stranglehold on the Championship this weekend by finishing in the top three places at Phoenix; with a very good shot at a win to boot.

Denny Hamlin once again visited the Greg Biffle fountain of luck this past weekend, knocking himself out of the race while battling for the lead. One of these weeks, though, that luck has to turn around … and Phoenix could be a very good place for that to happen. Hamlin was third in the Spring race this April, and he has an average finish of 13.3 at this track; that includes consecutive third place runs in the last two races held here. Don’t forget that Gibbs has been a strong organization in general at CoT races, too; so Hamlin should have the horse for the course and be up front when the checkered flag falls.

Sit ‘Em Down:

Jamie McMurray actually finished in the Top 10 last weekend at Texas. Unfortunately for him, history shows there won’t be a repeat on Sunday; he has not had back-to-back Top 10s since that very same Texas track in the Spring. With only two such finishes since his Daytona win – he’s had more finishes in the thirties than in the Top 15 – it is a very good bet that McMurray’ll be in the bottom half of the field again this weekend at Phoenix.

Reed Sorenson is still going through a sophomore slump, even though his freshman year wasn’t all that good. He has more finishes in the forties than he does in the Top 10 overall; and while his CoT production has been a little better over the last few races, his track record at Phoenix is not too impressive. It is best to keep Sorenson on the sidelines this weekend.

Roll the Dice:

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. has two more chances to break his winless drought, keeping his streak alive of winning a race every year since he has run full-time in Nextel Cup. Well, Phoenix is definitely the better of the two tracks left on the schedule for Earnhardt, a place where he has actually won at twice throughout the course of his career. With DEI showing some strength in their CoT program over the second half of the season, expect Earnhardt to finally shake off bad luck and compete for the win this weekend.

Cami’s Picks:

Crank ‘Em Up:

After losing the point lead at Texas, Jeff Gordon needs to get in gear if he wants to win his fifth title – and fast. Waiting to make his big move at Homestead is just too risky; he needs a good finish this weekend at Phoenix in order to reestablish momentum. That shouldn’t be a problem, as Gordon goes for the season sweep of PIR, something Kevin Harvick accomplished last year. In fact, this track has a history of producing back-to-back winners, and with Gordon’s CoT prowess, history could repeat itself. April was Gordon’s first win at Phoenix, but his average finish of 6.1 is tops in the series; he’ll need to better that in order to make a serious charge at Johnson for the title.

Barring some sort of freakish accident, Tony Stewart will be officially out of the Chase following Sunday’s race. But if Stewart can’t be the champion, we saw last year he loves to play the role of spoiler – and things are setting up well for him to wear that hat this weekend. In four of the last five races, Stewart has been dancing near or in the Top 10; however, he hasn’t been able to pull off the late season victory we’ve come to expect from him. Stewart won his first time out at Phoenix in 1999, and hasn’t been back to Victory Lane since; but that’s not for a lack of trying. Only one time has he finished outside the Top 30 here, and in the last four races, he has three Top 5 finishes at PIR. Second to Gordon this April, look for Stewart to try and take that one final step on Sunday afternoon.

Sit ‘Em Down:

Things have gotten pretty rocky for David Ragan as his rookie year winds to a close. In the last five races, he’s finished 26th or worse, and there isn’t much hope for that streak to improve this weekend. In his first – and only – appearance at PIR, Ragan finished a disappointing 41st, the lowlight in a CoT program that hasn’t been a particular strong point for the No. 6 team. Ragan has just two Top 10 finishes this year, and it would be a big shock if number three came this weekend.

With three straight DNFs, there isn’t much of a weaker roll for a team to enter a race weekend on. But that’s what faces David Stremme as he heads to the Phoenix desert. After what began as a promising year, crashes in the last three events have the No. 40 team ending on a sour note. At PIR, things don’t look to get any better; Stremme finished dead last here in April, and his best finish in three starts is just 18th. The man may be a hot commodity on the Silly Season market … but he’s stone cold in the fantasy market this weekend.

Roll the Dice:

What better way to celebrate your team’s move to a new facility than with a Top 10 finish in the second to last race of the season? That’s what Bobby Labonte is hoping to do this weekend at Phoenix, and he has a good shot at pulling it off. In five of the last six races at PIR, Labonte has finished in the Top 10, including an eighth place finish here this Spring. If you’re looking for a gamble that could pay off big, Labonte is a driver who can deliver.

www.frontstretch.com

Gordon looks to heat up in desert

He has won at Phoenix International Raceway and will need more success there after falling 30 points behind Johnson in title chase.

AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Jimmie Johnson holds the points lead over teammate Jeff Gordon as NASCAR's title fight heads to its next-to-last race, but Gordon holds the edge in the desert.

Despite five championships between them, neither of the Hendrick Motorsports drivers had won at Phoenix International Raceway until this year.

Gordon broke through in April with an emotional win on the one-mile oval here just west of Phoenix that, at the time, tied him with the late Dale Earnhardt for career Cup victories.

Gordon hopes to carry that edge into Sunday's Checker Auto Parts 500 stock car race because he's 30 points behind Johnson, who has won the last three consecutive races in his No. 48 Chevrolet.

Qualifying is today to set the race's 43-car field. Gordon won the pole position a year ago, and Kevin Harvick won the race.

"You have to give credit to Jimmie and the 48 crew," Gordon said. "But 30 points isn't that much. They're on a roll right now and we've got to answer this weekend."

After Phoenix, the series ends its 36-race season -- and the 10-race Chase for the Nextel Cup championship playoff -- with the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida on Nov. 18.

Drivers will use NASCAR's new Car of Tomorrow for this race, then drive their conventional cars for the last time on the 1.5-mile Homestead-Miami track. The Car of Tomorrow becomes mandatory next season.

Gordon has finished in the top 10 in the last three Cup races at Martinsville, Va., Atlanta and Fort Worth. Yet he has dropped 98 points to Johnson because of Johnson's winning streak, which has given the El Cajon-based driver a series-high nine wins overall this year.

Johnson raised eyebrows last week at Texas Motor Speedway by dueling Matt Kenseth in the closing laps, a tactic that might have robbed Johnson of valuable points if the two had collided.

But Kyle Busch -- another Hendrick teammate who won his second Cup race here in 2005 -- said Johnson's move didn't surprise him. "Not very often do you see [Johnson] spin out and crash and wreck somebody else," Busch told reporters this week. "He did what any racer would do and that's challenge for the win."

Clint Bowyer is a distant third in the Chase, 181 points behind Johnson, and the others are all 300 points or more back, including Busch, who's fourth. The most points a driver can earn in a race is 195.

Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart also remain alive. But the other six have been mathematically eliminated: Jeff Burton, Harvick, Kyle's older brother Kurt Busch, Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr.

Even so, the two Busch brothers -- who grew up in Las Vegas and raced at Phoenix International before reaching the Cup series -- also are seen as contenders to win Sunday.

Kurt Busch, who drives for Penske Racing South, also won the spring race here in 2005.

Harvick is another favorite, having won both Cup races here in 2006 for Richard Childress Racing. The Bakersfield native also cut his teeth here when he was coming up through NASCAR's ranks.

Stewart also should be strong. The two-time Cup champion with Joe Gibbs Racing has raced six types of cars at Phoenix International in his career, and won the Cup race here in 1999. He also finished second in the last two races in the desert.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is wrapping up his career with his father's namesake team in preparation of moving to Hendrick next year, also has a good record here, having won in 2003 and 2004.

www.latimes.com

Checker Auto Parts 500 Driver Stats

Tight, tough and unyielding. Description applicable both to the setting of Sunday’s Checker Auto Parts 500 and to the title battle it features. As the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series roars into Phoenix International Raceway, reigning series champion Jimmie Johnson leads four-time series champion Jeff Gordon by 30 points atop the standings. Sunday’s event is the penultimate in the 2007 Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and focus has crystallized upon those two drivers.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates, they’ve traded the Chase lead throughout the first eight events – Johnson reclaiming it with last Sunday’s victory at Texas Motor Speedway. And although third-place Clint Bowyer lurks 181 points behind Johnson, the title-eligible pairing of past and present champions appears set. “We have momentum going our direction right now,” Johnson said, “but it's only 30 points. And if you look at the last two weeks, I've been able to make up roughly 60 points, and Jeff hasn't had bad races the last two events. He's had strong finishes. So it's not like he's had bad nights. So I can finish tenth and he can win and I'm back in second.”

Johnson enjoys the most momentum; he’s fresh off three consecutive victories for the second time in his six-year career, having conquered Martinsville Speedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway and Texas, respectively, in preceding weeks. The last time Johnson won back-to-back-to-back was during the ’04 Chase, when he won at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, Martinsville and Atlanta, respectively. Johnson also owns a series-high nine wins in ’07. But this week’s locale may favor Gordon, who excels on Phoenix’s narrow, flat one-mile track.

He won in April from the pole – his first Phoenix victory – and has three poles, eight top-five and 14 top-10 finishes there. Johnson – who finished fourth in April – has three top-five and six top-10 finishes at Phoenix. How close are they, aside from 30 points in the standings? Close enough for one bobble to make a desert-sized difference. NASCAR’s season-to-date Loop Data statistics offers more concrete quantification.

Johnson has a series-high 934 Fastest Laps Run while Gordon has a series-high Average Running Position of 9.2.Pre-race Loop Data statistics for Phoenix show Johnson second in Laps in the Top 15 (1,446) with Gordon third (1,384). And they’re also one-two in season-to-date Driver Rating. Johnson has a series-high 109.8 rating, followed by Gordon with the second-highest rating of 108.6.

Phoenix Bound

The big story this week is no surprise, it's the close race for NASCAR Nextel Cup. What makes it even more interesting for fantasy owners is that both drivers are fully capable of dominating Sunday's race at Phoenix International Raceway.

Fantasy owners can pick up some great mid-cap drivers if they remember there are several racers with little or nothing to lose who are proven winners in Arizona.

Favorites

Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon are on the top of the fantasy heap. Between them, they have four wins on the short, flat tracks during the past two years, three of which have come in the Car of Tomorrow (COT). However, there are others who can compete with them and ruin their collective weekend.

Tony Stewart has not had a win on a short flat track this year, but don't dismiss him just yet. First of all, he was second in the COT at Phoenix in the spring and might have won if not for a controversial late-race caution he called into question. Secondly, he was third at New Hampshire International Speedway only last month and was 13th after starting at the rear at Martinsville Speedway and working with a damaged car. He has not had a top-10 in two weeks, and this is the perfect place for him to come back in a big way.

Denny Hamlin has not been himself on the short, flat tracks lately. He was a disappointing 15th at New Hampshire last month and despite his sixth at Martinsville three races ago, he was not as strong as fantasy owners are used to seeing him. It's time he righted the ship and Phoenix is a good place to do so. His last two trips there have ended in third-place runs. Don't be surprised to see him get into the winner's circle.

Dark Horses

The dark horses will be fun this weekend. There are several sleeper picks with a great chance to spoil the Hendrick party. The nature of dark horses, however, is that there is no guarantee they will pull out an upset, but they have a fierce upside and can win fantasy leagues.

Jeff Burton once dominated Phoenix. While he has not won there since he took the checkered flag in 2001, he has been steady since then. In the past eight races in Arizona, he has eight top-20s and four top-10s. He has been quite good there lately, with two top-10s and a 13th in the past three Phoenix races. So far in 2007, he has three top-10s and all top-20s on the short flat tracks.

Carl Edwards has all but lost his chance for a series title. However, he has been much better on the smaller tracks and is ready for a win on the flat variety. His first time out at Phoenix resulted in a 37th. Since then, however, he has earned four top-10s and a low of 11th, which he picked up in the spring. Edwards has won two races in the COT, so he has proven that he can win in the new car.

Avoidance Principal

Although Dale Earnhardt Jr. cannot be completely written off just yet, he likely missed his best chance at ending his losing streak at Texas Motor Speedway. While he has been a strong flat track driver in his career, he currently is struggling with a terrible string of bad luck. He has not had a top-10 in five weeks and just two top-20s in that span. On the short, flat tracks, he has only one top-10 in the past four such races. To make things worse, he has one top-10 at Phoenix in his last four tries there.

Earnhardt's Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) compatriot is not a better pick this week. Martin Truex Jr. has made three trips to Phoenix and none have resulted in a top-10. Although he has been improving there, having earned nothing lower than a 22nd in Arizona, he has suffered with bad luck lately. It only takes away from his appeal considering DEI's engine woes this year compounded by the arid desert heat on Sunday afternoon.

www.fanball.com

Driver Handicaps: Phoenix

This weekend the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series heads to Phoenix International Raceway for the Checker Auto Parts 500 - the 16th and final Car of Tomorrow race in 2007. To help you make your Dale Jr. Reality Cup Racing fantasy picks, RacingOne brings you our weekly detailed look at some of the field for the 312-lap event.

Who's Hot at Phoenix

Jimmie Johnson leads all drivers with a 7.2 average finish.
Jeff Gordon's win in the spring was his 14th top 10 in 17 starts.
Tony Stewart has finished second in two of the last three races.
Kevin Harvick swept both races in 2006 and finished 10th in the spring.
Denny Hamlin is coming off consecutive third-place finishes.
Carl Edwards has finished 11th or better in his last five starts.

Keep an Eye On at Phoenix

2005 fall Phoenix winner Kyle Busch has posted an average finish of 11.5 with the Car of Tomorrow.
Clint Bowyer is the latest winner with the COT on a flat 1-mile oval.
Bobby Labonte has finished ninth or better in five of his last six starts at Phoenix.
Besides Harvick, Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are the only multiple winners at Phoenix.

COT Performers

Jeff Gordon leads all drivers in finishing average (5.2) and laps led (737) among the drivers that have competed in all 15 Car of Tomorrow races. His Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson leads all drivers in wins with the new car with four. Denny Hamlin has also been strong in COT competition by winning one race (New Hampshire), leading an impressive 730 laps and posting an average finish of 10.3. Among drivers with seven or more starts - Carl Edwards (Ford), Ryan Newman (Dodge) and David Reutimann (Toyota) hold the best average finish among their manufacturers at 12.0, 13.9 and 26.1, respectively. David Gilliland has the worst average finish among all the drivers that have made every COT start at 31.3. COT Driver Averages | COT Lap Leaders

Phoenix Rookie Report

It wasn't a good outing in the spring for the Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidates at Phoenix International Raceway. Paul Menard was the top finishing rookie in 25th, with David Reutimann, Juan Pablo Montoya and David Ragan finishing 32nd or worse. AJ Allmendinger failed to qualify for the event. Montoya holds the best finishing average among the group in Car of Tomorrow competition at 22.3. Rookie Standings

Qualifying Tidbits

This past spring Jeff Gordon won his third pole (second straight) at Phoenix International Raceway, giving Chevrolet their fifth consecutive pole at the track. Prior to Gordon's last two, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin captured their first poles at PIR. Qualifying record holder Ryan Newman won three consecutive poles from 2002-2004. You would have to go back to 1998 to find the next pole winner by an active full-time NEXTEL Cup driver, when Bobby Labonte took the top spot in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet. This year Gordon became the first driver to win from the pole at PIR. Last year, Kevin Harvick won from the 15th and second positions, respectively. Ricky Rudd won the 1995 race from the furthest position in 29th. Past Pole Winners | Starting Positions of Phoenix Winners

Top 20 Driver Notes - Based on Current Standings

1. Jimmie Johnson (Points: 6382): Johnson currently has the best average finish (7.2) among all drivers at Phoenix International Raceway. His fourth-place finish in the spring was his fourth consecutive top 10. Johnson equaled his best finish at PIR last fall when he came home second. In that race, he also led his first laps (28) since leading 84 in 2003. This weekend, Johnson will be back behind the wheel of the same car (COT chassis No. 461) that won at Martinsville last month.

2. Jeff Gordon (Points Behind: -30): Gordon is coming off his first win in 17 starts at Phoenix International Raceway. His worst finish, and only outside the top 10, in the last 12 races was a 12th-place finish in the 2005 spring race. Gordon has combined to lead 182 laps in five of the last six races at PIR. His 5.2 average finish in Car of Tomorrow races is currently the best among all drivers.

3. Clint Bowyer (Points Behind: - 181): Phoenix International Raceway is the site of Bowyer's first NEXTEL Cup start and first career top-five finish. Last year in the spring event, Bowyer led 21 laps en route to a fifth-place finish. His worst finish came in this event last year when he took the checkered flag in 33rd place. This weekend he will look to lower his 20.5 average finish at PIR by racing the same car (COT chassis No. 212) that won at New Hampshire in September.

4. Kyle Busch (Points Behind: - 339): Since finishing eighth and first, respectively, in his first two starts at Phoenix International Raceway, Busch went on to post an average finish of 37.0 in the two races in 2006. He rebounded in this year's spring race by finishing seventh. This weekend he will be piloting the same car (COT chassis No. 464) that finished fourth at New Hampshire in September.

5. Carl Edwards (Points Behind: - 357): Edwards will make his seventh NEXTEL Cup start at Phoenix Int'l Raceway, the site of his first pavement race. In 2001, Edwards raced a USAC Silver Crown car in the Copper World Classic. Ever since finishing 37th, after a wreck took him out of contention in his first start, Edwards has posted an average finish of 6.6. This weekend he will be driving a chassis (No. RK-513) in the Checker Auto Parts 500.

6. Tony Stewart (Points Behind: - 373): Stewart has posted an average finish of 5.5 in his last four races at Phoenix International Raceway, which includes a second-place finish in the past two spring races. Also in the 2006 spring race, Stewart posted his best qualifying effort in 11 starts by starting third. Stewart's one victory at PIR came after leading 150 laps in his first start in 1999. His finishing average, of 9.9, is fourth among all drivers at the 1-mile speedway.

7. Jeff Burton (Points Behind: - 431): Burton has competed in 16 events at Phoenix International Raceway, capturing two victories (2000 and 2001), five top fives and eight top 10s. His third-place run in the 2005 spring race was his best effort since his last victory. Although Burton has yet to lead a lap at Phoenix with Richard Childress Racing, his 10th-place finish last fall was his third top 10 with the team at the track. This weekend Burton will be back behind the wheel of the same car (COT chassis No. 204) that finished 18th in September at New Hampshire.

8. Kevin Harvick (Points Behind: - 439): Harvick swept the weekend at Phoenix International Raceway in the spring of 2006 to pick up his first Busch and Cup victories at the track. Harvick went on to sweep the season by scoring the NEXTEL Cup win in the November race. In April, Harvick started eighth and finished 10th for his fourth top 10 in nine starts. Harvick, who also has two Truck victories at PIR, will be back in the same car (COT chassis No. 223) that finished 10th at Martinsville last month.

9. Kurt Busch (Points Behind: - 453): Busch's only top 10 (eighth) in three starts at Phoenix International Raceway with Penske Racing came in this event last year. Prior to joining Penske, Busch finished in the top 10 in four consecutive events he competed in with Roush Racing at PIR. After a police altercation in the fall of 2005, Busch was taken out of the car by Jack Roush in what was to be his seventh start at PIR. In the 2005 spring race, Busch scored his first win at PIR after leading 219 laps from the second starting position. It was also the fourth consecutive race Busch led at the track, boosting his total to 448. This weekend Busch will return in the same COT (chassis No. PSC-520) that finished ninth at Richmond in September.

10. Matt Kenseth (Points Behind: - 454): Kenseth has captured one win (2002) and five top-10 finishes in 10 races at Phoenix International Raceway. Kenseth matched his worst finish of 42nd in the 2005 spring race, his third DNF at the track. Kenseth, who finished fifth in the spring, will drive the same car (COT chassis RK-475) on Sunday that finished 14th in September at Richmond.

11. Denny Hamlin (Points Behind: - 524): Hamlin currently is second among all drivers in Car of Tomorrow laps led with 730. He is coming off two consecutive third-place finishes at Phoenix International Raceway. In the 2005 Phoenix fall race, Hamlin won his first career Bud Pole and went on to led 23 laps before a missed lug nut on a late pit stop relegated him to a 13th-place finish. This weekend he will be racing the same car (COT chassis No. 154) that led 70 laps at PIR in the spring.

12. Martin Truex Jr. (Points Behind: - 524): Truex Jr. posted an 18.0 average finish in his three NEXTEL Cup starts at Phoenix International Raceway. His best finish came in this event last year when he took the checkered flag in 12th. This weekend he brings a 17.6 average finish with the Car of Tomorrow into Phoenix as he shoots for his first top 10.

13. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Points: 3840): Prior to his last four finishes at Phoenix International Raceway of 40th, 23rd, ninth and 19th, respectively, Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored four consecutive top fives. In that span he won back-to-back races in 2003 and 2004 and led a combined 310 laps. With only 10 starts, Junior is one of three active drivers to post multiple victories at the 1-mile speedway.

14. Ryan Newman (Points Behind 13th: -68): Newman made his first NEXTEL Cup start at Phoenix International Raceway in 2000. He got off to a rough start at PIR posting two DNFs finishing 41st and 40th, respectively, in his first two races. His 14th-place finish in the 2005 spring race ended a streak of back-to-back top-three finishes, including a runner-up in 2004 when he led 59 of his career total 114 laps led at PIR. Newman's 2004 track qualifying lap of 135.854 mph still stands as the qualifying record. In the last five races at PIR, Newman has posted an average finish of 23.6. This weekend he will hit the track with chassis No. PRS-525. This car has only seen action at last month's COT test at Atlanta.

15. Casey Mears (Points Behind 14th: -67): Phoenix International Raceway is Mears' worst track based on his finishing average of 31.4. Prior to his first track start with Hendrick Motorsports this past spring when he finished 37th, Mears made six starts with Chip Ganassi Racing. In those events, he posted an average finish of 30.5. This weekend he will shoot for his first top 10 at PIR driving the same car (chassis No. 462) that finished 20th at Martinsville last month.

16. Greg Biffle (Points Behind 15th: -8): Greg Biffle last dominated the 2006 spring event at Phoenix International Raceway by leading 151 laps, only to come up short at the end when his Ford completely ran out of fuel two laps from the finish. The misfortune resulted in a 15th-place finish. The 2005 fall race also saw Biffle dominate by leading 189 laps and posting his best finish at PIR in second. He posted his only DNF, and worst finish at PIR in the 2005 spring event after placing 41st. In 2004, Biffle was running in the top 10 until he got caught on a pit cycle that put him on old tires at the end of the race. Biffle does have one pole, two wins and eight top-10 finishes in the Busch Series at PIR. Biffle will look to improve his average finish of 22.0 in the last three Phoenix races by driving the same car (COT chassis No. RK-472) that finished sixth at Dover in June.

17. Kasey Kahne (Points Behind 16th: -342): Kahne's 31st-place finish in the spring lowered his overall finishing average at Phoenix International Raceway to 15.5. He has finished in the top 10 three times, including a fifth-place finish in this event in 2004. Kahne has posted an average finish of 20.9 in the 15 Car of Tomorrow races this season.

18. Jamie McMurray (Points Behind 17th: -19): McMurray has yet to post a top-10 finish in eight starts at Phoenix International Raceway. His last three starts have come with his current team, Roush Fenway Racing, where he has posted an average finish of 25.7. Prior to joining Roush, McMurray raced in five races at PIR with Chip Ganassi Racing, posting an average finish of 23.8. This weekend he will return in the same COT chassis (No. RK-462) that finished ninth in April at Martinsville.

19. Bobby Labonte (Points Behind 18th: -22): Labonte has finished in the top 10 in five of the last six races at Phoenix International Raceway. His 27th-place finish in his three races with Petty Enterprises at the track raised his overall finishing average with the team to 14.3. The last time Labonte led at Phoenix came with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2004. In that event he led four of his track total of 65 laps led.

20. J.J. Yeley (Points Behind 19th: -49): Yeley has posted an average finish of 23.0 at Phoenix International Raceway. This weekend will mark his fourth start and final with Joe Gibbs Racing at Phoenix International Raceway. He will make that start in the same car (COT chassis No. 186) that finished 10th at New Hampshire in September.

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Edwards edges Truex Jr. for PIR pole
November 9th, 2007

Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - Carl Edwards beat Martin Truex Jr. by a scant 0.003 seconds to capture the pole for Sunday's Checker Auto Parts 500 Nextel Cup race at the Phoenix International Raceway, the ninth of 10 races that make up the Chase for the Nextel Cup. The No.99 Roush Fenway Racing Ford driver grabbed the top spot with a best lap of 27.114 seconds (132.773 m.p.h.).

The pole victory was Edwards' first of the season and third of his Cup career.

"That was a lot of fun, but I didn't think it was going to hold up," said Edwards. That run felt great, I think if I did it 10 more times I couldn't go faster.

"To be in the Bud Shootout next year, is awesome."

Starting alongside Edwards on Sunday will be Truex Jr. who posted a time of 27.117 seconds.

Jeff Gordon (27.129) and hometown favorite J.J. Yeley (27.224) will make up row two.

"I'm a little bummed out," said Gordon. "I thought we had a shot at the pole. I knew it was going to be very close."

The remainder of the "Chase" field will start in the following order: Jimmie Johnson (sixth), Kurt Busch (ninth), Jeff Burton (12th), Denny Hamlin (15th), Matt Kenseth (18th), Clint Bowyer (20th), Tony Stewart (21st), Kevin Harvick (34th) and Kyle Busch (38th).

After racing for 9,449 miles over 34 events, just 712 miles remain in the final two events which make up the "Chase for the Nextel Cup." Johnson has a three-race win streak to put himself in the "drivers seat."

"I know we're racing for the championship and now we have control of it," said Johnson.

Johnson's ninth win of the season, and first ever at the Texas Motor Speedway, finally put him in front of teammate Jeff Gordon. It is also the most wins in a single season since Gordon posted a 13-win effort in his third championship season of 1998.

Johnson has made eight starts at PIR, yielding no poles, no wins, but six top-10s and an average finish of 7.3. Gordon as been a little better with three poles, one win and a stunning 14 top-10s in 17 starts.

Barring a complete mental collapse or engine failure, it is not likely that this race will win or lose the 2007 Nextel Cup championship. However, it will set up the final parameters for what should be a great finish at the Homestead-Miami Speedway next week.

Three-time IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish Jr., who will drive full-time in Nextel Cup in 2008, qualified for his first "Cup" race with a time of 27.468 seconds, good enough for 26th on the grid.

The race is scheduled to begin on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. (et).

Checker Auto Parts 500: Diamond in the desert
By: Brian Gabrielle

Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon are deservedly the two favorites for this event, but they may drive conservatively, as they are locked in a heated point battle for the Cup.

Last Week: It was a winning week, but a frustrating race down in Texas. Kurt Busch led 10 laps, Martin Truex Jr. led 16 laps and Kyle Busch led a whopping 153 laps, but none could stay out front late.

Kyle probably should've won the event, and thus return on a +1087 investment, but for the second straight week he was victimized by his pit crew shooting itself in the foot. So Jimmie Johnson took his third straight win, which didn't help us at all. However, Kurt Busch did upset Tony Stewart, as I predicted, delivering on his +115 match-up. For the week, then, we profited 0.65 units on 1.5 units wagered (a 43.3 % return). For the season, we're at a positive net 10.35 units on 51 units wagered (a 20.3% return). (Note that if you eschewed the conservative betting pattern we outline below, and simply wagered one unit on every recommendation we give, you'd have lost 1.85 units for the week on four units wagered, but for the season you'd still be up 34.06 units on 136 units wagered (a 25% return). Of course, such a betting pattern is riskier on a week-to-week basis.)

Take Kyle Busch (+1015), 1/6th unit. This week is the season's second-to-last race, on the Diamond in the Desert out in Phoenix. It's a one-mile flat track in the Car of Tomorrow, and yes, let me just come right out and say that Jimmie Johnson (+450) and Jeff Gordon (+385) have every right to be the favorites. They've been the two best cars on flat tracks this year, and Gordon won here this April while J.J. finished fourth. But they're also locked in a mega-battle for the Chase that could tend to make them a bit more conservative, and they don't pay very much even when they do win. So I'm going to use Kyle Busch as a sneaky way to buy into the Hendrick excellence in the CoT. Busch won at Phoenix International Raceway in the fall of '05, and was seventh here this spring. He's also been very strong on flatties this season: twin fourth-place finishes at Martinsville, a fourth and an 11th at Loudon, and a second and 20th at Richmond. He's also due some good luck. This would be a sweet payout for a guy who I think could legitimately make claim to being the third favorite in this event.

Take Denny Hamlin (+850), 1/6th unit. Hamlin should've won the April race. But he sped in the pits, went a lap down while serving his drive-through penalty, and was only able to get back up to third place. If the kid doesn't make any dumb mistakes, he's got the chops to win this event. He's got the third-best flat-track finishing average this season, behind Gordon and Johnson, and while he's been pretty jinxed during the Chase, it seems that right now the CoT races are one of his (and Joe Gibbs Racing's) specialties.

Take Clint Bowyer (+1215), 1/6th unit. This is me harkening back to the first Chase race, up in Loudon, New Hampshire, where Bowyer qualified on the pole and then dominated the race, leading 222 of 300 laps to take his first career Nextel Cup win. If New Hampshire International Speedway has any single equivalent track on the Smokeless Circuit, it's PIR. The banking is a bit shallower here in Phoenix, but the track is also slightly rounder, allowing drivers to keep their speeds up.

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