It's Kahne's Race To The Chase

 

Sunday NASCAR Notebook: Kenseth, Dale Rolling
Written by: Ben Blake, RACER Magazine
Fontana, Calif.

Matt Kenseth, riding a late-summer hot streak, took the points lead with a seventh-place finish in Sunday's Sony HD 500 at California Speedway. Jimmie Johnson, who had led all season after winning the Daytona 500, finished 11th Sunday and fell 9 points behind.

The lead doesn't mean a lot, but the momentum does. NASCAR will re-rank the top 10 competitors after next week's race at Richmond. Only 11 drivers will be eligible for the top 10, with 11th-place Kasey Kahne, Sunday's winner, 30 points out of 10th.

Carl Edwards, in 12th place, and Greg Biffle, in 13th, are mathematically eliminated.

Momentum involves hitting stride at the right time, and right now, Kenseth and Dale Earnhardt Jr. seem to be holding the high cards. Kenseth had won the prior two races, at Michigan and Bristol, and has finished top-10 in four of the past five.

"We've been gaining some points every week, and that's a good thing," Kenseth said. "I'd love to leave Richmond as the points leader. I think it would help to go into the chase as the leader, so that would be great."

Johnson, who won at Indianapolis first of August, has finished 17th, 13th, 10th and 11th in the races since.

Earnhardt perhaps is most surprising, having popped out of the box with a sixth place at Indianapolis. He led 40 laps at Michigan before finishing sixth, and 35 laps at Bristol before finishing third. Junior is sixth in points, 77 ahead of Kahne, who is fighting to get in.

Kahne has won the most races this season, five, but his season has been one of deluge or drought. He had not won since Michigan in June, then suffered through six finishes of 22nd or worse, in the next seven starts, with just one lap led.

After next week's race at Richmond, the leader will be set at 5050 points, about 1900 ahead of where the leader is now. The remainder of the top 10 will be ranked in five-point intervals through 10th. The 10th-place driver will start at New Hampshire at 5005. more on the Race to the Chase