Edwards seeks first 2009 win

November 5, 3:17 PMLouisville NASCAR ExaminerAmanda Vincent

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Stop eight on the 2009 Chase for the Sprint Cup tour is Texas Motor Speedway for Sunday afternoon's Dickie's 500.

With three races to go, Jimmie Johnson has a fairly commanding lead en-route to his fourth-consecutive Sprint Cup. His two closest competitors, and perhaps the only other two who still have somewhat of a legitimate shot at the title, are also his teammates at Hendrick Motorsports -- Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon.

Martin trails Johnson by 184 points and Gordon is 192 points back. They're the only two drivers within 200 points of Johnson.

While his teammates are his biggest threat for the championship, another driver maybe his biggest threat for the win on Sunday.

Carl Edwards heads to one of his best tracks this weekend. In 10 previous starts at Texas he has three wins, including a sweep of both Sprint Cup races there in 2008.

With his three wins there, Edwards is the winningest active driver at Texas Motor Speedway and the only driver to win both the fall and spring races there in the same season.

"I'm really looking forward to racing at Texas," crew chief Bob Osborne said. "We were able to sweep both races there last year and we has a strong run in the spring. Texas is a great track for Carl, and it really seems to suit his driving style."

In the Sprint 2009 race at Texas Motor Speedway, Edwards finished 10th.

"In the spring we were leading the race and ended up having a little trouble on pit road during the last stop," he said.

Edwards is mired back in 10th in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, so he and the No. 99 team have turned their focus toward getting that elusive 2009 win.

"It would be great to get a win before the season ends, and I think Texas is one of our best chances," Osborne said.

Television coverage for Sunday's Dickies 500 is scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. ET start on ABC.

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