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Charting the Chasers after Atlanta: Magic Man
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There seems to be no stopping Jimmie Johnson.
Early in the day at Atlanta Sunday it appeared that a dent had finally appeared in the Johnson armor. But what could have been an opportunity for those behind him to make up ground was actually lost by a brilliant late race call for tires with around ten laps to go and the sheer determination of the team to overcome adversity.
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Edwards did almost all he could to make up ground on Johnson, scoring his seventh victory of the year. But Johnson made an amazing run in the final laps and gained four spots in the last four circuits to finish second and wipe the smile from Edwards’ face in victory lane.
Looking at the Chase standings after Atlanta what was a 12 driver Chase now seems to be, at least realistically, a four person race with three races left. Of course none of that will matter should Johnson continue the type of magic the showed Sunday.
1 -- Jimmie Johnson 6248. It looked like Johnson was finally going to lose ground in the Chase early Sunday. Johnson made a rare mistake by speeding on pit road and was penalized with a drive through penalty and fell as low as 30th one lap down. The team fought back though and on the last caution flag of the day Johnson, running 11th at the time, was brought in for four tires. When the field took the green, Johnson powered his way through the pack and came home second. It just doesn’t get any better then that.
2 +2 Carl Edwards 6065 –183. Edwards weekend was one he won’t soon forget. He won the Nationwide race in Memphis Saturday then followed that up with his 14th career victory and his seventh win of the season Sunday. But try as he might it won’t matter how many races he wins over the course of the next three, without Johnson suffering a major setback Edwards has very little chance of grabbing the top spot. The only thing Edwards could have done differently Sunday was get the five bonus points for leading the most laps. But his Roush teammate Matt Kenseth was just a bit stronger early in the race and prevented Edwards from leading more laps. The Achilles heel for Edwards however may be his pit crew. Sunday they seemed a little off their game. It worked out in the end, but over the course of the next three races, one tiny mistake could cost the team a title.
3 -1 Greg Biffle 6063 –185. Biffle had high hopes coming into Atlanta. During the week he talked about how good he felt about his chances for Sunday. Unfortunately it never materialized. Biffle fought an ill handling racecar all day and was lucky to come home 10th. He lost a spot in the standings and although he still has a chance he has to depend on both Edwards and Johnson to falter in order to have a shot.
4 -1 Jeff Burton 6030 –218. No doubt Jeff Burton wants to forget all about Sunday and move on. The team brought the same car they won with at Lowe’s. But like Biffle Burton fought an ill handling car, was never in contention and was finally caught up in the days most serious crash with only a few laps to go and finished 18th. That was the lowest finish of any of the 12 Chasers. He fell one spot and will need nearly a miracle to have a chance at a title this season.
5 +1 Kevin Harvick 5941 -307. After a string of top ten finishes to get into the Chase, Harvick is now falling back. Yes he gained a spot in the standings, but that was despite a 13th place finish. That marked his third finish outside the top 10 in the last five races. It looks like after a lukewarm streak of top 10 finishes to get into the Chase, Harvick is cooling off at the wrong time.
6 +1 Jeff Gordon 5936 –312. Gordon finished 9th Sunday. After a few moments where he looked strong, Gordon again suffered a mediocre day. He did gain spot in the standings, but the luster is gone from the Gordon shine and the team needs to figure out how to get it back and get ready to make another run at the championship next year.
7 -2 Clint Bowyer 5934 –314. Part of the reason that Harvick and Gordon gained a spot in the standings despite mediocre finishes is because Bowyer finished 20th and fell two spots. Bowyer was never really in the mix Sunday, which sadly has been the story of his entire Chase.
8 -- Tony Stewart 5847 –401. Stewart had a miserable day at Atlanta, a track he’s won twice at. The team never got the set-up on the Toyota right and Stewart struggled the entire day. He had very little hope of clawing his way back into the Chase prior to Atlanta, after his 17th place finish Sunday he has none.
9 +1 Matt Kenseth 5835 –413. Kenseth finally had an afternoon where he wasn’t taken out of the race by something out of his control. After getting wrecked in the last two events prior to Martinsville, Kenseth was able to have a good day Sunday. He ran strong, looked in contention for the win and came home fourth. He did gain a spot in the standings, and after a top 10 last week he’s showing some late season promise. Too bad it’s too little too late to have any hope to win a championship this year.
10 -1 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 5829 –419. At Martinsville Dale Earnhardt Junior showed the ability to remain strong and not fade in the late stages of the race. That was what cost them races earlier in the year. Add to his woes a collision on pit road on lap 290 late in the race. Last week he finished second, Sunday at Atlanta he finished 13th and showed that maybe the team was back to their old ways.
11 -- Denny Hamlin 5823 –425. Hamlin had a strong day at Atlanta Sunday. He led for a time and nearly won. In the end his Toyota lost grip and Johnson was just too strong. Hamlin finished third. If he could have put together more runs like the team did Sunday he would be near the top of the heap right now inside of nearly at the bottom.
12 -- Kyle Busch 5783 –465. Busch showed up in the top five near the end of the race Sunday. It almost looked like races that Busch ran earlier in the season of the type that made seem like a shoo in to win it all. In terms of the championship that seemed like his too lose not too long ago, if he would have had runs like Sunday he be at the top of the standings instead of the basement.
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