If it doesn’t say so already, it should on the mirrors of Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon: “Objects may be closer than they appear.” In case anybody forgot Jimmie Johnson, he has served reminder with his victory at Dover that he will not go quietly into the night.
Just behind this trio at the front you’ve got another pack ready to stomp on the gas and join them. Ryan Newman’s still hot (I use the term a liberally considering he’s still winless), Greg Biffle’s coming on, and he’s got a pair of Roush- Fenway teammates showing signs of life.
Let’s dive in:
#10- Carl Edwards (unranked last week)- Cousin Carl had been hanging on for weeks on end, but it’s safe to say he’s starting to heat up with the weather. Dover makes two top 10s in a row and the run of cookie cutter ahead play into his hands.
#9- Matt Kenseth (unranked last week)- His fortunes remind me of a car that bobbles by itself in a turn. The driver has a quick “Hello!!!” moment and straightens out. Matt the Brat has 3 straight top 10s and an average finish of 10.8 over his last 5 races.
#8- Kyle Busch (ranked 5th last week)- Busch sill has good cars, but in terms of results, he’s not been especially good since his victory at Richmond. His 3 wins would give him top seed going into the chase, but I’ve got a feeling he’ll have some close competition going in.
#7- Mark Martin (ranked 6th last week)- For “Double M” the good news is he seems to have shaken that bad luck he had at the outset of the season. The bad news is that bad luck he had doesn’t give him much wiggle room. He’ll need a win or two and some top 5s to clear the pack on the bubble.
#6- Greg Biffle (ranked 8th last week)- That 3rd place finish has to be a nice boost for the “16″ team. He’s quietly putting together a nice little run. His average finish of 11.0 over his last 5 races puts him ahead of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, the Busch brothers and Mark Martin. Unfortunately for Biffle, Pocono has not been an especially good track for him.
#5- Kurt Busch (ranked 7th last week)- The 2004 champion is showing signs of life
after getting his first top 5 since Talladega. Evidence of his staying power is the ability to bounce back after rough outing. I still think he’s a dark horse contender for the championship.
#4- Ryan Newman (ranked 4th last week)- With 5 top 10s in a row, Rocket is arguably the hottest driver on the circuit. Each week doubters wait for him to drop off, and each week, Newman is back for me. His average of finish of 4.2 over the last 5 races is a Sprint Cup best.
#3- Jeff Gordon (ranked 2nd last week)- A look over Big Daddy’s stats suggests a steady descent. Dover really wasn’t his fault- just a guy in the wrong place at the wrong team. Pocono’s been good to Gordon, perhaps he can reverse ill fortunes there.
#2- Jimmie Johnson (ranked 3rd last week)- Seems like we’ve seen this movie before and it’s a bad ending for opposing drivers. Only Stewart’s edge in consistency keeps Johnson out of my top spot, though a good argument can be made for putting the driver of the “48″ there.
#1- Tony Stewart (ranked 1st last week)- Easily the most consistent driver on the circuit right now. Smoke leads with 9 top 10s, and he’s tied for tops in top 5s with Gordon and Johnson. All he needs is wins. Ya know he does have a victory at Pocono.
FALLING BACK
Denny Hamlin has the cars, just not the luck. Pocon, where he’s a beast, comes at a great time…Jeff Burton is out of this top 10, but just barely. In his case, as with his RCR teammates, the car IS the problem.
READY TO STRIKE
Kasey Kahne appears to be coming on. With some intermediates on the forthcoming schedule, this would be a great time for Kahne to make his move…David Reutimann looked solid early at Dover, but fell back. Great move to avoid a wreck though. Beak needs some consistency.
DISTANT THUNDER
Juan Pablo Montoya has his moments, and arguably he’s as good in Cup racing as he’s ever been. JPM just needs to string good finishes together…Clint Bowyer looked better Sunday. An 11th place finish never felt so good…I’m not prepared yet to write Brian Vickers, Dale Earnhardt Jr., or even Joey Logano as dark horses. You just never know.
Did you really expect Stewart to be leading the points with Newman in 5th? I didn’t either.
PHOTO CREDITS- Edwards by Walter G. Arce, Kurt Busch by plstt, Johnson by RaceGirl24NEPA. To see more, click on the hyperlinks, or visit flickr.com.
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