By Scott Serrano
PA SportsTicker Auto Racing Editor
(C) 2008 PA SPORTSTICKER, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Two out of three ain't bad.
Much like Meatloaf's ballad, NASCAR's season-ending weekend at
Homestead has two very exciting championship battles on the line
and one that has been all but decided for the past month or so.
Unfortunately for NASCAR, Jimmie Johnson has sucked the majority
of the drama out of the "Chase for the Championship" with his
dominant run through the first nine races of the sport's only
playoff system.
As NASCAR heads to it's season finale, Johnson merely needs to
finish 36th or better in Sunday's Sprint Cup race to clinch a
third consecutive series title.
This is the same Jimmie Johnson whose lowest finish in the Chase
is a 15th at Texas.
Carl Edwards is mathematically alive, but even he knows his
chances to catch and pass Johnson are almost nil.
"It's possible, not probable, but possible," Edwards said.
The good news, race fans, is that before Johnson's inevitable
coronation on Sunday, the two other series championships should
have gone right down to the wire.
On Saturday, Edwards takes aim at repeating as Nationwide
champion. He enters the final race just 56 points behind series
leader Clint Bowyer after posting his third win over the past
seven races at Phoenix.
How hot has Edwards been? He has trimmed his deficit to a
manageable number after being behind by more than 200 points in
September.
Since winning at Richmond on September 7, his lowest finish has
been fifth - twice.
It's not like Bowyer has choked during Edwards' surge. He has
just one finish out of the top-10 since August - a 16th at
Memphis.
The good news for Bowyer is that he just needs to finish eighth
or better to clinch his first Nationwide title and deny Edwards
a repeat and give the Roush Fenway Racing driver a pair of
runner-up finishes in NASCAR's top two series.
The Craftsman Truck Series championship fight is even tighter.
Johnny Benson enters Friday's race just three points ahead of
reigning series champion Ron Hornaday Jr. who is aiming to win
his fourth title.
Toss out all the points talk, basically whoever finishes ahead
of the other will be crowned champion.
The win would cap off a trying year for Hornaday who earlier
this season admitted to using steroids to treat Grave's disease.
On the other hand, if Benson wins he can walk off into the
sunset after announcing last week that he will not return to
drive the Bill Davis Racing Toyota Tundra next season and may
retire.
So as you can see, story lines abound as the season winds up.
Unfortunately for NASCAR, the two exciting championship chases
pale in comparison to it's "Chase for the Championship" main
event.
And the final chapter to that story has long been written.
MCMURRAY MARCHES ON: Talk about a late-season charge.
Jamie McMurray continued his recent strong run by posting his
second straight third-place finish Sunday at Phoenix.
For those keeping score, Roush Fenway Racing's supposed weakest
link now has finished in the top-7 in four of the past five
races and has jumped to 16th in the standings.
Not bad for a driver who was mired in 36th in points and outside
of a guaranteed starting spot for races after finishing dead
last at the first Bristol race.
As a result, he went to Martinsville the following week needing
to qualify for the starting field on speed. He did, finished
eighth, and began a steady climb back to respectability in the
standings.
The key now for McMurray will be to carry over this late-season
momentum into next year, avoiding the wretched start that ended
his Chase chances early and had many wondering if he would even
be back with Roush Fenway in 2009.
"I think for any of the teams, if you run well at the end of the
season, that team is going to run well when next season starts,"
McMurray said. "To end this year strong is super-important,
because you're going to start the next season hopefully where
you've left off."
EARNHARDT JR. VS. KYLE BUSCH: Dale Earnhardt Jr. basically
replaced Kyle Busch at Hendrick Motorsports. Busch thoroughly
dominated the head-to-head matchup through the first 26 races,
winning eight times to Earnhardt's once.
Here is how the two are faring during the Chase:
Earnhardt ran sixth at Phoenix and jumped to 10th in the Chase
standings, 474 points out of the lead.
Busch finished eighth at Phoenix. He entered the Chase with an
80-point lead atop the standings, but left Sunday's race in 11th
place and 481 points out of the lead.
Edge through nine Chase race: Earnhardt who is a mere seven
points ahead of Busch for the 10th and final spot to earn a trip
to New York for NASCAR's awards ceremony.
SAY WHAT? "I don't know if I'm supposed to talk about my team
and my crew right now or what Jimmy is doing in this sport. We
were pretty good today, but we weren't that good (as good as the
No. 48). What he's building on and what they're (No. 48 team)
doing with three championships in a row, it's something very
special. I encourage all the fans to come out and watch and be
there on TV, Jimmie Johnson is putting a whooping on everybody."
- Kurt Busch on finishing second to Johnson at Phoenix.
GREEN-WHITE-CHECKERED FINISH: Kurt Busch matched his best finish
of the season by running second at Phoenix. He also finished
second at the season-opening Daytona 500 when he pushed teammate
and race-winner Ryan Newman across the finish line. ...
Apparently "America's Funniest Home Videos" takes priority over
NASCAR. On the East Coast and in the Midwest, ABC cut away from
the end of the Phoenix race for the show, switching the end of
the race to ESPN2. ... There was nearly a half-hour delay for
rain during Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Phoenix. Apparently it
does rain in the desert.
Feedback? E-mail scott.serrano@pa-sportsticker.com.