After 26 races building up to it, the time has finally come for the Chase to begin. The Chase field is set, and twelve drivers will compete over ten races to determine who will be the champion, and it all starts this weekend at the Magic Mile, Loudon.

1. Carl Edwards

Edwards had to make an unscheduled pit stop when he had a tire going down, putting him behind early. He would be able to make a nice recover though, as he finished 13th. In eight career starts at Loudon, he's only finished better than 12th once.

2. Kyle Busch

Busch had one of the cars to beat at Richmond, but a tangle with Dale Earnhardt Jr. just past the midway point sent him from the lead to the wall. Despite the incident and the damage to his car Busch was able to finish 15th. Busch needs to do well this weekend at Loudon, where he struggled earlier this year, if he wants to win this championship.

3. Jimmie Johnson

Johnson has now won back-to-back races and looks to be one of the drivers to beat in the final ten races. He may get to a fast start this weekend at Loudon, where he's won two races and earned five top-10's in the last six races there.

4. Kevin Harvick

Though he's winless this season Harvick is going to be another driver to watch in the Chase. He hasn't contended for wins very often this year, but lately he's been very consistent, and he had one of the best cars at Richmond, as he posted his seventh top-10 in the last 8 races. That kind of consistency in the next ten races will earn him his first championship.

5. Tony Stewart

Stewart came close to earning his first win in over a year at Richmond, but wasn't able to get around Johnson in the closing laps and had to settle for a 2nd place finish. Fortuanately for him he'll get another chance to earn a win this weekend at Loudon, where he had a dominant car earlier this year, but lost the race due to pit strategy and ill-timed rain.

6. Matt Kenseth

Kenseth's day was ruined early when he took a spin with teammate David Ragan in turns 1 and 2, relegating him to a 39th place finish. After a slow start earlier this year Kenseth has been very consistent, and should earn a top-10 at Loudon, where he had a decent car earlier this year.

7. Denny Hamlin

Hamlin and his team have earned three straight third place finishes, gaining momentum heading into the Chase. Hamlin could contend for the win this weekend, where he had a solid 8th place finish earlier this year, but more importantely he could contend for the championship if he can keep performing the way he has the past three races.

8. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

After a stretch of poor races Earnhardt righted the ship at Richmond, leading 90 laps and finishing 4th. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come for Earnhardt, who had seven straight races without a top-10. He can't allow that to happen in the Chase if he wants to earn his first championship.

9. Greg Biffle

Biffle was running in the top-10 when his car got loose and walked up the track, smacking the wall in turns 1 and 2. This wouldn't be the end of his day, however, as Biffle managed to recover and finish 14th. It's those kinds of recoveries that can keep you from losing too many points during the Chase, and ultimately win you the championship. However, Biffle can't afford to perform like he has in the past at Loudon, where his average finish is 19.5.

10. Jeff Burton

Burton also ended a slump at Richmond, earning his first top-10 in five races by finishing 6th. Burton had a decent car at Loudon earlier this year, and if he and his crew could improve a little over their performance in June they could be a contender to win. It wouldn't be the first time Burton has won here, he has more wins at Loudon than any other driver with 4.

 

Other Notables:

11. Clint Bowyer- Bowyer kept himself out of trouble all day and earned a 12th place finish, good enough to earn him a Chase spot. He won this weekend's race last year.

12. Jeff Gordon- Gordon's team has struggled throughout the year, and unless they figure something out this weekend, Gordon will have to wait until next year to try to earn his 5th championship.

13. David Ragan- Ragan fought all day long but couldn't recover from the crash, as he finished 32nd. However he could still try to earn his first career victory in these next ten races.

14. Kasey Kahne- Kasey just didn't have the car to get a good finish at Richmond, let alone one good enough to get him in the Chase. That team's preparation for next year begins this weekend.

15. Joey Logano- First career start, take two... Logano wasn't able to start at Richmond because of qualifying being cancelled, but he'll race this weekend in the 96 for Hall of Fame Racing.

---

Joe Gibbs Racing's driver developement program is most well known for it's introduction of Joey Logano, who is sure to become one of Nascar's future stars.

However, the other developement driver, Marc Davis, is doing more for the sport than just racing on Sunday.

For most of Nascar's 60 year history, it has lacked an African American racer in it's field of drivers. And when it has, those drivers have often found little success, with only Wendell Scott, the first African American to start in a Nascar race, earning a victory in Nascar's top series. Most recently Bill Lester raced in the Cup series in 2006, with at 32nd and a 38th in two races run.

However, Davis could open the door for more African Americans to enter Nascar.

Davis, who is currently 17 and turns 18 on June 23rd, has enjoyed lots of success in other forms of racing. At age 13, he became the first driver to win two national legends championships in the Dirt and Road Course Young Lion divisions, and went on to win six of twelve limited late model races for Joe Gibbs Racing at the Hickory Motor Speedway in 2006.

This success has gotten the graduate of Nascar's Drive for Diversity program compared to Jeff Gordon and called the "real deal" by Nascar veteran Mark Martin.

For Nascar, Davis means the possible addition of more African American fans, but Davis wants to be judged by his ability to compete, not by his ability to bring new faces into the grandstands.

"I'm grateful for the opportunity, but it does get to a point where I just want to be known as the development driver for Joe Gibbs, and if I can open the door for more minorities to race then great, but I have to make it first," Davis said.

Last year Davis raced in the Camping World East, along with teammate Logano, with a best finish of 2nd to Logano and seven top-10's in 13 races, while also making his first ARCA-Remax Series, finishing 4th. Davis is racing in the East series again this year, and is scheduled to race in four more ARCA races.

“I learned a lot running Late Models at Hickory, but it was still a big transition going to the bigger and faster cars of Camping World East,” said Davis. “I’m looking forward to another year in this division, because I feel like I know so much more than I did last year. Everything I’ve done in life has been about racing, and to have an opportunity like this means everything. No one has higher expectations than me."