Jimmie Johnson is on a roll.  He qualified on the poll for the Camping World RV 400 at Kansas, led the most laps, and closed out the deal by winning the race and getting his fifth win of the season.  Jimmie had a strong car all day long and was able to hold off Carl Edwards when it counted.  Toward the end of the race, Jimmie and Carl were just traded positions between first and second at each pit stop.  But when it counted, Johnson's pit crew got him out front, and he never looked back.  Both Jimmie and Carl have gotten top fives in all three events so far in the Chase and will battle it out all the way to Homestead.  They have shown that they have been the guys to beat all season and still have a shot at the Cup.  Talladega next week, though, could really shuffle up the points standings and could possibly break these guys' streaks.

Carl Edwards sure did give Jimmie Johnson a run for his money.  He qualified in the back and worked his way to the front during the course of the event.  The hometown hero gave it all he had and wouldn't give up until the fat lady sang.  The main key to his loss was the final pit stop.  His pit crew wasn't top notch during the race and made some mistakes.  People say that a race can be won or lost in the pits, and I truly believe it.  That is why those guys train day in and day out; there job is to get the driver in the best position possible.  Carl made an incredulous move on the final lap by slamming his car into the wall, trying to use the force to propel himself by Jimmie Johnson.  I have never in my life seen a guy do something like that.  It certainly made the end interesting, but I feel sorry for the guys in the shop.  They are the ones who will suffer from that.  It sounds like Mr. Edwards has been playing the NASCAR game too much to think something like that would actually pay off.  He almost lost control of his race car.

The Non-Chasers

Martin Truex, Jr. had a strong car most of the day.  He qualified 5th and led for awhile, but he ended up finishing 43rd with transmission.  Truex was capable of winning the race if it weren't for the problems and could have really used a win to boost his spirits.  He got a top 10 two weeks ago at Loudon but has had trouble all through the season that demolished his Chase chances.

Kudos to A.J. Allmendinger for his ninth place finish.  The guy is getting better each and every week.  He knows that he is racing for a ride and needs to impress the scouts.  Sometimes he doesn't make the race, sometimes he does terrible, and sometimes he has a great day.  I can see a lot of potential talent in this kid.

The Chasers

Matt Kenseth probably had the wildest day of anybody.  He qualified well and led in the early part of the race.  Midway through, Matt got tapped in the back by Casey Mears and went for the spin.  Kenseth did a great job controling his job and not getting any damage.  The most impressive part was that he managed to rebound from the wreck and get a fifth place finish.  That shows how well his car was and how motivated he was.  No one thought Matt would be a contender before the Chase started, and now, he is a top competitor every single week.  Kenseth is another driver that has suddenly come alive in the late part of the season.

Jeff Gordon was feeling terrible before the race started and even had Brad Keslowski ready as a back-up.  When the green flag waved, he put his illness aside and just ran a great race ending with a fourth place finish.  Jeff needed that after not winning at last week at Dover when he had the odds.  Gordon is still well in this Chase and shouldn't be counted out.  The veteran could still walk out of Homestead with the Title.

Greg Biffle went into Kansas hoping to pull off a trifecta.  He felt like he had a good car and worked his way up front throughout the afternoon.  Even though he was not a contender for the win, "The Bif" still managed to get a third place finish after just beating Jeff Gordon back to the line.

Clint Bowyer had a long day after getting black flagged on the opening lap for passing cars before the green flag lap.  Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had this problem at Bristol, and it ruined his victory chances as well.  All of these Chasers are just so anxious to get the party started, and they can't hold their horses until it starts.  Black flags have proved to be costly in addition to bad pit stops.  Bowyer did do a good job salvaging a 12th place finish after the trouble, and that shows that he can make the best out of the worst scenario.

Kyle Busch had another disappointing run for the third week in a row.  His car was out of control at the beginning of the day because of a little piece of paper stuck in a car part.  After his issue was fixed, he hobbled around Kansas to a 28th place finish.  I have to give him credit for being able to hang on to that machine.  That showed his talent right there.  All year, Kyle has always been able to make the best out of a bad, race car.

Tony Stewart went into Kansas as a driver who was favored to win the event.  He won there on fuel mileage in 2006 and has a terrible drought to end.  DW picked him to win the event in his post.  "Smoke" has had a disappointing year and is pretty much out of Title contention.  All three of the Gibbs drivers are 10-11-12 in standings.  It just amazes me how they can be so dominant for most of the year and so horrendous when it counts.  The organization has done something different with their equipment in order to be this bad.  Joe Gibbs Racing can kiss their Championship hopes good-bye.

That's all for now.