Shifting momentum leaves Cup title available to all

[irish_blue69]

After all of the jockeying for position and declarations of whose Cup it is to lose, it looks like old-fashioned momentum is going to determine who will win NASCAR's Nextel Cup championship.
Jeff Burton had it midway through the 10-race playoff, but, a blown engine Sunday at Martinsville dropped him from first to fifth place in the standings. More important, it tightened the standings to the point that eight drivers are within 99 points of new leader Matt Kenseth.
With only four races left, momentum appears to be back on Jimmie Johnson's side after he woke up Monday morning only 41 points out of first, when a few weeks ago he was 165 points behind. It hasn't been an easy ride for a driver who was the runaway points leader at one point during the regular season.
Johnson crashed at New Hampshire in the Chase opener, then a fuel stop at Kansas submarined the dominance his car had demonstrated and left him with a 14th place finish.
At Talladega he drove a fast, if not dominating, car to an almost-guaranteed second place. Still, perhaps bubbling with pride or feeling he had a chance at the checkered flag, Johnson made a move to overtake race leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. When he didn't complete the maneuver, his own teammate, Brian Vickers, was right on his fender and the ensuing accident cost Johnson valuable points.
Two weeks later, though, Johnson's prospects are considerably brighter after an emotion-packed win at Martinsville, matching the victory he had here two years ago.
So who can blame him when he says, "It's a crazy Chase. ... Looking back, there has been more off-the-wall things going on in this Chase than the last two I have been a part of."
Kenseth went so far as to call this year's playoff "pretty sloppy so far." The 2002 champion explained "there [have] been some guys who have run real good, but everybody's had a little bit of trouble."
Johnson doesn't agree entirely, saying, "I am not sure I would use the word 'sloppy,' but I think there have been a couple teams that have shown a lot of speed but have had bad luck. I think we are one of them."
And, by his account, there's plenty of bad luck still available.
"Absolutely, I don't think the trouble is done. Everybody is still going to have trouble from here on out."
Well, everybody -- meaning all 10 drivers -- is a pretty broad statement. What is undeniable, though, is that the driver who can put together four strong finishes from here on out will be the '06 champion. But at this moment, no one has a clue as to who that might be.
So, you see, we're back to momentum, although no one wants to utter that word. You might hear pundits call it consistency. Drivers will call it something else.
Take Burton, who called for a team meeting for Monday. "We run well enough to win a championship, we've just got to put the next four races together."
Whether you call it putting the next four races together, consistency or momentum. Whoever has it will be the next champion.

SI.com - Writers - Lewis Franck: Cup contenders in search of momentum - Monday October 23, 2006 1:18PM

[AT3Weins]

Man did the points get all jacked up or what?

Too bad Jr got stuck in the pack