This week was the second week in the 10-race Chase for the Championship. This second installment was run at the Monster Mile in Dover, DE. Ryan Newman, one of the ten drivers still eligible to win the championship, absolutely dominated this race. Newman led over 300 of the 400 laps on his way to victory lane. Unfortunately for Newman, many other top-ten drivers also had strong performances. As a result, Newman only moved up one place in the standings from 9th to 8th. Jeff Gordon finished in 3rd on Sunday, and that was good enough to propel him into 1st place in the championship race. Kurt Busch is only one point behind Gordon in the overall standings thanks to his 5th place finish. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was tie for the championship lead coming into the day, but he dropped to 3rd despite the fact that he had a solid 9th place finish on Sunday.
Next week, the Chase for the Championship will roll through Talledega, Alabama. This will be the only true super-speedway race in the 10-race Chase.
