The Pure Michigan 400 is one of the final races before the Chase begins in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The regular season ends September 10th at Richmond. Greg Biffle has won the Pole for this Sunday's race; starting along side Biffle is his teammate Matt Kenseth.
At the end of the regular season the top ten drivers, along with two Wild Card teams will make it into the ten race Chase for the Cup. The two Wild Card spots are rewarded to the teams with the most race wins who are also ranked 11-20th in the points standings. As of August 20th, the top ten looks like this
1.) Kyle Busch 752
1) Carl Edwards 752
3) Jimmie Johnson 746
4) Kevin Harvick 738
5) Matt Kenseth 724
6) Kurt Busch 712
7) Jeff Gordon 700
8) Ryan Newman 686
9) Dale Earnhardt Jr 670
10) Tony Stewart 659
The Wild Card Standings look like this
11) Brad Keselowski 2 wins
12) Denny Hamlin 1 win
13) Paul Menard 1 win
Drivers in the top 20 that can get a win to propel them into the Chase are Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, A.J. Allmendinger, Joey Logano, Mark Martin, Kasey Kahne, and Juan Pablo Montoya.
There are also drivers outside the Top 20 who, with a win, can jump into the top 20 include David Ragan, Regan Smith, and last weeks winner at The Glen; Marcos Ambrose. These drivers have four races to have a chance at the Chase. Tomorrow's race at Michigan, next Saturday at Bristol, Labor Day weekend in Atlanta, and the regular season finale in Richmond September 10th.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is in need of a win to secure his spot in the Chase. A win would also break his 100 plus race winless streak. Jr. does have a shot this weekend, his last win was in Spring 2008 at Michigan.
Although I would like to predict Jr. to win tomorrow; I don't think he can end the streak. My favorites to win the Pure Michigan are AJ Allemdinger and Brad Keselowski. Allmendinger has shown he is a very consistent driver and he is proving that he can contend with the rest of the pack.
Keselowski has been driving very well the past few weeks despite breaking his ankle while testing at Road Atlanta a few weeks ago.
Fuel milage could come into play at the end of what should be a very close 200 lap race.
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