D.E.I. Vs. Penske Racing

The Nextel Cup "regular season" is quickly winding down. Only seven races remain before the Chase for the Nextel Cup kicks off at New Hampshire International Speedway. With Jeff Gordon having the top spot tucked away in his back pocket, the real race to watch is going to be for the last two Chase positions. The top twelve drivers in the point standings at the end of the first twenty six races will make the Chase, which is Nascar's version of the playoffs.

The battle for the final two spots is shaping up to be a tag team match between Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Penske Racing. Martin Truex Jr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. drive under the D.E.I. banner and occupy the final two Chase spots respectively. On the outside looking in right now are Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch of Penske Racing. These four drivers are separated by 134 points heading into the final seven races. Earnhardt Jr. currently holds the twelfth position by 30 points over Ryan Newman and 77 over Busch.

Both of these organizations seem to have gotten back on track after suffering through a couple of sub-par seasons. Anyone who hasn't been living under a rock is aware of how D.E.I. and Earnhardt Jr. have dominated the headlines this season. From the failed contract negotiations with his stepmother to the announcement that he will drive for Hendrick Motorsports next season, Junior has been in the news almost daily. The real story, over the last month and a half has been the other Junior. Martin Truex Jr. and his team have been on fire during that time. They have proven that they are for real and can contend for wins on a weekly basis. Reports of D.E.I.'s demise without Earnhardt Jr. were a little premature, as Truex seems poised to lead that organization into the future.

The Penske camp has also shown signs of recapturing their former success. Ryan Newman has really come on as of late and re-established himself as a contender. People seem to forget that it wasn't all that long ago this guy had an eight-win season. Kurt Busch has run well this season and if it weren't for some bad luck would probably be higher in the standings than he is. If they can get their foot in the door, this team is more than capable of challenging for the title.

Over the next seven races all four of these teams will have to be on top of their game. We're at the point of the season where you can't afford to make mistakes and mental errors, especially if you're on the bubble like these teams are. As tight as the standings are, one slip up might take you out of contention.

These next races leading up to the Chase are taking place at a variety of different types of tracks. Indianapolis and Pocono are similar in that they are fairly flat tracks. The edge would have to go the Penske drivers at these tracks, although Truex had a great run at Pocono in June. Historically, Earnhardt Jr. hasn't run all that well at either of these places.

D.E.I. has really improved their program at tracks like Michigan and California over the last two years. Earnhardt Jr. has been strong on these types of tracks during that time and Truex is showing that he can be competitive almost anywhere. I would give the advantage to D.E.I. on these tracks.

The short tracks of Bristol and Richmond and the road course at Watkins Glen are probably the biggest wildcards out of the remaining races. Kurt Busch has practically owned Bristol during his career with five wins there. He has also scored a win at Richmond. Earnhardt Jr. has proven himself as a capable short track driver as well with three wins at Richmond and one at Bristol. The thing that makes these short tracks and road courses such wildcards is that it's real easy to get caught up in someone else's mess. The tight racing makes it extremely difficult to avoid crashes that are happening in front of you.

Any of these four teams is capable of clinching a spot in the Chase and contending for a championship. It will be the ones that make the least amount of mistakes between now and then that find themselves in a position to do so. No matter how it all turns out, it's going to be a lot of fun to watch.