This Week in the NASCAR Garage

There are just three races left in the NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Just three drivers have a real shot at the title. Jimmie Johnson leads Denny Hamlin by just 14 points and Kevin Harvick is in third, a scant 38 behind the #48 Chevy driver on his "drive for five". Anything can happen in NASCAR Sprint Cup racing. With the fourth, fifth and sixth place teams within 247 point of first place, mechanical issues or bad luck could weigh heavily on the outcome of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

In 1992, The "Underbird" Team of Alan Kulwicki shocked the world by winning the then Winston Cup title when the underfunded, independent team rolled into Atlanta just 30 points behind Davey Allison and Bill Elliot trailing by 40 points. First through sixth were separated by only 103 points that year with only one race left. The Atlanta race that bid farewell to The King Richard Petty and introduced NASCAR fans to Jeff Gordon will go down as one of the most memorable in the modern day NASCAR era.

Aside from NASCAR's Chase for the Championship, news is still buzzing throughout the NASCAR garage in regard to several other teams. Since Kasey Kahne's untimely release from Richard Petty Motorsports, that team's financial woes have been the subject of news across the world of sports. The notion that Richard Petty and his famed #43 might not be in the sport much longer has worried many fans.

Ray Evernham, former Jeff Gordon crew chief and original owner of Evernham Motorpsorts, that became Gillette-Evernham Motorsports, and finally merged into Richard Petty Motorsports announced through Sirius Radio that Richard Petty is indeed, attempting to put the finances together to take back control of the flailing organization and has support from throughout the garage as well as Evernham himself.

A Richard Petty Motorsports team spokesman also revealed that Budweiser, which was expected to pull their sponsorship from the #9 RPM Ford this week due to contract disputes in regard to Kasey Kahne's departure, will stay on the car for the remainder of the season. Richard Petty Motorsports is expected to field all of its cars through the end of 2010 and consolidate to a two car team next season. At this point, A.J. Allmedinger is expected to stay in the famed #43 for 2011, with Aussie Marcos Ambrose taking over the duties in the #9.

In manufacturer news this week's, Fox Sports Lee Spencer confirmed that Earnhardt- Gannassi Racing with Felix Sabates will remain under the Chevrolet banner for 2011 continuing Earnhardt's long relationship with the red bowtie and Earnhardt Childress Racing Technologies. ECR engines are arguably the most powerful in the NASCAR Sprint Cup garage and won the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 among other races this year.