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http:// --> Ashland, Oregon HOME Valley & State Sports Nation & World Opinion/Editorial Classifieds Business Columnists Obituaries Weather Archive Hot Topics Forum Photo Gallery Past Readers Polls Revels Etcetera Backpage O-Zone Special Sections Real Estate Guide Menu Guide Shakespeare Subscribe Contact Us Rate Card Place an Ad Online Games Movie Preview October 23, 2006 Chase wide open after eventful day at Martinsville; four races left By Hank Kurz Jr. The Associated Press MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Four races from the end of the NASCAR season, this is what Brian France had in mind when he devised the Chase for the championship in 2004. Seven drivers within 99 points of the lead, and many of them much closer. All 10 eligible drivers with a mathematical chance of still being champion. Lots of suspense. The wild card short track in the last 10 races did what the drivers feared it would on Sunday, shuffling the field and setting up what is likely to be a dramatic finish. "It's still pretty wide open," 2003 champion Matt Kenseth said after taking over the standings lead when Jeff Burton blew an engine after 217 laps of the Subway 500. "It's going to be pretty exciting, I think, coming down to the last race." If they are all like this one, it will be gripping for sure. Jimmie Johnson took the race lead from Bobby Labonte with 55 laps to go and held it through several restarts to win the crash-filled Nextel Cup race at Martinsville Speedway. Johnson moved from seventh to third in the standings, and seems to be building significant momentum. "I'm just happy to finish where we should have," said Johnson, who was denied at least a second-place finish at Talladega when he was spun out on the last lap two weeks ago, then finished second last week at Charlotte. "We've been running up-front the last three or four races and haven't been able to close the deal. Today we did." Kenseth, who finished 11th, seemed more concerned than excited about his performance. "I'm glad we are in the lead and if we can get going back on these last four tracks like we were earlier in the year, I think we've got a shot at it.," Kenseth said. Kevin Harvick is now second, 36 points back, and Johnson is 41 points behind. Denny Hamlin moved into fourth, 47 back. Burton dropped to 48 points off the pace, marking the first time the points leader has changed in the second half of the playoffs. "By no means do I think we are out of this thing," Burton said. "We won't lay down. We'll go to Atlanta feeling like we have as good a shot as anybody." Dale Earnhardt Jr. (94), Mark Martin (96) and Kasey Kahne (99) also are within striking distance, while Jeff Gordon is 141 back and Kyle Busch trails by 171. Johnson, a two-time runner-up in the championship, made the biggest move in the standings after starting the race 146 points back. He quickly worked his way forward after being 10th on a restart with 94 laps to go, passed Gordon for second with about 70 laps to go and put Labonte in his rearview mirror on the 446th of 500 laps. From there, he made it look easy, pulling away with relative ease on every restart except the last one, when Hamlin, a rookie, banged on his bumper and pulled up alongside. Johnson rebuffed the challenge, got back in front and won by 0.545 seconds. "Once I got pushed to the outside, I really felt like I was in trouble," Johnson said, "but I was able to rally back on the outside and get going, and once I got back going, I knew I had a better car and could get away from him. "He played with that line, but didn't cross it and I respect him for it." Hamlin said it may have been best that he never did get around Johnson. "I knew if I cleared him, he'd do the same thing to me going into the next corner and odds are I would not have been able to save it like he did," Hamlin said. Labonte finished third, followed by Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon, who cut 75 points off his deficit, dramatically improving his scant chance of winning a fifth title. The race featured 18 cautions for 106 laps, and the 17th one was, remarkably, the only one that really impacted Chase contenders. It happened on lap 477 when Earnhardt and Kahne, battling for sixth, bumped in Turn 3, sending Earnhardt spinning. Kahne raced on and finished seventh; Earnhardt wound up 22nd. Earnhardt said he was to blame after driving too hard into the turn. "I guess I need to get somebody on (the radio) to preach to me to have more patience because I definitely can't take control of myself," he said. On the last restart, Hamlin stayed on Johnson's bumper heading into the first turn and bumped him coming out of the second turn, then pulled inside down the backstretch. Johnson stayed side-by-side with him for an entire lap, then beat him coming off the fourth turn to get in front, and Hamlin seemed content to protect second place. Earlier, it looked like it might be the day when Gordon tied Dale Earnhardt Sr. for sixth with 76 career victories, but Gordon's car wasn't good enough to pull it off. After pitting for four tires and fuel under a caution on lap 367 while most other teams stayed out, Gordon moved into third when another caution flew with 100 to go. But the four-time champion's car wasn't strong enough to pass either leader Bobby Labonte or Casey Mears, and when Johnson appeared on Gordon's back bumper with about 70 laps to go, it was only a matter of time before he also zoomed past his teammate. Labonte used the same strategy to get to the front, and it worked. "I feel like I stole something," he said. h Leave a Comment: Advertisement: Advertisement: Paid Advertising Inkjet Printers Student Loans Water Filter Helzberg Diamonds Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Advertisement: Copyright © 2006 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.