Which Driver Will Take The Final Victory Lap For The Chase?

The Nextel Cup Series 2005 Official Driver Standings show that a good showdown lies ahead after race 31 of 36. Could fate shuffle the deck as it did at Saturday night’s UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway?

(PRWEB) October 19, 2005 -- Friday night’s Busch race gave foreboding signs to NASCAR drivers before Saturday’s Cup event at Lowe’s Motor Speedway after that race was interrupted by a record 14 cautions.

The next night 16 drivers including five Chase competitors encountered problems with blown tires as experienced the night before due to a smoothed track surface from its previous trademark bumps. The Goodyear tires could not adequately grip the revised track surface after the increased dizzying driver speeds which led to blowout anxiety or casualty for many.

Saturday night at Lowe’s Motor Speedway was a mixture of being a laughingstock and an outright hazard to human life. Tony Stewart even suggested tounge-in-cheek that he should seek an immediate renewal of his life insurance policy after losing the lead due to tire problems.

Elliott Sadler, Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne also blew tires while leading which prompted other drivers to not race full capacity to prevent a threatening tire failure. The track’s choice to grind down its former bump traction has been deemed a disaster and won’t be forgotten for a very long time.

The night was fraught with adversity for all of the drivers but one rose above the obstacles and prevailed. Jimmie Johnson succeeded to win despite tire troubles as well as a mid-race battery switch and a shaky electrical system and also even a failed alternator. Jimmie also started 41st due to a failed engine before qualifying.

It was his fourth consecutive win at Lowe’s despite the challenging situation which also raised his placement +3 to tie with Tony Stewart for the Nextel Cup standing lead. He certainly earned his pay that day in Concord, North Carolina.

Will fate continue Jimmie’s ride to be the next victor of the Chase for the Nextel Cup? Will it competitively propel Tony Stewart to resume his 2005 stranglehold on wins as well as top 5 and top 10 finishes after finishing a humbling 25th at Lowe’s? Or will fate cause a shakeout leading to a storybook ending for one of the other contenders including the retiring Mark Martin or Rusty Wallace? The showdown is upon us now and looking like it could be a classic.

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