CHASE FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP NASCAR driver profiles

Jimmie Johnson

Team: Hendrick Motorsports

Car: No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet

Chase points: First, 6,382

Position change: Plus 1

What happened: Johnson won his ninth race of the season — and third in a row — to move past Teammate Jeff Gordon into the points lead. He took the lead after Texas last year, and held on for his first Nextel Cup title.

Speaking: “Thirty points is good, and if I can maintain it or stretch it, it would be a lot better. I just know that I won at Texas, he finished seventh, and it was like a 40-point swing. So if I finish eighth at Phoenix and he wins, he’s back in the lead. I’m not ready at all to say we’re in control of this thing,” Johnson said.

Jeff Gordon

Team: Hendrick Motorsports

Car: No. 24 Dupont Chevrolet

Chase points: Second, -30

Position change: Minus 1

What happened: Gordon wasn’t great at Texas, finishing eighth to lose his lead in the standings. But he now heads to Phoenix, where he won during the spring.

Speaking: “Thirty points isn’t that much. The biggest thing right now is we’re getting beat and they’re the ones winning the races. We have to put pressure back on them and outperform them. They’re on a roll right now and we’ve got to answer this weekend,” Gordon said.

Clint Bowyer

Team: Richard Childress Racing

Car: No. 07 Jack Daniels Chevrolet

Chase points: Third, -181

Position change: None

What happened: Bowyer finished 19th at Texas because of two late pit stops to correct a loose wheel. His title chances all but over, Bowyer will try to win at Phoenix, site of his 2005 Nextel Cup debut.

Speaking: “Phoenix is definitely one of my favorites. I usually run well and I really enjoy racing there. We’re taking the Car that we won with at New Hampshire, so hopefully we can go to Phoenix this weekend and win again,” Bowyer said.

Kyle Busch

Team: Hendrick Motorsports

Car: No. 5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet

Chase points: Fourth, -339

Position change: Plus 2

What happened: Busch led a race-high 153 laps and was in position to win until a slow final pit stop. He rallied back to finish fourth, and is trying to move up one more spot in the standings to give Hendrick a 1-2-3 finish in the final points standings.

Speaking: Busch did not comment after the race.

Carl Edwards

Team: Roush Fenway Racing

Car: No. 99 Office Depot Ford

Chase points: Fifth, -357

Position change: Minus 1

What happened: Edwards wrapped up the Busch Series championship on Saturday, but struggled the next day in the Cup race. He finished 26th, three laps down.

Speaking: “Last week at Texas we had some bad luck with a sway bar malfunction, but hopefully all of that is behind us and we can get a solid top-five this weekend,” crew chief Bob Osborne said.

Tony Stewart

Team: Joe Gibbs Racing

Car: No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet

Chase points: Sixth, -373

Position change: Minus 1

What happened: Stewart spun during the race when he was nudged by Casey Mears, but didn’t damage his Car. He finished 11th.

Speaking: “It’ll be interesting to watch Jeff and Jimmie go for it, and I don’t think you can count Clint Bowyer out of this thing yet. He’s a guy that can still do it. He’s hung in there this whole Chase, and if those two guys make a slip, he’s right there and in a position to take advantage of it. It’s really a three-horse race,” Stewart said.

Jeff Burton

Team: Richard Childress Racing

Car: No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet

Chase points: Seventh, -431

Position change: Plus 1

What happened: Burton finished sixth, best of the RCR entries, but was mathematically eliminated from title contention.

Speaking: “We’re using Phoenix as a place to go and try to get better at the one-mile race tracks. We’ve worked hard on that program, but the other two [RCR] Teams have done a better job than we have. We’re definitely going to lean heavy on our Teammates and try to learn something,” Burton said.

Kevin Harvick

Team: Richard Childress Racing

Car: No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet

Chase points: Eighth, -439

Position change: Minus 1

What happened: Harvick finished 10th, his third top-10 of the Chase, but was mathematically eliminated from title contention. He’s the defending race winner at Phoenix.

Speaking: “I think Phoenix is a measuring stick for us. If we go there and we are off a little, we know that we need to go back to the drawing board and work on our stuff,” Harvick said.

Kurt Busch

Team: Penske Racing

Car: No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge

Chase points: Ninth, -453

Position change: None

What happened: Busch finished eighth for the second straight race and was mathematically eliminated from title contention.

Speaking: “We look at (Phoenix) as a final shot this year to win a CoT race and we’ll be doing everything we can to do that,” Busch said.

Matt Kenseth

Team: Roush Fenway Racing

Car: No. 17 Dewalt Tools Ford

Chase points: 10th, -454

Position change: Plus 1

What happened: Kenseth lost a side-by-side battle for the win to Johnson, and was mathematically eliminated from the Chase.

Speaking: “Texas was a tough one to take, but, looking back on it, it was a pretty good finish for us. We never really had a top-five Car until the end of the race. I don’t think I could’ve done anything different that would’ve helped us win the race besides wrecking, and that’s never a good option,” Kenseth said.

Denny Hamlin

Team: Joe Gibbs Racing

Car: No. 11 Fed Ex Chevrolet

Chase points: 11th, -524

Position change: None

What happened: Hamlin battled Kenseth for the lead, but contact between the Cars sent Hamlin into the wall and he finished 29th.

Speaking: “It’s just the story of our Chase. I was driving hard. I was driving a lot harder than I probably typically would at that stage of the race. It bit us in the end. I just misjudged there with Matt,” Hamlin said.

Martin Truex Jr.

Team: Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Car: No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet

Chase points: 12th, -524

Position change: None

What happened: Truex started from the pole and finished third for his best finish in two months.

Speaking: “We have had good cars every race and we just haven’t been able to finish where we have ran, so it feels good,” Truex said.