NASCAR Top 10 Power Rankings: Week 20

Note: the quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jimmie Johnson — Starting in his spare car due to a crash in practice, Johnson managed a near-top-10 finish, despite falling a lap down early in the race when he green flag pitted, only to see the caution fly seconds later.

"In NASCAR, they call that 'getting the (drive) shaft,'” jokes Johnson. "It looks like Jeff Gordon's bad luck is rubbing off on me. Of course, bad luck to Jeff results in a 34th-place finish. Bad luck to me is a 12th-place finish."

Dang, Double J, that's your car owner you're cracking on there. Who do you think you are? Ryan Newman?

On the surface, it was a decent day for the No. 48 Lowe's Chevy. Dig a little deeper and you'll see that five of Johnson's six closest pursuers in the points gained ground on him. The sixth, Greg Biffle lost ground, but only a nominal 10 points. Now Tony Stewart is bearing down on Johnson and his points lead.

After a week off, NASCAR heads to Indianapolis for the Brickyard 400, where Johnson has only one top-10 in three tries, including a 36th last year. Stewart, Biffle, and Kurt Busch all scored top-10s at Indy last year, so Johnson should heed the track advice of Gordon, who's won four times there, to maintain a healthy cushion in the points.

2. Tony Stewart — Although he didn't win the race, Stewart remained red-hot, finishing seventh for his sixth consecutive top-10 finish, and unseated Greg Biffle for second place in the points. Stewart now trails Johnson by only 66 points, and certainly has more momentum than anyone heading into the Brickyard 400.

"That qualifies me to make a bold guarantee," says Stewart. "I guarantee that more than six cars will start the race at Indy, unlike those clowns from Formula 1, who made the United States Grand Prix a joke. Also, if I win, I guarantee I will be on the cover of Sports Illustrated and not Danica Patrick.”

Stewart has made it evident that a win at Indy would mean more to him than a Nextel Cup championship. Whether or not we should believe him, I don't know. In any case, a win by Stewart at the Brickyard would be historic, as he would become the only man to win an IRL points championship and the Brickyard 400. Stewart came fairly close last year, with a fifth. Nothing would match the excitement of Stewart battling defending race winner and four-time Indy champ Jeff Gordon for the victory.

3. Greg Biffle — What may be a slump to Greg Biffle would be a streak to many others. Biffle has gone five races without a win, and has only logged one top-10 in that span. However, the No. 16 Roush Racing Ford has only finished lower than 17th once in those five races, and still is only 87 points behind Jimmie Johnson.

"So what's the problem?" asks Biffle. "Sure, I haven't won a race in a while, but when you win five so soon into the season, you have to call off the dogs at some point and let others win. Besides, I star in a great Subway commercial in which I act circles around my crew chief, Doug Richert."

Yeah, Greg, you make me want to eat at Subway about as much as that geek Jared. Give me 500 grams of heart-stopping fat in a Double Whopper any day.

Biffle finished sixth at the Brickyard last year in only his second Cup race there, a marked improvement on his 21st result in his first outing at Indy.

4. Rusty Wallace — Wallace and the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge were a force all day, and he led the race as late as lap 177 until succumbing to the car of Kurt Busch. Wallace's second was his best finish of the year, and he was followed across the line by fellow veteran Mark Martin.

"And I bet you guys didn't even know it was old-timers day at Pocono," says Wallace. "All Geritol and Depends Undergarments jokes aside, I'm just tickled to finish second, but I would love a win in my final year to send me on my way."

Behind Tony Stewart, Rusty has been the hottest driver in NASCAR, with seven top-10s in his last nine races, and no finish lower than 12th. If Wallace gets a win at the Brickyard, he will surely have earned it. In 11 career starts at Indy, he has three runner-up finishes in his eight top-10s. Like Tony Stewart, a win at Indy has so far eluded Wallace. If his form of late holds, Wallace should finish in or around the top 10.

5. Kurt Busch — Busch bagged his second win of the season, and first since winning at home in Las Vegas, by sweating out four late cautions after dominating early. Busch led 131 of 203 laps, and 110 of the first 150, but had to pass Wallace with 17 remaining, and held on for the win. The four late cautions necessitated three extra laps and a green-white checkered finish.

"It's NASCAR's version of sudden death overtime,” explains Busch. "What a perfect way to cap one of the most boring and uneventful races of the year than to make us run three more laps with very little passing.”

Busch's record at Indy points to a top-10 finish this year. In four races there, he's scored three top-10s. Look for Busch and teammate Greg Biffle to lead the Roush charge on August 7th.

6. Ryan Newman — Newman was a fixture in the top five at Pocono until lap 139, when a flat right front tire caused Newman to nip the No. 42 car of Jamie McMurray. After pitting for damage control, Newman restarted in 24th and quickly passed 10 cars to breach the top 15. Despite the car's aerodynamics being upset by the damage, Newman was still able to pick off several more cars later in the race to collect his fifth top-five of the year. Newman remained sixth in the points, but gained 33 points on points leader Johnson.

Like Tony Stewart, Newman is another Indiana native who would love for a win at the Brickyard to highlight his career accomplishments. And a Bud Pole Award at Indy is absent from Newman's resume, as well.

"That's fine and dandy,” says Newman. "But race wins and poles don't compare to hearing Indiana homeboy and over-emotive singer Jim Nabors sing "Back Home Again In Indiana” before the race. Who knew Gomer Pyle could sing? Shazzamm!”

I hate to burst your bubble, Ryan, but Nabors only sings that before the Indy 500. You and your NASCAR pals will probably have to live with some American Idol rejects singing "The Star Spangled Banner" off key with a ghetto beat.

Newman's best finish at Indy is a fourth in 2002, and he's qualified in the top 10 in each of his four starts there. He's still searching for win number one this year, and while it probably won't happen at Indy, a top five is very likely, as well as a front row start.

7. Mark Martin — Martin matched his season best with a third place at Long Pond, his fourth third place of the year. It was another strong day for Roush racing, as teammate's Kurt Busch and Carl Edwards came home first and fourth, respectively, with Rusty Wallace disturbing an all-Roush top three with his runner-up finish.

"I guess the old dogs can still run with the big dogs," says Martin. "And I'm pretty sure we could drink them under the table. You know, you could take the number of years of NASCAR experience I have, and that number would be more than the ages of half the guys out here. I don't know if that makes me feel proud, or just old."

In any case, it should go a long way in Martin's decision to return for another year with Roush.

In his first sixth outings at Indianapolis, Martin finished top six or better five times. Since then, he's only seen the top 10 once.

8. Jamie McMurray — McMurray won last Saturday's Bud Pole qualifying, and when the green flag dropped on Sunday, he held it for all of about a quarter mile. Kurt Busch immediately passed McMurray as they entered turn one at Pocono, but the No. 42 car remained in the top 10 for much of the day.

"So I was on pole for about one day and four seconds," adds McMurray. "That's a long time. Now, in actual race time, I was on pole for about four seconds. That's not so good. Pole position is overrated anyway. Maybe it would mean something if we started single file."

McMurray was cruising along towards a likely top-five finish when the No. 12 car of Newman cut a tire ahead, and McMurray could not stop in time. The contact damaged McMurray's front end, and after pitting to repair damage, and re-entered the fray in 26th. Some crafty racing and shrewd pit strategy allowed McMurray to creep up the leaderboard and finish 11th. Currently 11th in the points, McMurray in nine points behind 10th-place Dale Jarrett and 36 away from the 400-point barrier.

Indianapolis may be the track that McMurray needs to penetrate the top 10. In his two races at the Brickyard, he's finished third and seventh. Expect a top-10 at worst for the No. 42 Dodge.

9. (tie) Elliott Sadler/Dale Jarrett — Robert Yates Racing teammates Sadler and Jarrett are separated by only 19 points in the Cup standings, with Sadler ninth and Jarrett 10th. At Pocono, Jarrett crossed the line 15th, with Sadler close behind in 16th.

"That's like receiving a package in the mail from UPS," says Jarrett, "and opening it up and finding a load of M&M's. You can't beat that."

That's amazing. Even in a fictional quote, Dale Jarrett shamelessly plugs he and his teammate's sponsors.

Last year at Indianapolis, Jarrett and Sadler finished second and third, following Jeff Gordon across the brick finish line. Yates engines are always fast at 2.5-mile tracks, so expect Sadler and Jarrett to run up front and fast.

10. Carl Edwards — Apparently, it doesn't matter where Carl Edwards starts a race at Pocono — he's going to finish in a much higher position. A little over a month after starting 29th and winning the race, Edwards started last on the grid this time and improved dramatically with a fourth-place finish.

"If I could start any further back, I would," says Edwards. "At Indy, I plan on starting from my hauler in the garage area. Should I win, you can expect a back flip from atop the Indy scoring tower."

Edwards has never raced in a Cup event at Indianapolis, but does that matter? The same was true in June at the first Pocono race, which Edwards won. As long as he has a good video game on which to practice, he should be good to go.

"One thing's for sure," says Edwards. "Wherever I finish, it will be a career best."