NASCAR Top 10 Power Rankings: Week 26

Note: the quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Matt Kenseth — Kenseth finished eighth in Richmond to close the regular season first in the points. The Chase begins with Kenseth on top, with a five-point lead over Jimmie Johnson in second.

"Wasn't Roush Racing supposed to put five cars in the Chase?" adds Kenseth, "Four at the very least. What happened? I think you'll hear the so-called experts claim that resources were spread too thin. Here's the deal: Carl Edwards was too busy feuding, Greg Biffle was too busy selling subs, and Jamie McMurray, well, he never had a chance."

2. Kevin Harvick — Harvick won for the third time this year, passing Kyle Busch with nearly one lap to go. Harvick starts the Chase third in the points, and is probably one of the clear favorites along with Kenseth and Johnson.

"Maybe you didn't recognize the paint scheme on my car," says Harvick. "It was the 'Barenaked Ladies' paint job. They're a band, so maybe you've heard them. They're Canadian, so maybe you haven't. Anyway, they performed before the race, to a very small crowd, which leads me to believe that NASCAR fans actually expected real barenaked ladies and not necessarily a band."

3. Jimmie Johnson — Johnson finished 23rd in Richmond, only his eighth result out of the top 10 this year. He'll start the Chase five points behind Kenseth, looking for his first Nextel Cup championship.

"Aren't I consistent?" asks Johnson. "I'm always up there with a chance to win the title. Just like last year, I looked like the early favorite, then I faded right before the final 10 races began. This year has been eerily similar to the pattern of last year. I don't want to follow in the footsteps of Dick Trickle and be known as the greatest driver never to have won a title."

4. Kyle Busch — Busch led 248 out of 400 laps in Richmond, but lost the lead to Kevin Harvick late. Still, his second-place finish moved him up one in the points, where he will start fourth, 15 points behind Kenseth.

"Hendrick Motorsports has three drivers in the Chase," says Busch. "Myself, Jimmie Johnson, and Jeff Gordon. That's more than any other team. That's one more than Roush and Richard Childress, two more than DEI, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Evernham, and three more than Penske. If you listen closely, you can here Rusty Wallace giggling.”

5. Dale Earnhardt, Jr — Earnhardt finished a lap off the lead on Saturday night, but his 17th-place finish easily placed him in the Chase to the Cup. He'll start sixth, 25 points behind Kenseth.

"Well, any momentum I had going after California is gone," says Earnhardt. "But, miraculously, even with my sorry finish in Richmond, I somehow sliced over 300 points off of Matt Kenseth's points lead. Isn't the Chase format great, except for the guy leading the points?"

6. Denny Hamlin — Hamlin will be the only rookie in the Chase, as a result of his 15th in Richmond, which was enough to give him the fifth spot in the lineup. He'll start only 20 points behind Kenseth.

"Not only am I the only rookie in the Chase," says Hamlin, "I'm also the only member of Joe Gibbs Racing in the Chase. That would be because my teammate, Tony Stewart, blew his spot with an absolutely dreadful performance. But that could work in our favor. Now, all of JGR resources can go to my run for the Cup, and Tony can run interference."

7. Mark Martin — Martin finished strong with a fifth in Richmond, and moved up two places in the points to seventh, where he will start in Loudon 30 points behind Matt Kenseth. Martin joins Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson as the only drivers to qualify for the Chase all three years.

"Boy, that's fast company," says Martin. "But obviously not fast enough. Neither of us has won a championship in the current Chase format. This is my last shot at a title, unless Jack Roush can talk me into returning for one more year, for the third time.”

8. Kasey Kahne — Kahne finalized his three-race dash to make the Chase with a third-place in Richmond, which moved him from 11th to the final Chase position, at the expense of Tony Stewart. He begins the Chase in 10th, 45 points behind Kenseth.

"I'm sure NASCAR doesn't mind sacrificing the Home Depot demographic," says Kahne, "for the pimple-faced, braces-wearing fans that will tune in knowing that I have a shot at the title. To all those fans, I say 'thanks,' although I'm sure you can't hear me because you've got your iPod earbuds jammed in your head."

9. Jeff Burton — Burton was on shaky ground until his ninth in Richmond qualified him for the Chase in the eighth spot. He started the race in the 10th points position, and will join Kyle Busch as Chase first-timers.

"Who would have ever thought that I'd be the only orange car in the Chase?” says Burton. “Tony Stewart won't win the Cup, but he will have a say in who will.”

10. Jeff Gordon — Gordon struggled to a 31st-place finish in the Chevy Rock & Roll 400, but that was good enough to get him into the Chase final field in the ninth position. The brakes on the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet were near failure, but Gordon was able to feather the pedal enough to reach the finish.

"I don't know what the deal was with the brakes," says Gordon. "All I know is my feet were on fire there at the end. I think it's the 'Fred Fintstone Syndrome.'"