The Points Shuffle Continues
Elliott Sadler made the most significant gain in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods. His fourth-place finish moved him from eighth to fourth - the only positive change in the race and the biggest change in the point standings among the top 10 since The Chase began. Matt Kenseth dropped two positions while Mark Martin and Ryan Newman dropped one each.

The Other Chase
Approximately $1 million will be paid to the driver who finishes 11th in the final NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings – an increase of more than $400,000 over one year ago. That includes a $250,000 bonus, which will be paid to the 11th-place finisher. Additionally, the 11th-place driver will also join the top-10 drivers on the stage at the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Awards Banquet in New York in December. Currently, Jamie McMurray holds the 11th-place position by 82 points over 12th-place Dale Jarrett. McMurray has held the 11th-position since The Chase began while three different drivers have been ranked 12th.

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Top 10 - Heading to Charlotte

First
Kurt Busch finished sixth in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and remained first in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. He is now 29 points ahead of second-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. Busch and Earnhardt Jr. are the only drivers to score top-10 finishes in the first four races of The Chase. Busch has scored three victories and 16 top-10 finishes in 2004. It was his 10th top-15 finish in the last 10 races. Busch and eighth-place Ryan Newman are the only drivers to receive bonus points in all four races of the Chase. Busch has a 4.3 average finish in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, the best of all drivers. He has competed in eight races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and has never scored a top-10 finish there. Busch has a 19.6 average finish at Charlotte and ranks seventh out of the top-10 drivers in average finish there. He finished 41st in this race one year ago, his worst finish and only DNF at Charlotte. He scored an 11th-place finish there in May, his best finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Second
Dale Earnhardt Jr., finished ninth in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway, scoring his 19th top-10 finish in 2004. Earnhardt Jr. has scored top-10 finishes in his last five races, tying his career longest top-10 streak for the third time. He and Kurt Busch are the only drivers to score top-10 finishes in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. Earnhardt Jr. has a 5.5 average finish in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, second among the top-10 drivers. He has competed in 10 races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway scoring five top-10 finishes. Earnhardt Jr. has a 16.8 average finish at Charlotte and ranks sixth out of the top-10 drivers in average finish there. However, he has scored three top-10 finishes in his last four races there. He finished ninth in this race one year ago and sixth there in May.

Third
Jeff Gordon finished 13th in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and remained third in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Top 10. This marked his second finish outside the top 10 in as many races. Gordon has scored two top-10 finishes in the four races in The Chase. Gordon has scored five victories (tied with Earnhardt Jr.) and 20 top-10 finishes in 2004, the most of all drivers. Gordon is 79 points behind point leader Kurt Busch as the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup heads to Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Gordon has a 10.5 average finish in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, and ranks third among the top-10 in average finish. Gordon has scored four victories and 14 top-10 finishes in his 23 races at Charlotte. Gordon has a 14.4 average finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and ranks fourth among the top-10 drivers in average finish there. He finished fifth in this race one year ago and 30th there in May. Gordon has started from the top-10 in his last four races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Fourth
Elliott Sadler finished fourth in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and climbed from eighth to fourth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Top 10. Sadler has scored two victories and 13 top-10 finishes in 2004. He is 143 points behind first-place Kurt Busch. Sadler has a 13.5 average finish in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, and ranks fifth among the top-10 in average finish. Sadler has competed in 12 races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and has scored only one top-10 finish there. Sadler has a 26.17 average finish at Charlotte, the worst average finish among the top-10 drivers there. He finished 43rd in this race one year ago, his worst finish and third DNF at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. He followed with a fifth-place finish there in May, his best finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Fifth
Mark Martin finished 20th in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and dropped from fourth to fifth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. Martin had climbed from 15th fourth in the eight races from Indianapolis to Talladega, before losing a position at Kansas. He is just seven points behind fourth-place Elliott Sadler and 150 behind point leader Kurt Busch. Martin has scored one victory and 13 top-10 finishes in 2004. Martin has a 12.5 average finish in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, and ranks fourth among the top-10 in average finish. Martin has competed in 39 races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway scoring four victories and 19 top-10 finishes. He has a 16.23 average finish and ranks fifth out of the top-10 drivers in average finish there. He finished 11th in this race one year ago and 36th there in May.

Sixth
Tony Stewart finished 14th in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and remained sixth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. Stewart has scored two victories and 15 top-10 finishes in 2004. Stewart is 173 points behind first-place Kurt Busch. He has competed in 11 races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, scoring one victory and eight top-10 finishes three. Stewart has a 9.55 average finish at Charlotte and ranks second out of the top-10 drivers in average finish there. Stewart finished first in this race one year ago and ninth there in May.

Seventh
Matt Kenseth finished 17th in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway. He dropped from _ fifth to seventh in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings and is now 180 points behind first-place Kurt Busch. He has scored two victories and 16 top-10 finishes this season. Kenseth has ranked in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Top 10 since Rockingham in 2003, 65 straight races. He has competed in 10 races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, scoring one victory and six top-10 finishes. He has a 12.9 average finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and ranks third out of the top-10 drivers in average finish there. He finished eighth in this race one year ago and third there in May, his fourth top-five finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Eighth
Ryan Newman finished 33rd in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and dropped from seventh to eighth in the point standings. He has scored two victories and 12 top-10 finishes in 2004. Newman is 232 points behind first-place Kurt Busch. He has competed in seven races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, posting three top-10 finishes. Newman has a 21.86 average finish at Charlotte and ranks eighth out of the top-10 drivers in average finish there. He finished second in this race one year ago and 35th there in May, one of three DNFs at Charlotte. Newman has led in three races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Ninth
Jimmie Johnson finished 32nd in the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods at Kansas Speedway and remained ninth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. Johnson has scored four victories and 15 top-five finishes this season, one more top five than Dale Earnhardt Jr. He is 247 points behind first-place Kurt Busch. Johnson has a 22.5 average finish in the first four races of The Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, the worst average finish among the top-10 drivers. Johnson has competed in six races Lowe’s Motor Speedway, scoring two victories and five top-10 finishes there. Johnson has a 9.5 average finish at Charlotte, the best average finish of the top-10 drivers there. Johnson finished third in this race one year ago and first there this past May.