"The Chase" Tightens Up

A victory Sunday in the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway would make Johnson the first driver to win four in a row since teammate, friend and car owner Jeff Gordon did it in 1998.

Johnson's charge, combined with the first slip by Busch since the 10-race Chase began, has injected some real drama back into NASCAR's new championship format.

Thanks to Busch's blown engine at Atlanta, where he wound up 42nd - the first time he finished outside the top six since the Chase began - the top five drivers are bunched within 98 points with only Phoenix, Darlington and Homestead remaining on the schedule.

Four-time champion Gordon, four-time series runner-up Mark Martin and fan favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr., who beat Johnson in last year's race, all remain solidly in the hunt coming to Phoenix, where there have been 14 winners in the 16 years that NASCAR has raced there. Only the late Davey Allison (1991 and 1992) and Jeff Burton (2000 and 2001) have won more than once on the one-mile oval.