Points-standings traffic jam bunches race to the chase

SONOMA, CALIF.

A title Chase without Kyle Busch? How about one without Daytona 500 champ Matt Kenseth, who’s never missed a Chase? Or one without any cars from either Joe Gibbs Racing or Richard Childress Racing?

Ten races before the 12-man title field is set, those are possible scenarios in what could be quite a scramble just to get into position to contend for the NASCAR Sprint Cup title.

While few typically fall out of a Chase spot this late in the season, this year could be different. Drivers seventh through 16th in the standings are separated by only 157 points, a total that could easily be made up before the field is set after Richmond in September. Four drivers are within 65 points of 12th place.

Among those in jeopardy of falling out of the top 12 are the drivers with the most wins on the circuit – Busch and Mark Martin, with three wins each.

Busch is ninth , 48 points ahead of 13th-place Kasey Kahne, who won Sunday’s race at Infineon Raceway. Busch’s position is tenuous because he’s scored just two top-10 finishes in the last 11 races and his problems could be getting worse.

The series heads this weekend to New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which has given Busch fits. Since his win there in 2006, he’s finished 25th or worse in three of the last five races. Then it’s off to Daytona, where anything can happen . Busch dominated the Daytona 500 before he finished 41st after an accident.

If his struggles continue , he could be out of the top 12 next month.

Busch’s woes are just part of some of the problems at Joe Gibbs Racing. The team has been good at times but not often at the finish. “We’re not in horrible shape; we’ve just got to do a better job capitalizing,’’ team president J.D. Gibbs said.

Another driver teetering on the edge is Martin, who’s 11th in the season standings, 12 points ahead of Kahne. Martin’s 35th-place finish Sunday marked the fifth time he’s placed 30th or worse this season.

Kenseth also is in danger of falling out of the top 10 . He gained 21 spots in the last 20 laps Sunday to finish 18th, salvaging his day after a crash midway through the race. Kenseth is 10th , 43 points ahead of Kahne.

For as bad as some drivers have it, no one has it worse than car owner Richard Childress. Last year, his three teams all finished in the top six . He added a fourth car in the offseason and all are outside the top 12 after Jeff Burton fell to 15th Sunday. Clint Bowyer is 16th, with Casey Mears 21st and Kevin Harvick 25th.

Adding to Childress’ challenges is General Motors’ move to cut some support to Cup teams. Childress vowed it wouldn’t impact performance, but it could prove challenging to back up that declaration.

As for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who’s 20th in the standings, he would need the greatest comeback since the Chase was created just to make it. He’s 277 points out of the last Chase spot. Kenseth came back from 271 points down at this time in the season in 2005.

He’s the only driver who was more than 190 points behind after 16 races to make it.

A Chase possibly without Earnhardt, Busch and Kenseth? A possibility it would’ve been hard to have imagined entering this season just might become reality.