# Who wins the Chase for the Cup? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 16, 2004, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wins-the-chase-for-the-cup/264714 "2004-09-16T17:29:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2004, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wins-the-chase-for-the-cup/264714/1 "2004-09-16T17:29:45Z")
All right. . .I expect about 2 replies in this thread, but who do you think wins the Chase for the Nextel Cup? Does hard luck Mark Martin break through this year? The uber-talented Hendrick’s boys, Jeff and Jimmie? Fan favorite Dale Junior? Will Ryan Newman regain last year’s form and snatch a few victories while remaining DNF-free? Consistent Kenseth? 1. Jeff Gordon Leader 2. Jimmie Johnson -5 3. Dale Earnhardt Jr. -10 4. Tony Stewart -15 5. Matt Kenseth -20 6. Elliott Sadler -25 7. Kurt Busch -30 8. Mark Martin -35 9. Jeremy Mayfield -40 10. Ryan Newman -45 My vote: front running **Jeff Gordon** followed by **Jimmie Johnson** and then \*\*Matt Kenseth[b/]. Call me tinfoil hat, but i really think all of those blow ups that Jeff and Jimmie had late in the regular season were honest to goodness track-conditions testing. ---
**Author:** ![OldBroad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ed655f/32.png) [@OldBroad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldBroad)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2004, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wins-the-chase-for-the-cup/264714/2 "2004-09-16T23:58:02Z")
I’d like to see Junior win. My sentimental favorite is Martin – this may be the last season he’ll really be a contender. Gordon seems to be on a roll though and I suspect he’ll get it again. ---
**Author:** ![shamrock227](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@shamrock227](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shamrock227)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2004, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wins-the-chase-for-the-cup/264714/3 "2004-09-16T23:58:26Z")
I say Jeff Gordon, but I say that mostly to irritate my sister who is a Dale, Jr. fan. I ‘m not a racing fan and only see them when sis comes to visit and inflicts them on me. But, if I were to take a real guess from the three races I’ve seen. I’d have to say that I think Kurt Busch has a real chance at it. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2004, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wins-the-chase-for-the-cup/264714/4 "2004-09-17T00:11:42Z")
I’ll go with Jeff Gordon. He seems to stay out of trouble when he is in the running. Seems to get on a roll and avoid mishaps for stretches. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2004, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wins-the-chase-for-the-cup/264714/5 "2004-09-17T01:06:44Z")
No doubt someone will be along shortly who’s just bustin’ to tell us how much they hate NASCAR, but it won’t be me. Who’s gonna win? With the new format, it really is a crapshoot, but I suspect Gordon; he seems to once again be on his usual late-season form. Who I’d like to see win? I’d be happy with Junior, Martin, or Mayfield. Problem with Junior is that when his car arrives at a track with the wrong setup, it’s really wrong and he and his team seem totally clueless as to how to sort it out. Problem with Martin seems to be a tendency for the engine to frag late in the race. Problem with Mayfield is, well there doesn’t seem to be any, except that he’s not one of the Big Names. Who I’d hate to see win? Stewart. With some of his antics on the track this year, he practically seemed to be auditioning for the role of Professor Fate in a remake of _The Great Race_.