A new season has dawned upon us as we await to see if Jeff Gordon joins pole sitter Dale Earnhardt Jr at the back of the pack on Sunday for the Daytona 500. What we already know is that a new points system could mean slightly different results when it all comes to an end.
The difference between winning and finishing second has been increased to four or five track positions. Between winning and being the worst on the track? Last year, one win equaled five or six last place finishes. Now, a season of 43rd place results would result in 36 big points, compared to 47 or 48 for a single victory. That could be embarrassing for some start and parks. I sure hope so, anyway.
Be it the old system or the new, Jimmie Johnson would have claimed the title. However, over the course of the ten race Chase, he was pretty much on an even par with Kevin Harvick. Still, even there, Five Time wins 1-0 when you count the victories.
As we kick off a new season, here is a look at our hot 20 over the final ten races of 2010.
Jimmie Johnson – 387 pts (1 win, 7 Top Fives, 9 Top Tens)
Breathing air that only Petty and Earnhardt have inhaled before.
2. Kevin Harvick – 387 (0-5-9)
3. Denny Hamlin – 378 (2-4-6)
4. Carl Edwards – 338 (2-3-5)
5. Mark Martin – 330 (0-2-4)
6. Joey Logano – 314 (0-4-4) –
7. Matt Kenseth – 314 (0-1-5)
8. Jamie McMurray – 308 (1-2-3)
9. Ryan Newman – 293 (0-2-6)
10. Greg Biffle – 292 (1-4-6)
11. Tony Stewart – 286 (1-2-4)
12. A.J. Allmendinger – 286 (0-0-4)
13. Jeff Gordon – 279 (0-0-4)
14. Paul Menard – 270 (0-0-3)
15. Kyle Busch – 267 (0-2-3)
16. Kurt Busch – 265 (0-1-2)
17. Clint Bowyer – 259 (2-3-4)
18. Juan Pablo Montoya – 258 (0-1-1)
19. David Ragan – 245 (0-0-2)
20. Regan Smith – 240 (0-0-0)
