Ron Thornton

When they are done determining who is in and who is out each week, only 25 drivers on ten teams will actually matter. The rest will simply be hamburger helper sprinkled amongst the real meat.

A year or two ago, let us say that Brian France had a brainwave. He came up with a proposal to allow 16 drivers into the Chase, first determined by wins gathered up to and including Richmond.

Playoffs. As exciting as they might be from time to time, they are simply a gimmick to keep interested those who are not all that interested in the first place. Still, as long as they do not go beyond the pale, to be too stupid in presenting their post-season tournament, they can create a measure of excitement.

It is not surprising that the race I thought was the most entertaining in 2013 was on one of the circuit’s premier venues. It was not a surprise to see the winner of that race the now six time champion. What was a surprise was that the race was broadcast on...get this...ESPN!

A mulligan is a do over, a chance to remove from consideration what one has done in the hopes of replacing it with something done better. This year in the Chase, a mulligan was no more than the name of a steam shovel operator from a book in primary school.

He is one of the greatest drivers of all time. Jimmie Johnson's name has long been among such icons as Tony Stewart, Darrell Waltrip, Cale Yarborough, David Pearson, and Lee Petty. By the time he was done his run of five, he had even surpassed Jeff Gordon and now only Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty have claimed more titles.

The fat lady is on stage, the band is ready, the curtain has gone up. All we need now is a nod from the conductor for her to sing her song. Jimmie Johnson finished third at Phoenix. Matt Kenseth had problems, came home 23rd, and the gap between the two leaders is now 28 points. With only 48 left on the table at Homestead, Five Time needs to finish 23rd or better to amend his nickname yet again.

Average a Top Ten finish and you are doing good. Very good. Yet, good is not good enough when it comes to the Chase. Such is the case when there are those who are running great.

There was the bursting of the bubble that had Jeff Gordon as an actual Cup contender. When his tire blew, when his car slammed into the fence, when he left with just a couple of points to his credit, that fantasy came to an end. To be honest, even if he had ran tenth, it would have mattered little.

We were wrong about Martinsville, which should be renamed Johnsonville the way Jimmie lays it down there. While Jeff Gordon tied Five Time in wins at the paper clip, claiming his 8th at the track and the 88th of his Cup career.