NASCAR Cup Series

The two contenders running just over a second apart, first and second, with the winner of the race the winner of the season. Would an engine blow, a tire go down, a split second lack of focus bounce one off the wall?

Richard Childress Racing teammates finished sixth (Clint Bowyer), eighth (Kevin Harvick), 10th (Jeff Burton) and16th (Paul Menard) in the Homestead 400.

Trevor Bayne and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion were on the move early on the season-ending Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but it ended up taking some hard work from the Wood Brothers crew to salvage a 25th-place finish.

Carl Edwards started the 2011 season thinking about what he could have done differently to win the Daytona 500 after finishing second to Trevor Bayne. He ends the season in the same way when it comes to winning the race and the championship.

KERRY THARP: Gene Haas has joined us, along with Tony Stewart, he owns this race team, and they are the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions, and Gene, congratulations on this championship. How do you feel?

In a season that brought many highlights and firsts for Regan Smith, the Furniture Row Racing driver brought home a solid 13th-place finish in Sunday's Sprint Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

For the first time in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history, the championship ended in a draw. The Ford 400 also marked the first time since 1975 the eventual champion came from behind to win the championship in the final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Ryan Newman posted a 12th-place finish in Sunday's Sprint Cup season finale, which was red-flagged twice for rain at at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Congratulations to the man called Smoke. He set out on a journey 10 weeks ago that he himself said his team was not ready for. He gave himself no chance to win. But through the head games there was a fire burning deep behind those eyes.

MARCOS AMBROSE – No. 9 Stanley Ford Fusion – “We had some engine issues. We’ve been so reliable all year. We haven’t had a DNF, so to come down to the last race and maybe not finish is gonna be pretty gut-wrenching, but we’re gonna see if we can get it back out there and maybe just do one more lap. It’s a bad way to finish the season, but we’ve had a great year and really wanted to finish on a high note.”