Third Race in The Chase By: Kelsey Becraft

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               "Gentlemen start your engines" could be heard over the loud speakers at the Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas on October 4.

                The Price Chopper 400 started with an all Hendrick Motorsports front row. Mark Martin, driver of the number 5 Chevrolet, started on the pole, with his team mate Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the 88 Amp Energy Chevrolet, in second.

                Lap two, Joey Logano, driver of the number 20 Home Depot Toyota, got loose and spun out. Logano didn't hit anything. Martin would then lead over ten laps, but soon Junior would then take over the lead.

                Lap seventy, Reed Sorenson, driver of the 43 Dodge, spun causing the third caution of the day. The field needed to make pit stops. Junior would go into the pits in the lead, but everything would soon change, his crew would miss a lug nut causing NASCAR to black flag him. Junior would have to serve a pass threw penalty, causing him to go down one lap.

                The race would continue with a lot of lead changes. Greg Biffle, driver of the number 16 Ford, would lead the most laps of the day.

                 With thirty-one laps to go Junior's troubles would continue. His motor would loose power ending what started out as a good day for the number 88 team. What was bad for Junior was good for drivers like Tony Stewart and Juan Pablo Montoya. Some teams would take four tires but Stewart's would take two.

                Stewart, driver and owner of the number 14 car, and his two tires would go on to win the race in Kansas. Stewart's win would cause Chevrolet to win its thirty-third manufactures championship.

                Some notable finishes at Kansas were: Junior, NASCAR's most popular driver, would go on to finish a disappointing thirty-sixth after a motor issue. Jeff Gordon, driver of the 24 Chevrolet, finished second. Brad Keselowski, driver of the 25 Chevrolet and Junior's protégé, would finish thirteenth. Martin would finish seventh. Kasey Khane, driver of the nine Dodge, would finish sixth. Matt Kenseth, driver of the seventeen Ford, would finish thirty-ninth after his motor blew up. Kyle Busch finished twelfth.

                After the ride at Kansas the points stand as: Martin in first, Jimmie Johnson in second, Montoya in third, Stewart in fourth, Kurt Busch in fifth, Denny Hamlin in sixth, J. Gordon in seventh, Biffle in eighth, Ryan Newman in ninth, Carl Edwards in tenth, Khane in eleventh, and Brian Vickers in twelfth.

                The fourth Race in The Chase is in Fontana, California. California might just be the race to shake up the top twelve. A non-chaser might just sneak and steal a victory.