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Excerpt from an article at the Richmond Times Dispatch.
The points leader at the halfway mark has captured the past nine Winston Cup championships, frequently eliminating any late-season drama. Martin's move to No.1 marked the first change in the points lead in the final 10 races since 1997. In recent seasons, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett and Bobby Labonte built solid leads that never seemed in doubt down the stretch.
This season, Marlin, who clung to first for 25 consecutive races, never separated himself from the pack, and his pursuers have mounted feeble charges. When Marlin placed last twice, Gordon, a four-time champion and top contender, finished 37th or worse each time. Several drivers have lost spots in the standings while still gaining ground on Marlin.
"It seems like nobody is really taking control of it and walking away with it," Gordon said. "I think if anybody can get on any kind of a roll here in the next five or six races, they'll get some momentum and be able to take control of it."
Ryan Newman, who won his first race Sunday and has claimed three consecutive top fives, seems a likely candidate. Newman sits in eighth place, 192 points behind Martin. The deficit is far from insurmountable. In 1992, Alan Kulwicki made up a 278-point deficit the final six races. Any driver currently ranked in the top 10 can win the 2002 championship by overcoming a smaller deficit in the final nine races.
"I don't want to be leading the points right now," said Tony Stewart, currently in fourth and trailing by 59 points. "I want to be the guy hunting these other guys down. If I go out there and do my job, we'll force Sterling or Mark to do something. They're not forcing us to have to do anything. We're forcing them to have to remain consistent, and that's hard to do.
"The complexion of this championship changes so drastically from week to week that anyone in the top 10 still has a realistic shot at it."
The points leader at the halfway mark has captured the past nine Winston Cup championships, frequently eliminating any late-season drama. Martin's move to No.1 marked the first change in the points lead in the final 10 races since 1997. In recent seasons, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett and Bobby Labonte built solid leads that never seemed in doubt down the stretch.
This season, Marlin, who clung to first for 25 consecutive races, never separated himself from the pack, and his pursuers have mounted feeble charges. When Marlin placed last twice, Gordon, a four-time champion and top contender, finished 37th or worse each time. Several drivers have lost spots in the standings while still gaining ground on Marlin.
"It seems like nobody is really taking control of it and walking away with it," Gordon said. "I think if anybody can get on any kind of a roll here in the next five or six races, they'll get some momentum and be able to take control of it."
Ryan Newman, who won his first race Sunday and has claimed three consecutive top fives, seems a likely candidate. Newman sits in eighth place, 192 points behind Martin. The deficit is far from insurmountable. In 1992, Alan Kulwicki made up a 278-point deficit the final six races. Any driver currently ranked in the top 10 can win the 2002 championship by overcoming a smaller deficit in the final nine races.
"I don't want to be leading the points right now," said Tony Stewart, currently in fourth and trailing by 59 points. "I want to be the guy hunting these other guys down. If I go out there and do my job, we'll force Sterling or Mark to do something. They're not forcing us to have to do anything. We're forcing them to have to remain consistent, and that's hard to do.
"The complexion of this championship changes so drastically from week to week that anyone in the top 10 still has a realistic shot at it."