Tony Stewart, the two-time Cup Series champion then held off a hard-charging Jeff Gordon in the closing laps for his fourth win of the season and the 37th of his Cup career at Kansas Speedway.
Biffle was third, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya, Denny Hamlin, Kahne and Martin.
Martin wasn’t in a celebratory mood despite maintaining his lead: There were only three drivers within 100 points of him at the start of the race, now the field has seven within 103.
Martin’s up 18 points over three-time defending series champion Johnson, who finished ninth after a bad pit call put him in traffic that he couldn’t overcome. Auto Racing Daily
Below is a look at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series top 12 going into the fourth race of the 2009 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup – the Pepsi 500 at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, Oct. 11.
1 - Mark Martin (No. 5 Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.1
2009 Rundown
• Five wins, 11 top fives, 17 top 10s; seven poles
• Average finish of 14.3
• Led 19 races for 786 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• One win, four top fives, seven top 10s
• Average finish of 14.9 in 16 races
• Average Running Position of 11.7, eighth-best
• Driver Rating of 94.9, ninth-best
• 59 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 171.103 mph, eighth-fastest
• 1,240 Laps in the Top 15 (70.7%), 13th-most
2 - Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 112.2
2009 Rundown
• Four wins, 11 top fives, 18 top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 11.9
• Led 24 races for 1,590 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• Three wins, eight top fives, nine top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 6.2 in 13 races
• Series-best Average Running Position of 5.9
• Series-best Driver Rating of 119.4
• Series-high 300 Fastest Laps Run
• Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 171.960 mph Series-high 2,130 Laps in the Top 15 (94.5%)
• 425 Quality Passes, third-most
3 - Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Target Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 92.8
2009 Rundown
• Five top fives, 15 top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 12.8
• Led 8 races for 270 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• Average finish of 22.0 in five races
• Average Running Position of 20.1, 21st-best
• Driver Rating of 68.4, 23rd-best
4 - Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 102.4
2009 Rundown
• Four wins, 14 top fives, 20 top 10s
• Average finish of 9.0
• Led 16 races for 364 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• Three top fives, eight top 10s
• Average finish of 15.9 in 16 races
• Average Running Position of 10.8, fifth-best
• Driver Rating of 98.2, seventh-best
• 132 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 171.221 mph, seventh-fastest
• 1,736 Laps in the Top 15 (77.0%), sixth-most
• 421 Quality Passes, fourth-most
5 - Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.9
2009 Rundown
• One win, eight top fives, 16 top 10s
• Average finish of 13.3
• Led 16 races for 525 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• One win, four top fives, six top 10s; three poles
• Average finish of 12.9 in 14 races
• Average Running Position of 13.9, 10th-best
• Driver Rating of 93.1, 10th-best
• 85 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most
• 626 Green Flag Passes, 12th-most
• 1,565 Laps in the Top 15 (69.4%), eighth-most
• 378 Quality Passes, eighth-most
6 - Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Toyota)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 101.2
2009 Rundown
• Two wins, 11 top fives, 16 top 10s
• Average finish of 12.1
• Led 14 races for 1,015 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• One top five, three top 10s
• Average finish of 14.0 in seven races
• Average Running Position of 14.9, 12th-best
• Driver Rating of 90.0, 11th-best
• Average Green Flag Speed of 170.924 mph, 10th-fastest
7 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 101.0
2009 Rundown
• One win, 13 top fives, 20 top 10s
• Average finish of 10.6
• Led 14 races for 698 laps
Auto Club Speedway Outlook:
• Three wins, nine top fives, nine top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 10.9 in 18 races
• Average Running Position of 9.8, fourth-best
• Driver Rating of 98.4, sixth-best
• 148 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
• 677 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 171.232 mph, sixth-fastest
• 1,740 Laps in the Top 15 (77.2%), fifth-most
• 449 Quality Passes, second-most
| 
|