Bristol Shuffle... We have a new leader... Kenseth is top pick

Lots of movement in the standings again this week... Logano was able to grab the win this week, but no one picked him.  We have a new leader, but it is a familiar team at the top...  10 teams still locked in.  3 not locked in teams still occupy top 7 spots... 4 teams remain desperate... one of those must overcome 71 points in 2 races as they cannot qualify on wins.  Lets get to it...

TOP PICKS:

3rd Place Matt Kenseth - Picked by Rusty and Rowdy.  Rusty wanted that win, but this was a great week for the Truck.  He jumps up 2 spots, but more importantly he is only 21 points out of 7th.  This gives Rusty another option to make it into the Chase.  Rowdy is still back in the pack, but will have a chance to win this thing.  Simple Game!

5th Place Kurt Busch - Picked by Graziano and Skidmarks.  Graziano bounces out of the oven as I predicted and retakes the lead.  He has a nice 10 point lead over 2nd and a 60 point lead over 8th.  Skidmarks jumps 2 spots and is back in the top 7.  These teams will be battling to hang on to these valuable bonus points over the next 2 races I am sure.  A very nice week fellas!

7th Place Carl Edwards - Picked by Ideal, Chonk and Rasta.  Ideal jumps up a spot to 2nd and 50 points away from 8th.  Chonk gains a spot and is now in 3rd.  Rasta needed the win, but technically is not eliminated.  With 0 wins and only two races left, Rasta will need to gain 71 points and jump 6 teams to get into the Chase.

10th Place Greg Biffle - Picked by Empty.  Empty is just chillin' at the back of the pack and waiting on the Chase.

Eh:

12th Place Kyle Larson - Picked by Kiss.  Kiss jumps up to 5th and is 22 points clear of 6th place.  4 wins and in a qualifying spot, Kiss is looking strong.

13th Place Ryan Newman - Picked by Beef.  Beef is locked in and 41 points out of 7th.  Most likely he will coast into the Chase.

21st Place Brian Vickers - Picked by Pursuit.  Pursuit is only 31 points out of 7th and still has a decision to make on which strategy to use for the next 2 races.

DOOTW:

28th Place Austin Dillon - Picked by Piston.  Team Piston drops 3 spots to 4th, but is only 14 points out of 1st.  They are locked in, but would love to bounce back and grab some more bonus points for sure.

BSOTW:

34th Place Marcos Ambrose - Picked by Asleep.  Asleep drops a spot to 8th... with 4 wins and only 8 points out of 7th, you can bet that Asleep will be trying to get back into one of the qualifying spots in order to capitalize on the extra points.

35th Place Kasey Kahne - Picked by Dust.  Dust drops 2 spots to 10th and is now 26 points away from 7th.  Will he try to make up the points or just coast the rest of the way??? We shall see...

36th Place Kyle Busch - Picked by Shepard, Penguin, and A-Game.  Shepard drops to 6th but there is a large gap between him and 5th.  Shepard has 2 wins, but is only 9 points clear of 8th.  The next 2 races will be critical for this team.  Penguin and A-Game needed Kyle to win this race.  With no chance to qualify on points, they are now dormy for the next 2 races.

Other Ramblings:

2 Races to go before the Chase!

Atlanta on Sunday.

We still have 10 teams locked into the Chase and 3 teams with less than 3 wins occupy a top 7 qualifying spot.  Things to keep an eye on over the next 6 races:

• Battle for 1st between Graziano and Chonk continues  We have a new leader and it's Piston. The battle for the top spot... Graziano is back on top, but 14 points separate the top 4 spots.
• Battle for 3rd through 7th positions - 8th place too... 33 points separate the teams and valuable points are up for grabs.  All of the top 7 spots are up for grabs now!!!  The top 4 spots are the battle to watch at the moment.
• Strategies for the 3+ win teams as we near the Chase - 3 3+win teams occupy positions 8-10... will they get into the top 7? We have a few teams outside the top 7 by several points... will they coast into the Chase or try their best to crack the top 7 over the next 3 races???
• Strategies for the 2 win teams in the top 7 - Shepard drops to 6th spot and only 9 points away from 8th.  Will he get that 3rd win and hang on???
• Strategies for the 1 win teams in the top 7 - Graz and Ideal have some breathing room, but are still not locked in... let's see how Atlanta goes.
• Will the not-locked in teams make a move, or will we see some eliminations before the 3 races are completed???... Rasta, Penguin and A-Game are all pretty much dormy.. Rusty needs a win or to make up 21 points over 2 races.

So here are the scenarios I have in my small brain right now for those of us not locked into the Chase:

• Graziano is back in 1st and is still looking strong to make it in on qualifying alone... 60 points ahead of 8th, he can probably recover from a DOOTW and a BSOTW  CHASE HEALTH
• Ideal has another solid race and is now 50 points away from 8th (10 points away from 1st).  He still probably needs to continue this run over the next 2 races to grab as many bonus points as possible, but is looking like a lock to make the chase.  CHASE HEALTH
• Shepard hit a speed bump this week and falls back to 6th.  He needs to rebound this week and have a nice points week or grab that 3rd win.  Nervous times for this team I'm sure... but it could be worse.  Trust me.  CHASE HEALTH
• Rusty is now 21 points away (Yellow) from a qualifying spot, and only 1 win away (YELLOW) from making the Chase.   CHASE HEALTH
• Rasta can only qualify on points and is 71 points away from 7th.  Not out yet, but not looking good.  CHASE HEALTH
• Penguin needs 2 more wins in the last 2 races.  CHASE HEALTH
• A-Game will need 2 more wins in the last 3 races. CHASE HEALTH

Cheers!