Take 5: Five Things To Takeaway From Atlanta

Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Take 3 – The state of the chase

The chase field is not yet set as the series heads into its final regular season race at Richmond. Heading into Atlanta there were four spots left in the chase, heading into Richmond there are only two spots up for grabs. Thanks to winning the race Kasey Kahne has clinched a spot and by virtue of points Matt Kenseth has also clinched a spot.

The 15th seed currently belongs to Ryan Newman. Newman is 42 points ahead of 17th place which means that if there is a repeat winner, Newman will clinch a spot by finishing the race approximately 39th or better. If there is a new winner Newman will have to make sure that he finishes the race with at least 19 more points than Greg Biffle who is currently 19 points behind Newman in 16th place.

Speaking of Biffle, a repeat winner is exactly what he wants to see unless that new winner is him. A repeat winner means that Biffle simply has to hold off Clint Bowyer and Kyle Larson who are 23 and 24 points behind him respectively. A new winner means that Biffle will be fighting Newman for the last spot and he will have a 19 point deficit to makeup.

If Biffle struggles at Richmond things will get really interesting as it would open the door for Larson and Bowyer who are only separated by one point. Newman, Biffle, Larson and Bowyer will be the major players at Richmond but don’t count out the potential for a stunning win. Drivers like Paul Menard, Austin Dillon, Brian Vickers, Jamie McMurray, Marcos Ambrose, Tony Stewart, Danica Patrick, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Martin Truex Jr. could all slip into the chase with a win.