NASCAR: Who’s Hot And Who’s Not Heading Into Dover

Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

HOT – Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon

With the exception of maybe Jeff Gordon these four drivers are pretty much a lock to move into the next round of the chase unless something drastic goes wrong for them this weekend in Dover. Like Kevin Harvick talked about last week, right now the chase isn’t about winning as much as it is about surviving. The goal of each of these drivers is to survive this week and make it to the top-12 and each of them has put themselves in a position to do that. Even Gordon who is in the worst position of the five only has to finish 14th or better on Sunday to guarantee his spot regardless of where any other driver finishes; Gordon’s average finish at Dover in 43 career starts is 11.64. The other four drivers find themselves in even better positions with Earnhardt Jr. looking to finish 21st or better, Johnson looking to finish 24th or better and Harvick looking to finish 34th or better. The other thing working in these drivers favors is that with the exception of Harvick (who needs only a top-34 finish) the rest of the drivers in this group have won at Dover in the past.