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September 30, 2008, 5:08 PM

Talladega trends and notes

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By Mark Garrow
Jayski.com
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• This is the 30th race of 36 for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2008, and the fourth race of the "Chase for the Championship."
• This is the fourth of four restrictor-plate track races of the season.
• This is the 77th time the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series has competed at Talladega Superspeedway since 1969.
• Talladega is a 2.66-mile oval with 33-degree banking in the turns and 18-degree banking in the tri-oval.
• There are 46 drivers on the pre-entry list competing for one of the 43 starting slots in Sunday's 188-lap, 500-mile race. Of those 46 entrants, 11 must get into Sunday's field based on qualifying times: Ken Schrader, Terry Labonte, Patrick Carpentier, Jon Wood, Tony Raines, Mike Wallace, Boris Said, Michael McDowell, Sam Hornish, Sterling Marlin and Joe Nemechek.
• Terry Labonte has access to a past champion's provisional if needed.
• These teams are NOT locked in past the next race as the owners points change after each race:
32. Dave Blaney/Bill Davis Racing: 2290, 137 points ahead of 36th
33. AJ Allmendinger/Red Bull Racing: 2271, +118
34. Scott Riggs/Haas CNC Racing: 2232, +79
35. Robby Gordon/RGM: 2182, + 29

These teams/ drivers must qualify by speed but are close to the top 35:
36. Michael McDowell/Waltrip Racing: 2153, 29 points out of 35th
37. Sam Hornish/Penske Racing: 2116, -66
38. Patrick Carpentier/GEM: 1958, -224

• Mike Wallace, Jon Wood and Kyle Busch are attempting to run both the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and the Sprint Cup Series races here this weekend.
• Despite the dominance of guys like Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Talladega, it is Kurt Busch who has the best average finish (11.9) of all active drivers here. In 15 starts, he has 11 top-10s and six top-5s.
• Speaking of Gordon, he still leads a number of categories here, including most wins (6), most laps led (802), and most points scored in the past three races (496).
• Kyle Busch is the most recent winner at Talladega and needs all the help he can get with a strong finish this weekend. He is 12th in the Chase standings, 311 points behind Jimmie Johnson, after finishes of 28th or worse in all three Chase races so far. This doesn't look like the weekend for a turnaround, however, as his win here was his only top-10 in seven starts. He also sports an average finish of 27.3.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. has five career wins here, including a stretch of four in a row, but his last win came in 2004. Since then, he has only two top-10s and three finishes of 31st or worse.
• Tony Stewart is well known for his ability to wheel a car around Daytona, but has some talent at Dega as well. He is second to Kurt Busch in highest-average finish (13.9) and has six runner-up finishes but no victories. That ties Mark Martin's record (Pocono) for most runner-ups without a win at a single track.
• Terry Labonte, subbing for Kyle Petty, leads all active drivers here in starts (52), top-10s (23) and top-5s (14). He hasn't raced here since 2004, however, and scored his most recent top-10 (a fifth-place finish) in the 2003 spring race.
• The drivers of Yates Racing (David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil) are strong dark horses for this race. Both have raced four times, with Gilliland sporting an average finish of 15.2, Kvapil 14.8.
• Of the drivers guaranteed to make Sunday's show who have 10 or more starts, Elliott Sadler has the worst average finish (25.4). Greg Biffle has the worst average finish of Chase racers with a 25.3. Of the go-or-go-home drivers with 10 or more starts, Joe Nemechek has the lowest average finish (23.9), while Sterling Marlin has the best average finish with a 19.4.
• In the past two races here, when the COT was being used, Denny Hamlin has scored the most points (340) with Ryan Newman second (307). Over the past 10 races, Jeff Gordon has earned the most points (1,387) with Kevin Harvick (1,365) and Kurt Busch (1,356) close behind.

There are nine previous Talladega winners entered this weekend, with 19 victories among them:

1. Jimmie Johnson (5,575) won at Kansas on Sunday and moves up one spot to first in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings. Johnson has 13 starts here with five top-10s, four top-5s, a win and an average finish of 17.5.
2. Carl Edwards (-10) was the runner-up at Kansas and falls to second in the Cup Series standings. In eight starts, Edwards has three top-10s, a top-5 and an average finish of 24.0.
3. Greg Biffle (-30) was the third at Kansas and maintains his third-place position in the Cup Series standings. In 11 starts here, Biffle has an average finish of 25.3.
4. Jeff Burton (-121) finished seventh at Kansas and maintains his hold on fourth in the Cup Series standings. Burton has 29 starts here with 10 top-10s, two top-5s, and an average finish of 19.1.
5. Kevin Harvick (-136) was sixth at Kansas in sixth and remains fifth in the Cup Series standings. Harvick has 15 starts here with seven top-10s, three top-5s and an average finish of 14.3.
6. Jeff Gordon (-143) was fourth at Kansas and jumps two spots to sixth in the Cup Series standings. Gordon has 31 starts here with 16 top-10s, 13 top-5s, six wins and an average finish of 15.0.
7. Clint Bowyer (-164) finished 12th at Kansas in 12th and falls one place in the Cup Series standings to seventh. In five starts here, Bowyer has a top-10 and an average finish of 26.0.
8. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (-190) was 13th at Kansas and moves up one spot in the Cup Series standings to eighth. Dale Jr. has 17 starts here with 10 top-10s, seven top-5s, five wins and an average finish of 14.1.
9. Matt Kenseth (-192) was fifth at Kansas and moves up one place to ninth in the Cup Series standings. In 17 starts here, Kenseth has six top-10s, three top-5s and an average finish of 17.5.
10. Denny Hamlin (-243) finished 11th at Kansas and moves up one place in the Cup Series standings to 10th. Hamlin has five starts here with two top-5s and an average finish of 14.2.

Mark Garrow covers fantasy racing for ESPN.com.