The Chase for the Championship has its detractors; however, they are far fewer than they were in the beginning. Some traditional fans may never accept the Chase for the Championship as anything more than a harebrained gimmick. Other fans have realized that the Chase for the Championship is here to stay, so they might as well enjoy the closer championship battles.



NASCAR's secondary series, the Nationwide Series, has yet to adopt the Chase for the Championship format. They have maintained the traditional championship format, and to be honest, the championship chase, or lack thereof, in the Nationwide Series has grown increasingly arid.

In 2006, Kevin Harvick won his second Nationwide Series title by 824 points over Carl Edwards. A year later, Edwards won the championship by 618 points over David Reutimann.

What if the Nationwide Series adopted the Chase for the Championship in 2004?

In 2004, Martin Truex Jr won the title by 230 points over Kyle Busch. For much of the season, Busch remained within striking distance, but Truex Jr was unassailable throughout the final stretch of the season.

There were only ten championship chasers in 2004 as opposed to twelve. Additionally, NASCAR seeded the drivers based on how they finished in the championship standings throughout the races leading up to the Chase for the Championship, or the ?regular season?. In 2004, the Nationwide Series schedule consisted of 34 races, so the Friday night showdown in Bristol decided the field of ten drivers who would compete in the Chase for the Championship.

Truex Jr would have seen his 78 point lead shrink to only a mere five-point cushion. In fact, here is what the championship standings would have looked like following the 24th race of the season:

1) Martin Truex Jr 5050, 2) Kyle Busch 5045, 3) Jason Leffler 5040, 4) Greg Biffle 5035, 5) David Green 5030, 6) Jason Keller 5025, 7) Ron Hornaday 5020, 8) Mike Bliss 5015, 9) Ashton Lewis 5010, 10) Kenny Wallace 5005

Bobby Hamilton, Jr. was actually eighth in the standings at the time; however, he lost his ride with Team Rensi following the 23rd race of season, and moved up to the Sprint Cup Series with PPI Motorsports. Therefore, eleventh place driver Kenny Wallace would have been awarded the tenth and final spot in the Chase for the Championship, as he edged out David Stremme by 55 points.

Truex Jr won races at Dover and Memphis in the Chase for the Championship, while Kyle Busch was shutout of victory lane in the final ten races. In fact, Biffle and Bliss were the only other Chase for the Championship contenders to win during the final ten races.

Jason Leffer, who was one of the sleepers heading into the Chase for the Championship, lost his ride with Haas CNC Racing following the 27th race of the season, therefore, his championship hopes diminished, and nine drivers remained in the championship contest. Leffler would have been only 16 points behind Truex Jr at the time.

Truex, Jr. tallied five top five finishes and nine top ten finishes in the final ten races, which was too much to overcome for Busch and Biffle, who emerged as Truex Jr's primary threats. Truex Jr owned a cozy 91-point lead over Biffle heading into the season finale at Homestead.

Chase or no chase, Truex Jr is the 2004 Nationwide (Busch) Series championship.

Final Chase for the Championship Standings

1)Martin Truex, Jr, 6589, 2) Greg Biffle, 6487, 3) Kyle Busch, 6432, 4) Mike Bliss, 6301, 5) Ashton Lewis, 6229, 6) Ron Hornaday, 6223, 7) Kenny Wallace, 6186, 8) Jason Keller, 6037, 9) David Green, 6019, 10) Jason Leffler, 5499

Actual Championship Standings

1)Martin Truex Jr 5173, 2) Kyle Busch 4943, 3) Greg Biffle 4568, 4) Ron Hornaday 4258, 5) Mike Bliss 4115, 6) Jason Keller 4088, 7) David Green 4082, 8) Ashton Lewis 3892, 9) Kenny Walace 3851, 10) David Stremme 3738

12) Jason Leffler 3661

In 2005, there were no major modifications to the Chase for the Championship format. However, the field of ten championship chasers was set following the August race at Michigan. Hence, Bristol hosted the first race in the Chase for the Championship. With six wins in the first 25 races, defending champion Martin Truex Jr was cruising along, as he owned a 204-point lead over Clint Bowyer. His portly cushion became a marginal five-point advantage as the series headed to Bristol. The championship standings would have appeared as below:

1)Martin Truex Jr 5050, 2) Clint Bowyer 5045, 3) Reed Sorenson 5040, 4) Carl Edwards 5035, 5) Kenny Wallace 5030, 6) Denny Hamlin 5025, 7) Paul Menard 5020, 8) David Green 5015, 9) David Stremme 5010, 10) Ashton Lewis 5005.

Truex Jr, Kenny Wallace, David Green, and Ashton Lewis were the only returning championship chasers from 2004. While many would have expected Truex Jr to cruise to his second consecutive title, it was clear that the competition was more robust than it was the previous year.

Bowyer pieced together a phenomenal ten-race run, as he posted one win, five top five finishes, and seven top ten finishes throughout the Chase for the Championship. Meanwhile, Truex Jr encountered an untimely slump in which he only posted one top five finish, and five top ten finishes in the final ten-race stretch. Bowyer took over the top spot at Bristol, and never looked back. His victory at Memphis gave him a 95-point advantage with only three races remaining. He set his Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet into cruise control at the season finale in Homestead, as he owned a commanding135-point lead.

Clint Bowyer would have won his first Nationwide Series title in 2005 if the series had adopted the Chase for the Championship format.

Final Chase Standings

1)Clint Bowyer 6512, 2) Martin Truex Jr 6381, 3) Carl Edwards 6381, 4) Paul Menard 6274, 5) Reed Sorenson 6211, 6) Denny Hamlin 6115, 7) David Green 6097, 8) Kenny Wallace 6020, 9) David Stremme 5902, 10) Ashton Lewis 5864.

Actual Championship Standings

1)Martin Truex Jr 4937, 2) Clint Bowyer 4869, 3) Carl Edwards 4601, 4) Reed Sorenson 4453, 5) Denny Hamlin 4143, 6) Paul Menard 4101, 7) Kenny Wallace 4068, 8) David Green 3909, 9) Jason Keller 3866, 10) Greg Biffle 3865.

13) David Stremme 3694

14) Ashton Lewis 3587