Filed under: Carl Edwards, Roush Fenway Racing, Chase for the Sprint CupThe NASCAR season truly kicks in Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup begins. From now through Friday, FanHouse will preview each of the 12-drivers and evaluate their championship chances.
2nd - Carl Edwards, Roush Fenway Racing
Starting Deficit: 20 points
2008 Stats: 6 wins, 11 Top-5s, 19 Top-10s
2008 Regular Season Point Standing: 2nd (-207)
2007 Chase Result: 9th
Chase Chances: Had Kyle Busch not gone on an absolute terror in 2008, Carl Edwards would have stolen most of the thunder of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series thanks to his six wins this season. Edwards began the season with a bang by taking two races in a row at California and Las Vegas, though the Vegas win came with a price. After the race, Edwards failed post-race inspection for an illicit aerodynamic device inside the cockpit and had his Chase bonus points for that event stripped away, leaving him with 10 fewer points than his wins account for.
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Edwards, though, is an obvious choice to win this Chase because of not only his win count in 2008, but also for both the wins he could have had and the otherwise strong consistency the team has had. Many tracks in the Chase -- including Dover and the 1.5-milers -- are Edwards' strong points and for him to win two or three events early on would necessarily be out of the question. If nothing else, Edwards will make things interesting down the stretch as he, Busch, and Johnson show their strength.
Prediction: In It to Win It.
