Contender Round previewed at NASCAR Hall of Fame

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – At the NASCAR Hall of Fame Wednesday, the drivers remaining in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup previewed the Contender Round, in which the pressure will be taken up another notch.

"This is cool,” Jeff Gordon said. “The Hall of Fame has all the history of NASCAR and the excitement that this sport brings. I think it's only fitting as we transfer into this next round that we come here to talk to the media, have all the drivers here at one time. It's awesome."

For the 12 drivers that made the cut -- including all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers -- all points were reset to 3,000. That creates a level playing field as they look to move to the Eliminator Round.

And that suits Kasey Kahne just fine.

"I think just where we've been this season as a team -- kind of a little behind for a lot of the season, and now we're starting to get our speed and feel really good about where we're at with cars and with communication with (crew chief) Kenny (Francis) and with the team,” Kahne said. “So I think we're at our best right now, and the way that the Chase format is, we're still in it, and we still have a shot to win the Sprint Cup championship because of that. So I think it's good for us. It's worked out well to this point, we just need to stay after it, stay focused and get everything we can each week."

The round begins this Sunday at Kansas Speedway, and all three Hendrick Motorsports drivers at the media day said they believe they enter the race with momentum.

Jimmie Johnson wants to build on a string of solid finishes – including a third-place result at Dover – Kahne said finding his way into the round late at Dover has built the No. 5 team’s confidence, and Gordon won his fourth race of the season last week at Dover.

"That builds over time with fast race cars, good pit stops, communication and chemistry that you have with your crew chief and your team,” Gordon said of confidence and momentum. “It doesn't get broken down overnight, it doesn't get repaired to where it is for me today overnight. It started early in the season when we had great cars and putting together great finishes and moving up in the points, getting some wins and luckily we've been able to continue that throughout the season. To be able to do that in the Chase, you end up winning Dover, that only heightens that confidence that we all have, not just me."

The drivers will take the round – and the Chase as a whole – one race at a time, and Johnson said it is yet to be seen whether this could be the hardest route to a Sprint Cup championship since the Chase was created.

“In some respects, I'd say yes, this could be the hardest championship ever to win. But at the same time you could have somebody win the championship and not win a race all year,” Johnson said. “If you got off to a quick start and won six of the 10 and don't have the best race at Homestead and run 15th, now you're not the champion. I don't know how it's going to play out exactly, and that's the thing, I guess, that's creating an interest right now. You can't predict how it's going to go. So in one light I look at it and think it could be the hardest, another I think it could be one of the more forgiving championships to win.

“We'll just have to see how it plays out."