Eliminator Round clinching scenarios

CONCORD, N.C. -- Anything can happen at Talladega Superspeedway.

"Sometimes you can’t control everything, and that is something that will be the same for all of us at Talladega," Kasey Kahne said following Saturday's race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "It will be interesting how it all works out. It will be a lot of pressure on everyone. It will change throughout the entire race all the way to the checkers.”

"It’s such a lottery there," Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

With that in mind, the best Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup scenarios to examine are those that don't require help from other drivers.

In 61 races at the superspeedway, Hendrick Motorsports has 11 wins, 49 top-five finishes and 73 top-10s. The organization's four drivers will need to add to those totals to advance to the eight-car Eliminator Round.

Jeff Gordon has the most lenient of the clinching scenarios for Hendrick Motorsports.

To control his own destiny and advance, he needs to finish 16th or better. With at least one lap led, he could finish 17th, and with the most laps led he could finish 18th and still advance without help from other drivers.

For Kahne, Jimmie Johnson and Earnhardt, however, the only way to control their own destiny and advance would be a trip to Victory Lane.

They are in the same boat as two other competitors entering the final race of the Contender Round.

With two drivers automatically advanced due to wins in the previous two races, 10 drivers will be racing for the six remaining spots in the Eliminator Round.

Below are the clinching scenarios for the remaining contenders -- regardless of the finish of any other driver -- provided by NASCAR entering Sunday's race:

Kyle Busch: 24th or better; 25th and at least one lap led; 26th and most laps led

Ryan Newman: 19th or better; 20th and at least one lap led; 21st and most laps led

Carl Edwards: 18th or better; 19th and at least one lap led; 20th and most laps led

Jeff Gordon: 16th or better; 17th and at least one lap led; 18th and most laps led

Denny Hamlin: 15th or better; 16th and at least one lap led; 17th and most laps led

Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. only control their own destiny by winning Sunday at Talladega.