Still looking for his first win in the Sprint Cup Series since week three of last season, the odds of Carl Edwards competiting for a championship this season are slimmer than his loss to Tony Stewart last year at Homestead. It will take nothing short of a miracle for the Columbia, Mo. native to get in as a wild card.
After Sunday’s 36th-place finish at Atlanta, Edwards is all but mathematically eliminated from Chase contention. He is 49 points behind Stewart, who finished 22nd and can do no worse than a wild-card spot in the Chase because of his three victories. The only way Edwards is going to get into the Chase is with a win at Richmond, then to make up 26 points on Kyle Busch, currently two places ahead of him in the standings, and also leapfrog Jeff Gordon in points.
AUDIO It’s frustrating for Edwards. (:16)
Check out video from NASCAR.com of Edward’s bad day in Atlanta.