--After a week of cheating revelations, penalties, and more cheating accusations, its finally time to go back to racing…at one of the dullest tracks on the circuit.
--The fallout from last week's "regular season finale" has brought demands to discontinue the Chase for the Cup to the forefront. Yeah, that makes sense--bring back the boring old season-long model that only rewards consistency. "Oooh, he finished 12th with an ill-handling car--he's championship material!"
--Because you might have missed it (I know I did): After the Chase reset and points penalties, guess who wound up 14th in points? Jamie McMurray.
--It was nice to see Clint Bowyer throw his friend Jimmie Johnson under the bus by suggesting that the 48's on-track woes at Richmond were a result of trying to help Jeff Gordon make the Chase. If there's one thing MWR is great at, its deflection.
…and now, here's my picks for the rest of the season:
Championship: Carl Edwards
Runner-Up: Kyle Busch/Jimmie Johnson
12th Place (worst of the Chase): Ryan Newman
13th Place (best of the rest): Brad Keselowski
("Remember, I made all this up")