With 100 laps complete in the Geico 400 at the Chicagoland Speedway, drivers racing for the Sprint Cup championship are making their way towards the top of the running order.
Carl Edwards leads Kurt Busch, with Jimmie Johnson, polesitter Matt Kenseth, and Ryan Newman rounding out the top-five. Kyle Busch, Tony Stewart, and Kevin Harvick round out the top-eight. Paul Menard and Marcos Ambrose - both outside the Chase - round out the top-10.
While those eightdrivers are having strong runs and Brad Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are solidly placed in 12th and 13th, Jeff Gordon is struggling in 17th while Denny Hamlin has had to made an unscheduled pit stop. for a loose wheel. Hamlin, who had run outside the top-25 the entire race, is now shown 32nd, one lap down. The miscue is just the latest self-inflicted blow - either by driver or by team - that has kept Hamlin from hoisting a Sprint Cup title in his five-year career.