WHAT NEXT? Chaos in Kansas shakes up the Chase.(Competition)

Byline: CURT CAVIN

Jeff Gordon didn't need to stumble out of Kansas Speedway in the dark to see how uncertainly NASCAR's Nextel Cup Series is shaping up.

"I kind of snicker when I hear how well positioned someone is,'' he said on the eve of the LifeLock 400. "Leading into New Hamp-shire, it was `Clint Bowyer Who?' and after, it was `Look at this guy. He's the guy to beat for the championship.' Then we go to Dover, and the Roush [Fenway Racing team] runs good, and all of a sudden, they're positioned to win the championship. It changes every week. Now someone else is the story of the week.''

This time, Greg Biffle limped out of Kansas with a controversial first win of the season, but he's not one of the 12 drivers in the Chase for the Nextel Cup. Bowyer finished second and is one of three drivers within nine points of the series lead, battling new leader Jimmie Johnson and Gordon. But that could change with seven races left.

Then there's everyone else, most of whom could tell a story of woe after Kansas. And guess what? Next up is the Chase for the Cup's biggest wild-card race, the 2.66-mile crapshoot at Talladega. Johnson admitted that smart drivers would get out of Dodge right now if they could be guaranteed a 15th-place finish. "It's crazy,'' he said.

Indeed, the Kansas race was almost too much to believe.

First, Biffle was the center of postrace talk. NASCAR froze the running order as Juan Pablo Montoya's shredded rear tire spewed debris all over the oval. The race was called at lap 210, without enough daylight left after nearly three hours of rain delays.