This weekend the stars of the Sprint Cup Series have made the trip to the ¾-mile track known as the Richmond International Raceway (RIR).

One of the best short-tracks on the Cup Series schedule, RIR requires patience, good equipment and survival…and that’s just for qualifying.

Remaining 35th in Owner Standings, Dale Earnhardt Inc.’s Regan Smith is the final driver locked into Saturday night’s shootout. Chip Ganassi’s No. 40 Dodge moved up three spots to 36th after a stellar performance by David Stremme last week at Talladega Superspeedway.

After suffering a broken ankle in the Nationwide Series race, Dario Franchitti – the No. 40’s regular driver, was forced to watch from the infield. This weekend veteran Ken Schrader will fill in for the injured open-wheel star. Johnny Sauter will have another shot to prove himself by jumping back behind the wheel of the No. 70 HAAS/CNC Chevrolet.

Sauter was released from this team at the end of the 2007 season, only to return two weeks ago at Phoenix International Raceway after Jeremy Mayfield was let go. This team currently sits in 37th in the Owner Standings, sixty-five points behind Smith in the No. 01.

J.J. Yeley and Dave Blaney will have to rebound after both failed to make the race last week at Talladega. Yeley and his Hall of Fame Racing No. 96 found themselves outside the top-35 for the first time last week and fell further behind the ball after missing the show.

Blaney and his No. 22 Caterpillar Camry have struggled all year with bad luck. Bill Davis’ team now find themselves in 39th spot in the standings, eighty-two points out of 35th.

These two teams have to turn things around quickly if they want to stay in touch with the three teams ahead of them. After a few weeks of watching from the sidelines, Team Red Bull’s A.J. Allmendinger was back in the saddle of the No. 84 Toyota Camry for last week’s Aaron’s 499.

Allmendinger laid down a great lap in qualifying and was able to make his way into the show. He returns to a track that he performed quite well at in 2007 (RIR). The former open-wheel driver qualified for both events last year and hopes to continue that trend Friday night.

On the other side of the line, Sam Hornish Jr. slipped one spot last week to 34th, a mere four points ahead of Regan Smith.

While David Reutimann continued his climb back up the Owner Standings, gaining that spot from Hornish. Perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the season thus far has been how badly the No. 41 of Reed Sorenson has struggled. Team owner Chip Ganassi voiced his displease a few weeks ago and the team’s bad luck continued at Talladega. A motor failure only four laps into Sunday’s race sent the No. 41 behind the wall and out of the event. Sorenson fell one spot in the Owner Standings and now finds himself just nineteen points ahead of Regan Smith.

A recent crew chief swap with the No. 42 of Juan Pablo Montoya has the potential to turn this team around, however that is still uncertain. This race for the top-35 in Owner Points is really heating up. Eight drivers are currently separated by only 101 points. Missing one race can be devastating to a team, while a good run can really shake things up.

Teams like Team Red Bull (A.J. Allmendinger), Petty Enterprises (Kyle Petty) and Furniture Row Motorsports (Joe Nemechek) are struggling to make up ground after missing multiple races.

This is a blow no team can really bounce back from, yet they will never stop trying. A lot can and will happen this weekend and making the show is just the first step.