The celebrations of last Sunday and the media pit stop in New York City of earlier this week are done and over with, and now it is back to business for the twelve teams that are chasing this year's Cup Series championship. With the points reset following the conclusion of last week's rain-delayed Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway, things have tightened up and the intensity is about to pick up as there are only ten races until the 2008 season is in the books.

Kyle Busch is still at the top of the leader board, but his 207-point lead over Carl Edwards is now a mere thirty points. Defending back-to-back champion Jimmie Johnson is right on Edwards' coat tails in third, forty points behind Busch, while Dale Earnhardt Jr., Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin and Jeff Burton are all seventy points out of the top spot. Those drivers that were able to make this year's Chase without scoring a win in the "regular season" include, Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth - all eighty points behind Busch.

Many out there are already chalking this year's Chase up to a three-way battle between Busch, Edwards and Johnson while everyone else is battling to fill in the blanks.

We have seen emotions run high between the drivers in the top two spots - both are on probation for their post-race incident at Bristol - and with the difference between first and twelfth only eighty points, if these drivers lose focus on the big picture the door could swing open for anyone else that turns it on at the right time.

"You just have to hope they're still pissed at each other," Biffle said of the Busch-Edwards rivalry. "Maybe they'll be beating and banging and take care of themselves a little bit."

In the Chase, cool heads and consistency are the keys to winning the championship and if anyone knows how to manage those two, it is the combination of Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus. This group has kept their heads up the entire season, despite struggling a bit right off the bat. While many wondered what was wrong with the Hendrick organization, Knaus and Johnson put their noses to the grindstone and got the job done. The No. 48 Lowe's team enters this year's Chase with momentum on their back and two wins in two weeks to back it up.

"Momentum is certainly something we are looking at and trying to carry," Johnson explained following his win in Richmond. The two-time champ has the opportunity to join only one other driver - Cale Yarborough - if he is able to win three championships in a row, but he is not letting any of that get to his head.

"If you show up and you're swinging for the fence every time, you're going to make mistakes," said Johnson. "With the way the pack is running, especially the 99 and the 18, you can't show up and run at 80 percent and just hope that a top-10 is going to get the job done. You have to show up and bring your A Game each week. I feel confident that we are there now and that we can run with these guys."

For those in the back of the Chase field, there is only one way to go from here - to the top. While Tony Stewart looked poised to strike and earn his first win of the season last week in Richmond, Smoke couldn't get the job done and was clearly disappointed. The Stewart of old seemed to show up in the media center following Sunday's race. Sarcastic remarks and frustration were evident after recording his fourth second-place finish of the year.

With all of the changes going on with him, the key to his championship run will be maintaining his focus throughout the next ten races. With distractions such as building a new team to be ready to compete for wins by next year, and a hot shoe named Joey Logano gaining more and more attention could possibly push Stewart over the edge.

For Jeff Gordon, the memories of last season have faded fast and have been quickly replaced by the frustrations of this year. Winless since Lowe's last October, Gordon has struggled to find the balance in this new car and has not been able to adjust like those atop the board have been able to do. Entering the Chase without a win, the four-time champion knows his team is at a disadvantage, but remains optimistic.

"I think the one thing I take out of this," Gordon pointed out, "is I've had the big leads and seen that go away in the Chase, and wish that it had not. Now I"m on the flipside of it where those guys had the big lead and that got washed away and now we at least have a shot."

Looking forward to this weekend's event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, once again it is anyone's game. June's race at Loudon came down to pit strategy and weather, with the Kurt Busch and Michael Waltrip taking the top-two spots. Denny Hamlin was the top-finishing Chase contender in eighth, with Jimmie Johnson behind him in ninth.

Last year it was Clint Bowyer showing he not only deserved to be in the Chase, but was a serious threat, who took the win in dominating fashion. Eight of the twelve Chase drivers have scored victories at the Magic Mile, leaving Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth the four without a win.

Kurt Busch was the only driver to win the Chase's opening race in Loudon and go on to take the title. Each of these twelve drivers is hoping to add to that statistic by the end of the season. The next ten weeks are sure to be filled with excitement and drama - and probably some controversy along the way.

Be sure to keep up to date with all that is going on in the Chase by checking back to HardcoreRaceFans.com each week and keep reading, because the Chase is on.