Most drivers would be happy with seven straight top-10 finishes, but for Richard Childress Racing's Kevin Harvick a tenth-place in New Hampshire is nothing to celebrate. With seven other Chase drivers finishing ahead of him, Harvick was only able to gain one spot in the standings heading to Dover.

Starting from the 11th-spot, Harvick struggled early falling as far back as 20th before the scheduled competition caution on Lap 35. Working with crew chief Todd Berrier, Harvick was able to patiently stay in contention throughout the day, while avoiding touble.

"We started out the race just real loose, so loose I was worried I couldn't hang on to it until the competition caution (on lap 35)," Harvick explained. "Todd (Berrier) and the guys kept working on our Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet all race long but we just couldn't quite get it where we needed to be. We were in trouble on the restarts. It is a top 10 but it is not what we wanted."

With each position meaning more points on the competition a top-10 is not going to be good enough to win the championship, and Harvick and his team know this. Heading to a track where they were caught up in an early-race incident not of his making, this team knows they need a flawless race to stay in contention.

Many believe a driver in the Chase can afford one "mulligan" race - or one poor finish - but judging by this year's competition that just might not be the case. Kyle Busch was fortunate enough to have a bit of a buffer, but looking at the example of Matt Kenseth, one bad finish might just spell the end to your championship hopes. For Harvick and his No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil crew, the goal now is more than just top-10 finishes, because they know that's what it will take to get the job done.