Leaving Sonoma, a major shake-up took place in the owner points just above the top-35 cut-off. While things remained the same from positions 36th-39th, four of the six positions from 30th-35th changed hands.

Michael McDowell was the weekend's biggest winner as the rookie driver came through at Sonoma with a 21st-place finish. Despite having a car that looked like it had just raced at Martinsville or Bristol, McDowell was able to jump four spots in the standings to 31st. This finish was a move in the right direction, but like everyone else in this group, he is not out of the fire just yet. Even though he made the biggest jump of any "On the Bubble" driver, McDowell is still only 29 points ahead of 35th.

McDowell's teammate and owner Michael Waltrip was also a beneficiary last week on the road course. Coming home with a 25th-place finish, Waltrip moved up two spots in the standings to 32nd, just 23 points ahead of 35th.

The weekend's biggest losers were Robby Gordon and Chip Ganassi Racing's No. 41 team. Gordon appeared to have one of the stronger cars during the early going, and looked like he was once again going to be a contender for the win. However, that promising run quickly went away when contact with Kurt Busch sent his No. 7 Dodge spinning, only to be hit by Max Papis. Gordon's problems only got worse when his car stalled on the speedway and then again in the middle of pit road. The owner/driver lost two laps to the race leader and was forced to settle with a 36th-place finish. The disappointing run dropped Gordon three spots in the owner points to 34th, just 11 points ahead of 35th.

Chip Ganassi's struggles followed his team out west as Dario Franchitti failed to make the race. Despite being one of the most successful open-wheel drivers on the circuit, Franchitti's talent could do little to help the struggling organization.

In an attempt to gain points and make something positive happen for his No. 41 team, Ganassi replaced the lack-luster Reed Sorenson with road course ringer Scott Pruett for the event. Pruett was never a factor in the event and was caught up in a late-race incident, ending the team's day early and resulting in a 38th-place finish - not exactly what Ganassi was hoping for. The frustrating result set the No. 41 team back three spots in the standings, leaving the team in 35th-spot - truly on the bubble. This week Reed Sorenson will be back behind the wheel of the No. 41 Dodge, but he will have to step it up a bit if he wants to breathe a bit easier next week at Daytona.

All told, the race to secure a spot in the top-35 is beginning to heat up. Only 164 points separate Regan Smith in 30th and A.J. Allmendinger in 37th - that's closer than the difference between first-place Kyle Busch and fourth-place Carl Edwards. In reality, Allmendinger seems to be the final driver outside the top-35 that still has a shot to make it in, but that would not only require consistently successful outings on his part, but also a bit of bad luck for those ahead of him.

When the cars hit the track Friday afternoon to make their qualifying run, nine drivers will be gunning for seven open spots, sending two drivers home. Terry Labonte is locked into the race, despite being well outside of the top-35, thanks to the Past Champion provisional. Once the nail-biting is over on Friday, those teams good enough to make the race - and those close to that top-35 cut-off - need to turn their focus to not only running well, but more importantly staying out of trouble and avoid finishes that could send you plummeting in the standings.