Kevin Harvick sealed his bid in the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup.

Kurt Busch overcame a bout with mid-race damage to finish ninth, and Kevin Harvick ended his night at Richmond in seventh place, and both finishes were more than enough for the two drivers to clinch the two remaining bids to the 2007 Chase for the NEXTEL Cup on Saturday night.

The Chase for the NEXTEL Cup begins Sunday, September 16 at New Hampshire International Speedway and will include the Sunday, November 11 Checker Auto Parts 500 Presented by Pennzoil at Phoenix International Raceway as the ninth event of the 10-race playoff.

Caught up in a minor melee at lap 241, Busch's No. 2 Dodge suffered a reasonable amount of rear sheet metal harm. On first look, it seemed as if the damage could possibly provide later problems. Fortunately, his car suffered no ill effects internally, and shortly after, the Penske Racing driver was able to clinch the finish of 36th or better that he required to make the Chase entering the event.

Harvick's No. 29 Chevrolet was forced into the infield grass during the same mid-race incident. While his car suffered no real damage, a fair amount of grass was caught in the front air intake vents, causing the car to overheat. A pit stop soon after allowed Harvick's crew to clean the grass away and cool the engine, and when Harvick officially completed lap 380 of 400 and had completed more laps than at least 11 other cars, he had clinched his spot in the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup by finishing 32nd or better.

Jimmie Johnson picked up his sixth win of the season, giving him 60 total bonus points and a 20-point stranglehold over teammate Jeff Gordon for the top spot in the adjusted Chase standings.

Following are the standard NEXTEL Cup Series point standings following the 26th race of the season at Richmond. Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished the regular season in 13th place with 2954 points, 201 points out of the 10-race playoff field.

Standard Point Standings (through 26 of 36 races)

Given the 10-point bonuses for each win by a Chase driver in the regular season - added to the 5000-point base provided to each Chase driver - here are the adjusted point standings entering the 10-race Chase for the NEXTEL Cup.

Adjusted Point Standings (entering 2007 Chase for the NEXTEL Cup)

Former points leader and four-time series champion Jeff Gordon was disappointed to relinquish the top spot in the adjusted standings, but he was at least glad to lose the spot to a teammate.

"I'm happy for Jimmie but I hate that he got those 10 on us," said Gordon. "Congratulations to those guys."

Johnson was quick to thank his team in Gatorade Victory Lane.

"I can't thank Hendrick Motorsports enough for all of their support," said the defending series champion. "We're off to a good start."

Following Harvick's clinch with 20 laps to go, Earnhardt suffered a cruel - although inconsequential - ending. With seven laps remaining, the No. 8 Chevrolet blew an engine, prematurely putting a close to the popular wheelman's night. Even if Harvick and Busch had suffered, Earnhardt's engine woes had made him unable to take the top-five finish necessary to qualify for the Chase.

"We wish we were (in the Chase) for my fans, but we'll give 'em something to cheer about. We love racing. That's what we do," Earnhardt said before taking an embrace from crew chief Tony Eury Jr. following the race.

Despite the miss, 1989 NEXTEL Cup Series champion Rusty Wallace offered some strong praise for the eliminated Earnhardt during the ABC broadcast of the race.

"Well, if Dale Jr. misses this Chase for the Championship, it's not because he didn't try, guys. I've never seen a kid drive so hard (like Earnhardt has) in the last four or five races in my life."

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