KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- They might as well erect a large "keep out" sign.

The drivers in NASCAR's Chase playoff own the championship hunt. They own the spotlight. They're going to own most of the year-end bonus money. And increasingly, they own the top 10 on any given weekend.

Drivers outside of the Chase field are finding it more and more difficult to post strong finishes, at a time when races are frontloaded with championship contenders clawing over one another for every position they can get. In the playoff opener two weeks ago New Hampshire, seven of the top 10 finishing positions belonged to Chase drivers. Last week at Dover, it was eight of 10. And Sunday at Kansas Speedway brought a record -- nine Chase contenders in the top 10.

"The top 12 guys are in the Chase for a reason," said three-time defending series champion Jimmie Johnson, who finished ninth. "They're all great teams, and they put up a great performance. You know how it's going to be. You're going to be racing those guys for points and for race wins."

Sunday, there was only one interloper -- David Reutimann, whose Michael Waltrip Racing entry placed eighth. It was Reutimann's ninth top-10 finish of the season, and his first since he placed fourth at Atlanta on Labor Day weekend. The No. 00 car started 13th, and ran in the top 10 much of the day despite battling some adjustment and mechanical issues.

"We had a really, really good car at the beginning, and then we kind of got off there through the midpoint and couldn't tighten it up," Reutimann said. "We had to tighten it up, then we got it too tight, and then there at the end we had a right-rear wheel loose and it was vibrating pretty bad, so we kind of just held on for what we could get there.

"All in all, it was a really good day. I had a good race car, and the guys did a good job. Pit stops were good. Everything went pretty well, so I'm pretty encouraged. I felt like we could have been a little better there at the end, but we still ended up OK."

“

You just go as hard as you can to try to win races and try to learn some stuff for next year.

”

DAVID REUTIMANN

But other than Reutimann's strong run, Kansas was a Chase bonanza. Brad Keselowski even drew a request from NASCAR officials to be cognizant of his surroundings after he traded a little paint with Chase driver Juan Montoya early in the race.

The only other non-Chase driver who had a real chance to make a mark was Dale Earnhardt Jr., who started second and led 41 laps before a missing lug nut on a pit stop resulted in a penalty that left him a lap down. It got worse -- later in the event, an oil pump belt came off and led the engine in the No. 88 car to seize up.

"It's frustrating," said Earnhardt, whose last top-10 was at Bristol on Aug. 22. "We had a real fast car. We left a lug nut loose on a pit stop and lost a lap there. We pitted and they threw a caution and lost another lap there. We had a fast enough car to finish top-12. We were running as fast as the leaders. We just needed track position. We had a good car."

A few other non-Chasers had their chances, but failed to capitalize. Keselowski started third, and was in the top five for almost half the race, but got trapped a lap down and wound up 13th. Kyle Busch finished 12th, but came from well back of the pack to do it, and only briefly cracked the top 10.

So for the outsiders, those drivers battling for 11th place, Reutimann's effort Sunday was the only one strong enough to break through. He's still holding out hopes of winning a race -- which, considering the strength of the Chase drivers through the first three events of the postseason, might be a bigger upset than his victory in the Coca-Cola 600 in May.

"You just go as hard as you can to try to win races and try to learn some stuff for next year," Reutimann said. "It is really no different than your approach has been all year."

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