2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Midseason Report

The Coke Zero 400 was the halfway point of the 2008 NASCAR season. In this article we'll talk about those who have won races and those who have yet to win a race this season.  We'll also discuss the moves that you'll need to be focused on heading into the second half the season.

Kyle Busch has won six races so far this season, including the Coke Zero 400. He has also won four races in the Nationwide Series and two in the Craftsman Trucks. Carl Edwards is second on the list with three wins. Kasey Kahne is third on the list with two.

Drivers who have one win so far include Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Jeff Burton, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, and Kurt Busch.

Drivers who have not won a race this season that you do need to keep your eyes on are Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Brian Vickers, Mark Martin, Greg Biffle, Martin Truex, Jr., David Ragan, Matt Kenseth, and Bobby Labonte, among others.

Kyle Busch is the championship leader, 182 points ahead of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. At this time last year, Jeff Gordon had the championship lead after the Pepsi 400, and in 2006 it was Jimmie Johnson.

In 1998, the Pepsi 400 was postponed until October 17, 1998. After race 17 in Loudon, Jeff Gordon was your championship leader.

The best improvement so far this season has to go to Brian Vickers and the No. 83 Red Bull Racing Toyota. In 2007, the team was struggling to get into races. Now Vickers and (ever since Talladega) AJ Allmendinger have made it in every race.

There are eight races until the Chase for the Sprint Cup, and I believe drivers at 31st and below are now out of the picture. I can say that Kyle Busch will be in the chase.

As some of you may already know, Casey Mears is out of the No. 5 car after this season and Mark Martin will replace him as a full-time driver in 2009 and then go to a part-time schedule again in 2010.

Also, the No. 40 car driven by Dario Franchitti along with BAM Racing No. 49 and Morgan-McClure No. 4 were all shut down during the first part of the 2008 season.

Rumors have been going around about Tony Stewart's future at Joe Gibbs racing. There have been rumors about Stewart leaving for Haas as co-owner. He will have a press conference when the series goes to Indianapolis.

There have also been rumors about Ryan Newman, Martin Truex, Jr., and others joining Stewart at his new team.

Dale Jarrett has retired from racing and is now calling races for ESPN. Bill Elliott will be retiring at the end of this season. Terry Labonte's future is uncertain at this point.

TNT will have coverage of Chicagoland. Then, coverage will shift over to ESPN for six races and ABC will have Richmond and the Chase.