Tony Stewart among Top Stars Still Winless in '08

Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, and Kevin Harvick—big name drivers who have yet to score a victory in 2008.

Here we sit, halfway through a grueling 36-week schedule. We have seen Kyle Busch don his signature sunglasses and perfectly placed NOS energy drink seven times. We have watched Junior break his career-long winless streak at Michigan in an emotional victory lane celebration that not only completed his move over to Hendrick, but justified it as successful.

All this and the drivers listed above still sit with no wins and yet remain in the Chase field. If the Chase started today, these drivers would be at least 70 points behind point leader Kyle Busch and would have six other drivers in front of them.

We saw last year how difficult it can be to overcome 70 points, and we're not even finished with the season. Still, there are probably so many other drivers who would love to have the year some of these drivers are having.

Jeff Gordon has seven top-fives and eight top-10s and currently sits sixth in the standings. Barring any major meltdown, he should make the Chase. But his elusive first victory has forced team Dupont to endure what is the longest he has gone in a season without a victory since his rookie year.

He has run well this year, but tough luck, poor setups, and badly timed cautions have taken the wind out of a team that came into this year as the predicted champion.

Gordon runs well at the next couple tracks, but with this new car the unpredictability has taken this four-time champion's confidence. The fact that any data at this track was used for NASCAR's old car means everyone is starting from scratch.

For Tony Stewart, it’s been a strange year. He should be sitting with at least two wins, if not more. But cut tires, fuel mileage, and early accidents have really hurt his chances and he currently sits 10th in points.

He comes into Indy next week with six top-fives and nine top-10s and no wins. Summer is when he heated up last year, winning three out of the four races after Daytona.

But with his announcement last week at Chicagoland about him leaving the only car owner and the only crew chief he has ever known to join the newly formed Stewart-Haas Racing, the attention this year has been on the business side of racing, not the actual racing. And until we hit the track come January next year, most stories on Smoke will be about his impending start without JGR.

Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick have had similar years, just at different times. Kevin Harvick had a strong first few months, while Matt Kenseth struggled and dropped to as low as 22nd in points.

But since Dover, Kenseth has been climbing the standings and sits eighth in points while Harvick has struggled and has fallen as low as 13th after sitting a season-high third at one point. He currently sits ninth.

While neither is secure in the Chase, when it's all said and done they will be there. Just where they are seeded, however, is another issue.

So with this being the final break in what will be a long four months before we head back to New York, these drivers need to figure out what they need to do to see their respective cars in victory lane.

Some will continue to race at short tracks while some might get away from racing completely and take a vacation. And others will be planning not only for the next four months, but for their futures.

While Kyle Busch has momentum, Gordon, Kenseth, Harvick, and Smoke have time on their side. They have plenty of time to win races, plenty of time to figure out what has caused them to struggle early on, and plenty of time to prove to all those who say the new generation of racers have dethroned them that they still are on the top of their game.

Any of these four drivers can get on a roll, and one win can lead to multiple wins. That shows the talent and the possibility of a group that has a combined seven championships.

But it's a matter of when, and while Kyle Busch seemingly has the championship in his hands, these four drivers would like nothing more than to come on strong in the next few weeks.