Sprint Cup Chase Standings 2014: NASCAR Grid, Schedule After MyAFibStory.com 400

Sunday marked the opening race of NASCAR's Chase for the Sprint Cup. Chicagoland Speedway hosted the MyAFibStory.com 400, and Brad Keselowski was the one to emerge with the checkered flag at the end of the high-stakes race.

Only a select 16 are in the Chase for the biggest championship in stock-car auto racing, but a full field of 43 was in action in Joliet, Illinois. Nevertheless, Keselowski managed to surge to the front after starting in 25th, getting his Chase campaign off to a great start.

Here is a look at the updated Chase standings, via ESPN.com:

Rank	Driver	Points
1	Brad Keselowski	2,059
2	Jeff Gordon	2,052
3	Joey Logano	2,050
4	Kevin Harvick	2,046
5	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	2,042
6	Jimmie Johnson	2,041
7	Kyle Busch	2,041
8	Denny Hamlin	2,041
9	Kurt Busch	2,039
10	Matt Kenseth	2,034
11	Kasey Kahne	2,034
12	Carl Edwards	2,030
13	Ryan Newman	2,029
14	AJ Allmendinger	2,025
15	Greg Biffle	2,021
16	Aric Almirola	2,007

Keselowski entered Sunday as the leader thanks to his four prior victories on the season, and he is hoping to notch his second Sprint Cup title in just three years. A magnificent run on Sunday that saw Keselowski lead 62 laps allowed him to bolster his Chase profile.

If trends are any indication, it appears Keselowski is on the right track, per USA Today's Nate Ryan:

Before Sunday's race began, Keselowski was confident in what he and Penske Racing were doing, as reported by ESPN.com's John Oreovicz:

"

Yeah, I definitely feel more confident this year than in 2012. Like you said at Richmond, we have a strong teammate to lean on and a manufacturer base with Ford that is underneath us for years to come. I have another two years of, hopefully, wisdom, and we have had dominant performances to win three of our four races. I think those are some great reasons to be more confident.

"

The three drivers who didn't have wins but still qualified for the Chase were awarded 2,000 points to start. The remaining competitors were given three additional points for every win, hence Keselowski's pre-race total of 2,012 points.

An amazing pass by Keselowski, going three-wide with 16 laps remaining against Kevin Harvick and Kyle Larson, put him in commanding position. NASCAR on ESPN mentioned Keselowski's bold maneuver:

"

Phenomenal racing for several laps and Keselowski splits Harvick and Larson and takes the lead.

— NASCAR on ESPN (@ESPNNASCAR) September 14, 2014"

Danica Patrick's collision with the wall stopped Keselowski's momentum for a brief time. However, a clean restart allowed Keselowski to pull away, and one of Larson's rear tires began smoking as he edged to the outside of the track, affording Jeff Gordon the chance to pull into second.

Keselowski credited his team for coming out on top amid a thrilling NASCAR showcase:

"

Brad: "We had a great car. These Fords have really come together for a strong Chase run. That was a crazy day."

— NASCAR on ESPN (@ESPNNASCAR) September 14, 2014"

All that's really missing from Larson's magnificent rookie year is a trip to victory lane. It nearly happened for the precocious, rising star—something he no doubt would have loved to have before so he could be part of the Chase.

J Pat Carter/Associated Press

Instead of turning the corner sooner in the season, Larson nearly peaked in time to play spoiler to the Chase stalwarts seeking to seize a commanding early advantage. It wasn't meant to be, but Larson will be back for more.

Aric Almirola, who was rather fortunate in that one of his two top-five finishes of the year happened to be a win to get into the Chase, suffered a blown engine just as Carl Edwards' blown tire brought about a caution.

Jeff Gluck of USA Today highlighted the big move Almirola had just made:

"

Aric Almirola just passed Jimmie Johnson for fifth place. Wow.

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) September 14, 2014"

NASCAR.com's Alan Cavanna documented what Almirola had to say to his crew when he figured his race was finished:

Marty Smith of ESPN empathized with the underdog Almirola:

That took care of two top Chase contenders for the day. Clint Bowyer, the unenviable No. 17 bubble boy in the Chase standings, was running 10th on Sunday before hitting the first-turn wall, leading to the penultimate caution of the afternoon.

Next week's Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway will see the Chase heat up even more. Matt Kenseth, perhaps the steadiest driver not to win in 2014, grabbed victory in New Hampshire last year. That bodes well for him.

However, Ryan Newman, the 16th of 16 in the Chase, is a two-time winner there, as is Gordon. With Newman also seeking his first win of the year and Gordon attempting to pull off his first championship since 2001, there figure to be plenty of fascinating storylines entering the second of 10 Chase races.

Date	Time	Race	TV Info
Sunday, September 21	2 p.m. ET	Sylvania 300	ESPN
Sunday, September 28	2 p.m. ET	AAA 400	ESPN
Sunday, October 5	2 p.m. ET	Hollywood Casino 400	ESPN
Saturday, October 11	7:30 p.m. ET	Bank of America 500	ABC
Sunday, October 19	2 p.m. ET	Geico 500	ESPN
Sunday, October 26	1:30 p.m. ET	Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500	ESPN
Sunday, November 2	3 p.m. ET	AAA Texas 500	ESPN
Sunday, November 9	3 p.m. ET	Quicken Loans Race For Heroes 500	ESPN
Sunday, November 16	3 p.m. ET	Ford EcoBoost 400	ESPN