Sprint Cup Chase 2015: Standings, Schedule Post-Federated Auto Parts 400

Five spots in the Chase for the Sprint Cup were up for grabs Saturday night at the Federated Auto Parts 400, and they have all been filled following Matt Kenseth's win under the lights at Richmond International Raceway.    

As Kenseth cruised to victory by leading 352 of the 400 laps, drama proved to be elusive. According to ESPN Stats & Info, the win was one of the most dominant of his career:

Saturday's top finishers can be viewed below, while the complete results can be found at NASCAR.com: 

Place	Driver	Laps Led
1	Matt Kenseth	352
2	Kyle Busch	9
3	Joey Logano	25
4	Aric Almirola	0
5	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	0
6	Denny Hamlin	14
7	Jeff Gordon	0
8	Brad Keselowski	0
9	Jimmie Johnson	0
10	Clint Bowyer	0

ESPN.com's Bob Pockrass pointed out that Kenseth's win kept the top 16 in tact, as Clint Bowyer, Paul Menard, Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman all held on to round out the back of the Chase pack. Aric Almirola was the first man out as he finished a mere 17 points behind Menard.

NASCAR on NBC's Twitter account offered a look at the complete Chase grid following the final race of the regular season:

And while five spots were technically up for grabs, Jamie McMurray whittled that number to four by simply making a start at Richmond.

"It's gratifying to bring a group of people together and accomplish something like this, and to be a part of a team of guys that accomplished this," McMurray's team owner Chip Ganassi said, per the Associated Press' Dan Gelston (via ABCNews.com). "Now that's the first goal, the goal changes now. The goal post changes to winning races and advancing in the Chase."

Date	Race	Location	Time (ET)	TV
Sept. 20	MyAFIBrisk.com 400	Chicagoland Speedway	3 p.m.	NBCSN
Sept. 27	Sylvania 300	New Hampshire Motor Speedway	2 p.m.	NBCSN
Oct. 4	AAA 400	Dover International Speedway	2:30 p.m.	NBCSN
Oct. 10	Bank of America 500	Charlotte Motor Speedway	7 p.m.	NBC
Oct. 18	Hollywood Casino 400	Kansas Speedway	2:15 p.m.	NBC
Oct. 25	Alabama 500	Talladega Super Speedway	2:30 p.m.	NBCSN
Nov. 1	Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500	Martinsville Speedway	1:15 p.m.	NBCSN
Nov. 8	AAA Texas 500	Texas Motor Speedway	2 p.m.	NBC
Nov. 15	Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500	Phoenix International Raceway	2:30 p.m.	NBC
Nov. 22	Ford Ecoboost 400	Homestead-Miami Speedway	3 p.m.	NBC

However, Joe Gibbs Racing dominated for the majority of Saturday night's action at RIR, with Kenseth, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin finishing first, second and sixth, respectively. 

As NBC Sports' Nate Ryan opined, the Gibbs talent pool is outclassing the rest of NASCAR at the perfect time: 

The boys at Hendrick Motorsports are attempting to do the same despite encountering some serious struggles over the past few months.

Of primary concern has been Gordon, who qualified for the Chase thanks to an impressive seventh-place finish. But Saturday night's showing was a deviation from discouraging trends that have cropped up since Gordon finished third at Pocono. 

Prior to burning rubber at Richmond, Gordon finished 41st, 17th, 20th and 16th in consecutive races that spanned a stretch from Aug. 9 to Sept. 6, per ESPN.com. 

"We'll be back," Rick Hendrick said Sept. 10, according to Fox Sports' Tom Jensen. "I don't like the fact that we haven't led laps. ... We've just fumbled the ball more than normal. But the true character of an organization and a team is how you fight back. And I kind of think it's good for you sometimes that you have to step it up a little bit."

Although Hendrick poster boy Jimmie Johnson hasn't led a lap since early July, he can take pride in the fact that he's the only driver in NASCAR history to qualify for every Chase, per NASCAR Stats on Twitter.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.—who was already safely in the Chase entering Saturday night—offered Hendrick some more hope moving forward thanks to a late charge. Although he hasn't led a lap since July 5, Earnhardt has rattled off top-10 finishes in four of his last five races.

Those positive trajectories should have Hendrick feeling confident entering the first race of the Chase, but Joe Gibbs Racing has established itself as the most dynamic team in NASCAR throughout the latter stages of the regular season.

And with just 10 races remaining and intensity set to skyrocket from week to week, it's time for drivers to fight for their Chase lives and justify the hype as they seek to capture NASCAR's most coveted title.