NASCAR Sprint Cup: 10 Bold Lessons We Learned at Bristol Motor Speedway

The clock is ticking for the warriors of NASCAR's elite series with only two races remaining after the game-changing battle on the fast, banked half-mile track at Bristol.

So much is at stake for the drivers who have yet to clinch a berth in the Chase and for those clinging to the hope of making the top 10 in the points though they have failed to win a race.

The wild card slots have added drama to the level of competition, as Brad Keselowski raises the bar with his three wins and impressive rise through the points, and is at least assured of 11th place.

After Bristol, it becomes more apparent who the serious Chase contenders are and who doesn't deserve to stroll across the stage at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Awards Banquet in Las Vegas.

Some of the sport's top names like Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin have failed to demonstrate the winning ways they have shown in previous seasons. They continue to struggle though Hamlin did show progress at Bristol with a seventh-place finish.

Let's take a look at some bold and tough lessons that were learned at the always unpredictable night race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

1. Brad Keselowski Wins Again

Brad Keselowski powered his Penske No. 2 Dodge to a third win this season, two of which have come since his accident during testing at Road Atlanta.

Keselowski is showing a toughness that is going to make him a strong contender in the Chase. Currently he occupies the first wild card slot which is 11th in the point standings.

He just may be a surprise threat to the more seasoned drivers in the Chase.

2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Goes for the Gold

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was behind the wheel of a spiffy gold and white Amp Energy/Mountain Dew/National Guard No. 88 bearing a gold and white decal celebrating the 50th anniversary of Bristol Motor Speedway.

Despite being at a track favored by Junior, he failed to bring home the gold and continued treading water in an effort to make the Chase with a 16th place finish.

Currently Earnhardt Jr. remains ninth in the point standings and his winless streak is extended to 117 races.

3. Greg Biffle Stumbles

The driver of the No. 16 3M Ford, Greg Biffle, really needed a win to keep alive any hope of making the Chase.

His night didn't go well at Bristol when he had a tire vibration that took him to pit road and then was assessed a speeding penalty.

Biffle pretty much blew his chance of making the Chase as he dropped three slots in the point standings to 16th and finished 31st in the race, four laps down.

A win for this Roush Fenway Racing driver may be too little, too late.

4. Tony Stewart Remains Bubble Boy

Tony Stewart must be working out of a totally different shop than his teammate, Ryan Newman, at Stewart-Haas Racing.

Though that is not the case, Stewart can't buy a win this season and is hanging by a thread at 10th place in the point standings.

The only reason the driver of the Bass Pro Shops/Office Depot No. 14 was able to maintain status quo was because the one driver who looked to be a problem for him performed just as bad as Stewart during the race at Bristol.

Clint Bowyer looked to be the one driver that could bump Stewart with a strong run, but his lackluster performance found him with a 26th place finish and Stewart 28th.

Stewart's crew chief, Darian Grubb, threw a whole new setup under the car for the race, hoping to match that of Ryan Newman who started on the pole, finished eighth and sits seventh in the points standings, but the effort was futile.

5. Denny Hamlin Shows a Little Life

Denny Hamlin seems to be a man defeated this season despite having one win. He has been plagued by engine failures and just plain bad luck all season.

At Bristol, Hamlin ran a car with a JGR engine. He was hoping to get a good finish and eventually did end up in seventh place, but it didn't come easy.

With 200 laps remaining, Hamlin saw cars spinning before him and was able to slow down, but Paul Menard didn't and rammed the rear of the No. 11. He was forced to take the FedEx car to pit road.

Hamlin looks to be the one to fill the second wild card slot and is currently ranked 13th in the point standings. His finishes since Michigan have been 27th, 15th, 36th and 35th, before Bristol.

Attitude goes a long way and Hamlin looks to be just riding the tide with bad luck constantly looming in the cloud over his head. The runner-up for the 2010 title may be looking forward to 2012 soon.

6. Leading Laps Doesn't Make You the Winner

Jeff Gordon in his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy led 206 laps at Bristol. Matt Kenseth led 110 of the 500 laps in his No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.

Gordon found fault with the pit road timing lines that were too spread out, thereby giving the advantage to the teams that were able to speed up in certain places.

Brad Keselowski, the race winner, was one such driver that was able to leave pit road at a speed considerably higher than the advertised pit road speed.

Both cars looked to be contenders for a win, but it didn't turn out that way. Gordon finished third and Kenseth finished in sixth place.

It just goes to show that a fast car that can lead a good part of the race doesn't guarantee a win. Gordon remained sixth in the standings while Kenseth moved up two places to third.

Gordon and Kenseth have both shown strong and consistent performance that should bode well for them in the Chase.

7. Mark Martin's Bad Move

Mark Martin once again tried to put his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy in a space that was a little too small. His attempt to do so at Bristol caused David Stremme in the No. 30 to punt him into the wall.

It isn't the first time Martin has made a move that has turned out badly this season. In some cases, he played it off as a racing incident, but he has also made an apology or two.

Martin's final year at Hendrick Motorsports hasn't been as grandiose as he might have hoped. The incident cost him three positions in the standings with a drop to 19th and a 38th place finish.

8. Kyle Busch Didn't Win This One

Kyle Busch rocks Bristol Motor Speedway with series sweeps and record wins as he continues to hone his statistical portfolio, but this Cup race didn't count as a win despite the five others he has there.

Busch was a favorite to win at a track where he loves to race. The driver of the No.18 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing hardly had a spectacular night.

With 87 laps to go, he also tried to find a space where there was none and hit the wall while running seventh.

At the end of the race, Busch finished 14th and maintained the lead in points.

9. Matt Kenseth Keeps Rolling with No Brakes

Matt Kenseth was running second in his No. 17 Crown Royal Ford prior to the midway point of the race, all while complaining that he had no front brakes.

Kenseth's crew performed terrific pit stops and kept him in the top 10 all night. Qualifying gave him a great pit stall and allowed him to maintain track position.

Despite having brake issues that could not be addressed during the race, Kenseth was able to finish in sixth place and sits third in the point standings.

This RFR driver is starting to feel he has a chance at the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup title.

10. The Clinchers

Drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series spend 26 weeks trying to make a 10-week Chase for the series title.

They do it not only for the prestige, but for their sponsors, fans and a chance to capture the coveted trophy and big check that goes to the champion.

The drivers making the Chase via the new wild card positions of 11th and 12th in the points look to be shaping up with Brad Keselowski having a lock and Denny Hamlin most likely taking the second slot.

In the sport of NASCAR, you don't always know how things play out until the last lap and should Keselowski make his way to the top 10, we may not know until it's all over at Richmond exactly how the Chase looks.

What we do know is that heading to Bristol, Kyle Busch had clinched his place in the Chase as the series points leader.

Coming out of Bristol we know three more drivers, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth have also clinched a berth in the Chase lineup. Kevin Harvick was also added by NASCAR because of his three wins.