NASCAR Sprint Cup at New Hampshire: Clint Bowyer and 10 Top Contenders to Win

The Chase is an exciting time for all the fans of drivers in the Chase, but for those with only wins to look forward to, it's time to look at the top contenders to win the checkered flag on Sunday.

Will a Chase contender work his way closer to the Championship, or will another driver steal the spotlight? Let's take a look.

Clint Bowyer

Clint Bowyer is one of the drivers looking to steal the spotlight this weekend, and even though he had a 17th-place finish in July, he did win the race last fall. Bowyer also follows that result up with a seventh in June of 2010 and a 10th in the fall of 2009.

Chase guys will be more careful of their equipment, but Bowyer only has to worry about one thing the rest of the season: getting to Victory Lane.

Ryan Newman

Ryan Newman won here in July and has the record to backup that win. In the 2010 fall race, Newman finished eighth. He also finished sixth in summer of 2010 and seventh in the fall 2009 race.

A win for Newman would be big since he sits only 14 points off of the Chase leader in seventh.

Brad Keselowski

Brad Keselowski hasn't done anything spectacular at New Hampshire in the past, but he has been on fire the second half of this season, winning three races. Keselowski grabbed one of the wild card races to get into the Chase, and it's obvious he deserved it, as he jumped up five places to sixth in only the first race of the Chase.

Keselowski is on a mission, and Loudon is just one more race to cross off his schedule.

Tony Stewart

Tony Stewart may only have one win this year, coming last week, but he has done well at New Hampshire in the past. He grabbed a second place finish in July and June of 2010.

Stewart has won the race twice, with his last win at the track coming in 2005. He sits second in the Chase, seven points out, and it'd be no surprise if he drove his car into Victory Lane on Sunday.

Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin hasn't won here since 2007, but he has put in a good showing in the races since.

He finished third behind Newman and Stewart in the last Loudon race, second last fall and second in fall of 2009. Hamlin made it into the Chase with a wild card, and he needs to prove to himself and others that he belongs there.

Jimmie Johnson

Welcome to the Chase, otherwise known as The Jimmie Johnson Show. While Jimmie did fall two spots in the Chase last week, he has New Hampshire dialed in and should be ready to go this weekend.

Johnson has only finished out of the top five once in the last four New Hampshire races, and he won the race in the summer of 2009.

If this isn't a horrible Chase for Johnson, he has a very good chance to win this race.

Kurt Busch

Kurt Busch is a three-time winner of this race, with his last win in 2008. Since then, Busch has backed up his winning results with a 10th in the last race, third in the June 2010 race and sixth in the fall 2009 race.

This is another one of those Chase guys that may be a little careful with his equipment, but Busch is also trying to chase down Johnson, so there's a chance he could go all out.

Dale Earnhardt Jr

Dale Earnhardt Jr. made the Chase, and now he has to win a race to blow away all his detractors. Earnhardt Jr. really turned up the heat here last fall, earning a fourth in addition to an eighth in that year's summer race.

He hasn't won at this track before, but he did gain five spots in the Chase last week to move up to fifth, so a win wouldn't be too far-fetched.

Kevin Harvick

The fall 2006 winner of this race is also the points leader right now. Kevin Harvick has four wins this season and is in a comfortable position going into New Hampshire.

In addition, Harvick had a pair of fifths in 2010, so he isn't a one-race wonder at this track. If Harvick wants to keep his championship lead, he needs wins, and he's proven he can make it to Victory Lane here.

Jeff Gordon

Surprisingly, Jeff Gordon's last win here was in 1998, although he did dominate the track for a while in the 90s. But even with no visits to Victory Lane in 13 years, Gordon has had some good finishes, including a sixth and a fourth in 2010.

The big question on this one is how hard everyone will be racing and if Gordon can manage to stay out of trouble for the whole race. If he does that, he may not only win the race, he may have a chance to fly to the top of the standings.