NASCAR Sprint Cup: 6 Things Carl Edwards Needs to Do to Win the Cup

Carl Edwards took his No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion one step closer to his first NASCAR Sprint Cup championship after the ninth installment of the Chase at Phoenix International Raceway.

After appearing as though he would not be able to pass fellow Chase hopeful Tony Stewart during the middle laps of the race, Edwards took advantage of a slight mishap and was able to maintain three points on Stewart.

More importantly for Edwards, Stewart did not take the points lead from him with yet another trip to Victory Lane in the Chase.

It is still very close. The only way that Edwards can guarantee himself a championship would be to win at Homestead. Besides that, there are no solid clinching scenarios.

Aside from winning, here are six additional things he needs to do to put himself and Roush Fenway Racing in the best position to win.

Forget About Phoenix

Edwards needs to leave the images of cacti and Rattlesnake Hill in the desert and now focus on the lush palm trees of Miami.

This would be true whether he finished second or 22nd in Phoenix. This may be a fairly easy task: Edwards has had to do the same for the past two races with the knowledge that Stewart has gained points (and victories) at Martinsville and Texas.

Edwards finally kept Stewart from gaining on him at Phoenix.

Though it should be easier to forget the results of the prior week going into the season finale, Edwards definitely needs to do exactly that.

Block out Tony Stewart

This is going to be next to impossible for "Cousin" Carl. The two will undoubtedly be conducting media interviews/press conferences as a tandem because they are the last men standing. He cannot avoid his biggest rival completely.

It will be interesting to see whether or not Stewart throws the same time of verbal jabs at Edwards that he did after his win at Martinsville. Up until then, "Smoke" was still in the discussion as a title contender, but after that day he rose to become one of the major title contenders.

In Victory Lane, Stewart noted that if he were Carl Edwards he would not sleep during the next three weeks.

Carl has appeared well rested, at least on television.

So far, he seems to have remained focused enough on his own mission that Stewart's efforts to dissuade him have had little, if any, effect.

Relax

In post-race interviews since the fifth Chase race at Kansas, Carl Edwards has appeared more relieved than anything else.

He was very relieved after struggling for most of the race in Kansas. He appeared hyper-relieved to have avoided disaster at Talladega and get a decent finish at Martinsville.

His demeanor was different after Phoenix. He described Homestead Miami as a "magical" place for him and his team. For the first time in a while, he seemed truly relaxed.

He must continue this mindset if he is to win the championship.

Repeat His Performance from 2010 in Homestead

As noted in the opening slide, he does not have to win the final race at Homestead in 2011. However, it would certainly help.

In order to repeat his performance from last year, Edwards must run solid, avoid mistakes and be patient. He needs to qualify well. Denny Hamlin had the points lead going into Homestead in 2010, qualified poorly and faltered early. This opened the door for Jimmie Johnson.

Edwards was able to qualify second in Miami last year. At the very least, it would behoove him to repeat this performance. This is not a "must," but it could certainly qualify as a crucial "need."

Learn What He Can in the Nationwide Race

Carl Edwards is certainly not new to the track in Miami. However, there is always something to learn. Whatever mental notes that Edwards can take on Saturday and employ for Sunday could help him, if but just a little.

With only a three-point lead, it is certain that Edwards should take almost any little piece of information right now to shore up the Sprint Cup championship.

Avoid Pit Row Speeding Penalties

Carl Edwards most definitely left some points on the table at the third Chase race in Dover. He had a great car that day, something he sometimes refers to as a "rocket ship." All was going swimmingly until he was caught speeding on pit row.

After serving his penalty, he had to basically start all over again in 27th place. Though he was able to salvage a third place finish at race's end, it still cost him three points, perhaps four.

In essence, his lead could be double what it is now going into the final race.

He must avoid this in Miami to win the title. Another speeding penalty could be the final nail in Carl Edwards' 2011 championship campaign.

Tony Stewart would undoubtedly be more than happy to nail it down for him.