RICHMOND, Va. - Tony Stewart hadn’t even gotten his car up to full speed Friday at Richmond International Raceway before it was back to the drawing board for his Joe Gibbs Racing team.

Stewart crashed in the opening moments of practice on the .75-mile oval, sending the No. 20 team scrambling to ready the two-time and defending NASCAR Nextel Cup champion’s backup Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

Not an auspicious way to begin a week in which Stewart’s still fighting to wrap up a spot in the Chase for the championship.

Stewart goes into Saturday night’s Chevy Rock & Roll 400 eighth in the standings, only 45 points in front of 11th-place Kasey Kahne, the one driver outside the top 10 with a chance to race his way into NASCAR’s 10-race postseason run. Ninth- and 10th-place Mark Martin and Jeff Burton are both within 15 points of Stewart.

Stewart said his car slid up the banking into the slickest part of the track before he lost control.

“There was just no grip,” Stewart said. “ Being in those marbles, I couldn’t keep the back end underneath me.”

Fortunately for Stewart, it was a very long practice session, giving him the opportunity the get the backup car up to speed.

“It came around right there at the end, which I’m happy about,” Stewart said. “If I didn’t run that last run, I’d be a lot more nervous than I am right now. But that last run was really good.”

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Even so, he’ll have to come from the rear Saturday night after qualifying 40th.

It’s the fourth time in his career that Stewart has had to go to a backup car during a race weekend. The other times were at Chicagoland Speedway in 2004 and 2005 and at the fall Bristol race in 2005. He finished first and fifth in the two Chicagoland events and eighth at Bristol.

Leading man
Jimmie Johnson is in unfamiliar territory, having slipped from first to second in the Cup standings after leading the points most of the season.

Matt Kenseth, coming off two wins and a seventh-place finish in his last three starts, now leads Johnson by nine points. Both already have clinched spots in the Chase. The first- and second-place drivers will be separated by just five points after this week, no matter who leads.

But Johnson, who qualified 19th, still has plenty of motivation going into Saturday night’s race.

“We want to be leading,” Johnson said Friday. “We want to be first going into New Hampshire (next week). We want that position. We just have to go out and get it.”

After six top 10 finishes in a seven-race span, Johnson has finished no better than 11th in his last four starts.

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“We’ve been trying different things,” Johnson explained. “I’ve been racing really, really hard lately. It’s really been the same approach. You don’t want to throw it away and not collect any points, but I’m going to be out there racing hard.”

Kenseth, who has been third or better in the points since the season’s second race, is just as determined to stay out front.

“Being the leader right now, I’d like to keep that five points,” Kenseth said. “I think every point is important. The first year of the Chase (2004), it came down to the last lap of the last race, so I’d like to have every point we can.”

Gordon qualified third, right behind pole-winner Denny Hamlin and Jeff Burton, while Kenseth will start 10th.