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Jeff Gordon (left), and Tony Stewart might very well wage a two-way battle to win Sunday's Nextel Cup race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, writes Johnny Benson of MSNBC.com.

Kasey Kahne was running well last week at Bristol before a tire issue hurt his chances, and he wound up 19th. Kahne should bounce back at Martinsville, and while he might not contend for the win, he should be in the hunt for a top-10, which would be his first since the season-opener at Daytona.

My darkhorse is Scott Riggs, who due to his running into small issues that have proven costly has not had a finish of better than 23rd this season. Riggs, who placed 10th in this race last year, just hasn't had any luck yet this season.

Riggs will have to qualify for Martinsville as his early-season struggles have dropped him out of the top 35 in owner points, and thus he no longer automatically makes it into Cup races.

Keys to success at Martinsville
Martinsville Speedway is a short, tight track so driver patience will be a key factor in deciding which car gets to Victory Lane.

This is the smallest track on the Cup circuit, and it's probably as hard on equipment as any track run by NASCAR's top series.

The brakes take an especially tough beating because of the short turns off the long straightaways, forcing constant accelerating and braking. And with the COT, braking will be a huge issue on Sunday.

At Bristol -- a track not known as a killer on brakes -- drivers ran into brake trouble with the COT. At Martinsville, look for braking issues to escalate. Drivers will have to make concerted efforts to save on their brakes.

Pit road is so narrow we will likely see some cars banging into each other when entering and exiting the pits. It's so tight on pit road there just isn't room for 43 cars to pit at the same time. Look for more pit issues this Sunday than in most if not all other Cup races.

It's a driver's mentality to be aggressive coming off a pit stop to try and beat other cars back onto the track, but with the tight conditions at Martinsville being too aggressive out of the pits is simply courting disaster.

The bottom is the line to run since the outside groove went away after repairs were made to the track following the spring 2004 race.

Besides having equipment hold up, getting good luck, and running a smart and patient race are what's needed most to win at Martinsville.