Jason Smith / Getty Images for NASCAR

Kevin Harvick, driver of the #29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet, smiles during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 25, 2008 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

updated 2:39 p.m. ET July 30, 2008

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - When Kurt Busch wrecked out of the race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he just might have taken Kevin Harvick's championship hopes with him. A victim of Busch's slip, Harvick finished 37th and fell to 13th in the Chase for the championship.

Of course, he's been out of the top 12 before this season, and he's well within striking distance now at just two points out of the final qualifying spot.

At the same time, there are just six races to go to decide the field and Harvick and the rest of the drivers on the bubble can't afford any more slip-ups.

Harvick, who was on the bubble last year and still made the Chase, won't let his precarious spot change his strategy.

"It doesn't really matter — you just race as hard as you can every week," Harvick said. "We have had some really good cars since Sonoma, but haven't been able to capitalize every weekend. We have had some bad weeks that have been out of our control. I am very confident in my team and I think we will do everything we can do to make the Chase."

If the Chase began this weekend, the field would consist of Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton, Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, and Clint Bowyer.

But the standings are so close from seventh to 15th that the field could change weekly between now and the Sept. 6 "regular season" finale at Richmond.

For example, Hamlin used a third-place finish last week at Indianapolis to move off the bubble and gain a bit of breathing room. Ranked 12th before Indy, he moved up four spots to eighth.

Kahne gained two spots and moved up to ninth. Now he heads back to Pocono with the same car he won with in June, intent on solidifying his spot in the Chase.

"We saved the same car. The car was brand new for the first Pocono race and it's been waiting to go back," he said. "I don't see why we can't have a shot at another win. As good as it was the first race, if we do the right things, we should have another shot."

Bowyer was the beneficiary when his Richard Childress Racing teammate fell out of the top 12. Bowyer is now in the final qualifying spot, albeit with a mere two-point advantage over Harvick.

Kenseth was the biggest victim of the tire problems that plagued Indianapolis. He blew a right rear fairly early in the race, and the explosion tore a chunk of the quarter panel off his Ford before it went spinning through the grass.

He finished 38th and dropped three spots in the Chase standings to 11th. He's only six ahead of Harvick now, in position to fall out at any time.

"Last weekend was a huge disappointment for us," he said. "We unloaded pretty good, with high hopes for a good finish. So, blowing a tire like we did and tearing up our car was pretty embarrassing. This weekend we're looking to bounce back at Pocono, which has really been one of our tougher tracks.

"A solid finish at Pocono would go a long way toward gaining some momentum in this stretch run leading up to the Chase."

So who does that leave on the bubble?

Well, Harvick for one. He was in a similar position last year when he hovered at the bottom of the top-12 during the stretch run. Although he grew weary of being asked about strategy, he never changed a thing and earned a spot in the field.