Vader-haters, back off from the ledge. There's plenty of time for something to happen.
Yes, Jimmie Johnson took the points lead from Denny Hamlin Sunday at Kansas, but it'd be foolish to start crowning him the champion for the fifth year in a row. Chase drivers took 10 of the top 15 positions Sunday, and the gap from Johnson to Hamlin is just eight points.
Race winner Greg Biffle moved to eighth in the points standings and is just 85 points behind. That's just one point less than the difference between finishing first and finishing 20th place.
The only driver that's essentially eliminated is Clint Bowyer, who's now 252 points back after a 15th-place finish at Kansas. If, on the slightest of slight chances, the appeal of his 150-point penalty from NASCAR is overturned, Bowyer would only be 102 points behind.
Heck, even Matt Kenseth in 11th has a chance if he runs as well as he did at times on Sunday. Flatline hadn't been a factor in a while, but he did lead 26 laps and finished seventh. He's 149 points behind.
So take a deep breath and don't start fretting about a five-peat for awhile. Wait, California's next, you say? And Johnson's won the last three fall races at California and four of the last six races at the track overall? Well, OK. Just save it for a week from now.
Related: Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer
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