This weekend, the Nascar Nextel Cup Series heads to south Florida for the Ford 400.  Held at the 1.5 mile Homestead-Miami racetrack, the Ford 400 will bring to an end the 2007 season, crowning a Nascar Nextel Cup champion in the process.  Heading into this race, Jimmie Johnson holds an 86 point lead over teammate Jeff Gordon.  Both Johnson and Gordon have top 10 records at Homestead, which should create an interesting drama as all eyes will be on the two.  Jimmie Johnson is in the driver's seat though, as he has won the last 4 races in the chase in convincing fashion.  Johnson needs to finish at least 18th or better to win the title, assuming Gordon wins the race.  Can Gordon pull off the miracle and take home his 5th title??  Will Jimmie Johnson hold on and win back to back championships??

When it comes to racing at Homestead, horsepower is the number one key to success.  Speeds are much then they were in the past and the engines will be tested for 400 miles.  Because of the varied degrees of banking in the corners, crew chiefs will be faced with setting up their cars to handle different racing grooves and banking.  You will see racing in three separate grooves and a lot of side by side racing at Homestead.  A good handling car then will be equally important as cars must be able to handle well to take advantage of the horsepower they have under the hood.  The other key will be qualifying, as only two drivers have won this race after qualifying outside the top 10.  The average start of the race winner is 7th, which is a lot lower then we have seen on all the other tracks this season.

Greg Biffle has to be considered the King of Homestead, as he has won the last 3 races run on this track.  This race is sponsored by Ford, so expect the Roush-Fenway crew to have the best available equipment at their disposal.  That means Biffle, Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth would be perfect options for group A in yahoo's fantasy nascar.  Jamie McMurray would be a good fit for group B and David Ragan would be a nice addition from group C.  With this being the last race of the season and with every driver but 2 having really nothing to lose, this race is really a toss up and expect a lot of guys to go for it.

Others to Watch

Tony Stewart - The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Chevy is a strong selection this weekend, having never finished worse than 19th in eight career starts at the track. In fact, Stewart is a two-time champion at the track with four top 10s

Clint Bowyer - He's raced to a surprising third in the Cup standings after compiling eight top 10s, four top fives and one victory through 18 races in the second segment. He clinched a 10th in his only Cup race at Miami, giving him the third-best average finish among active drivers in the last five years at the track

Jimmie Johnson - Johnson is a four-time top-10 finisher in six career starts at Homestead-Miami, averaging a 14.5-position improvement over his qualifying slot in those events. Given his incredible four-race winning streak and the fact that he's delivered 12 top 10s in his past 15 events, Johnson is a veritable lock for another huge ride.

Kasey Kahne - Despite his difficulties this season, he's posted eight top 10s and one top five, including five top 10s and one second in the second segment. He's also started superbly at Miami, clinching the pole position last year, a third in '05 and a fourth in '04. He posted a fourth last year at Miami for his best finish in his three career Cup races at the track. He also placed a respectable 16th two years ago.

Kurt Busch - He's sitting in 10th place in the Cup standings after clinching 13 top 11s and two victories in the second segment's 18 races so far. He's had some success at Miami, winning in 2002 and finishing fifth in '05. He also has secured two pole positions in six career Cup races at the track.

Bobby Labonte - He's registered only three top 10s this season but has raced well at Miami to make him a sleeper. Labonte won in '03, owns the second-most top-fives (three) and has clinched the third-most top 10s (4) among active drivers at Miami

What the experts think

My pick - Matt Kenseth - If only he hadn't experienced that four-race funk early in the Chase schedule, Kenseth just might be battling Johnson and Gordon for the title. Instead, Kenseth and the No. 17 Roush Fenway team will look to close out the year with five consecutive top-five finishes. He's not a sure thing at this track with two top-10 finishes in seven career starts. However, those top-10 rides came in his last two rides, third and sixth-place finishes, respectively, with an average 13.5-position improvement from his qualifying slot.

Sleeper pick - Martin Truex Jr. - Truex, Jr. is finishing the season well, having produced back-to-back top-10 finishes heading into the Homestead-Miami finale.  Truex, Jr. produced an average running position of 7.2 and ran inside the top 15 in 98.1 percent of all laps in the 2006 event to claim second place.