FanHouse Phoenix

Carl Edwards had his hopes for an improbable run at removing Jimmie Johnson from the top of the Sprint Cup world dashed Sunday night at Phoenix International Raceway, and none of it was it his own doing.

Edwards can solely blame that one on Johnson for having the most dominating car at the Phoenix-area track, leading the most laps and taking home his third-straight win at PIR. All of that success for Johnson meant a hole of 141 points for Edwards as the series heads to Homestead-Miami Speedway next Sunday for the final race.

In other words, the NASCAR world can ultimately turn next weekend's race into a salute to the incredible history Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 team is making, because Edwards has next to zero chances of overcoming those odds.

Jeremy Mayfield is once again a free agent in the NASCAR world.

The 5-time winner in the Sprint Cup Series left his ride with Haas Racing as driver of the No. 70 car just seven races into the season in what has been described as a "mutual" situation. (Is it ever really mutual though?)

Haas plans to put Johnny Sauter in the car starting Saturday night at Phoenix International Raceway.

Mayfield, who has bounced around the Sprint Cup world for the past few years making just 22 starts in 2006 and 17 in 2007, scored his best finish of the season at Las Vegas when he came home 16th. Five other races, though, saw Mayfield finish 30th or worst.

Sauter drove for the Haas team in 2006 and had some respectable runs, including a 9th-place finish a year ago at Phoenix and a 5th-place at Richmond in the fall. At the end of the season, though, Sauter was canned by the team along with teammate Jeff Green in favor of Mayfield and Scott Riggs.

I've always liked Johnny Sauter as a driver though his style can be ragged at times. If given the right equipment, Sauter can be a consistent driver inside the Top-35.

But then again, I thought Mayfield could do the same.

As of a western swing through Fontana, Calif. and Las Vegas, Nev. wasn't enough, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series got its fourth official test session wrapped up in Phoenix on Tuesday afternoon.

The test at Phoenix International Raceway was the fourth of six that teams suggested to NASCAR prior to the season, and joins Daytona, California, and Vegas as tracks the teams have tested at.

Only Pocono and Lowe's Motor Speedway remain on the official Sprint Cup series testing docket. Teams can otherwise only test on tracks that the Sprint Cup series doesn't compete on.

Juan Pablo Montoya -- who was fastest during the Las Vegas test prior to the season -- again led all drivers over the five different sessions offered. The No. 42 put down a lap of 131.459mph in the Tuesday morning test session.

For the guys who apply the name decals to the Haas CNC No. 66 Chevrolets and the No. 36 Bill Davis Racing Toyota, Monday brought plenty of new work.

Jeremy Mayfield will replace Jeff Green in the No. 66 immediately after departing Bill Davis' ride. He'll be there in 2008 as well.

For the guys who apply the name decals to the Haas CNC No. 66 Chevrolets and the No. 36 Bill Davis Racing Toyota, Monday brought plenty of new work.

Jeremy Mayfield will replace Jeff Green in the No. 66 immediately after departing Bill Davis' ride. With the No. 36 BDR ride available (and lacking a sponsor in '08), Davis hired a pair of Craftsman Truck Series drivers with past Cup experience to finish out the year.

Johnny Benson and Mike Skinner will split those duties. Skinner gets the gig at Atlanta this weekend and then at Texas Motor Speedway while Benson will wrap up the year at Phoenix and Homestead.

With Scott Riggs already announced as a Haas CNC driver for 2007, the driver lineup will completely change at Haas with both Jeff Green and Johnny Sauter on the way out it seems.

For at least a few years now, drivers that finish in the top three of a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series event are supposed to belly up to a table with the media after the race. Their only job? Answer questions.

Saturday night, this incredibly harrowing job was much too tough of a challenge for Tony Stewart. He scurried out of Phoenix before anyone had their fair share of questions with the 2nd-place driver. I could never have expressed it as well as did the Charlotte Observer's David Poole.

Stewart's competitive nature has gotten the best of him before, but his refusal to conduct any post-race interviews with TV, radio or print media Saturday night deprived race fans – including his fans – of an opportunity to hear his side of a compelling story.

I thought this guy had changed. What happened to nice Tony, or even the Tony that was so upbeat and positive at Daytona -- even after wrecking while in the lead?

For crying out loud, the guy finished second on Saturday night. I understand the he wanted to win, but if Stewart is skipping a press conference for simply losing a race because he was simply beat at the end, then Denny Hamlin should have been involved in a cage match with NACAR race director David Hoots for issuing a speeding on pit road penalty.

I think I saw one quote from Stewart after the race Saturday night and it said something along the lines of beating traffic out of Phoenix International Raceway. His post-race team report didn't even have any quotes from their driver.

That extra time saved in the parking lots (is it really that bad for the drivers?) could cost Stewart some cash this week if NASCAR decides to hand out a fine.

Come on, Tony, we all know you're better than that.

Right?