The sea of red out there might not like it, but this Chase for the Nextel Cup may be better off without Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Television ratings might slip, trackside Budweiser sales might dip and the fringe fan might not care because Junior isn’t racing for a championship.
But The Chase will go on, and all experts and prognosticators are billing this as one heck of a 10-race title bout.
Earnhardt had his chance, and it could be argued that NASCAR expanded The Chase field from 10 to 12 competitors to ensure that A-listers like Earnhardt — the country boy, rock star and sex symbol all rolled into one — never again would miss NASCAR’s postseason.
Earnhardt and the No. 8 clearly weren’t Chase worthy. The 12 who earned their way in are.
“I couldn’t agree more. It’s a really stout field,” said Jimmie Johnson, the winner Saturday night at Richmond and point leader heading into the first Chase race Sunday at New Hampshire.
So stout is this field that the top three seeds have combined to win seven championships. Two other drivers own one title apiece. Another has been around Nextel Cup racing for 15 years. The defending Daytona 500 champion is in there, too, as are five of NASCAR’s best and brightest young stars.
All totaled, this group has claimed 216 victories. Junior hasn’t won a race in 16 months.
“It makes it fun because you respect the guys that have made it and obviously guys that have won it before — they know how to win championships,” said two-time champion Tony Stewart. “That, in itself, makes it fun to know that you’re racing guys that have been in that situation, guys that are capable.
“In a way, it’s like you don’t care who it is. You still want to beat them all. But at the same time, it does add prestige because of who is on that list.”
A quick take on the 12-man Chase field:
1. Jimmie Johnson (5,060): He’s a gentlemen’s champion and the defending champion. Mr. Mo Mentum is riding shotgun in the No. 48.
2. Jeff Gordon (5,040): None of his  four Cups have come under The Chase system. No matter. Gordon is having one of his best seasons in years. But he had his 317-point lead stripped away.
3. Tony Stewart (5,030): He missed The Chase last season but ended up stealing three victories from the contenders.
4. Carl Edwards (5,020): He finished third in the second edition of The Chase, which just happened to be Edwards’s rookie season in 2005.
5. Kurt Busch (5,020): Lurking in fifth, the Blue Deuce has its act together and is a legitimate contender.
6. Denny Hamlin (5,010): Flat tracks seem to be his thing, and The Chase begins at one in Loudon, N.H.
7. Martin Truex, Jr. (5,010): Now the face of Dale Earnhardt, Inc., he showed up Junior, his buddy and current teammate, by making his first Chase.
8. Matt Kenseth (5,010): A knack for quiet consistency has the former champion in line for his second.
9. Kyle Busch (5,010): The lame-duck Hendrick driver had a hard time early in last year’s Chase and never recovered.
10. Jeff Burton (5,010): At 40, Burton is easily the oldest driver in the field.
11. Kevin Harvick (5,010): The Daytona 500 and All-Star winner is trying to pad his already-full pockets with some extra cash by winning his first championship.
12. Clint Bowyer (5,000): The only driver without a victory. If there’s a true dark horse, he’s it.
And the champion will be ...: Kurt Busch. He won the Sylvania 300 in 2004 and went on to win the championship in the first year of The Chase format.