By Jared Turner In college basketball, the final eight teams left standing each year are dubbed the “Elite Eight.” Good luck finding eight race car drivers who are more elite than the ones still in the hunt for the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship. With the Chase field reduced by four with the running of last Sunday’s elimination race at Talladega Superspeedway, only Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin remain in the mix for NASCAR’s most coveted prize. And of those eight remaining contenders, there’s not a weak link to…

By Jared Turner Martinsville Should Be Jeff Gordon’s Last Race When Jeff Gordon won at Martinsville Speedway last fall, it seemed like a fairytale ending to the legendary driver’s illustrious career at the Virginia short track. One year later, Gordon is back for an encore – albeit in a No. 88 car instead of his familiar No. 24. Sunday’s race will likely be the 805th and final start of the four-time champion’s lengthy and extraordinarily fruitful tenure in NASCAR’s top series. Gordon, who had every intention of hanging up his driving helmet for good at the conclusion of the 2015 season, has…