We’re past the halfway point of the race, and while Matt Kenseth is driving away from the field, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon are battling once again.

After pitting early, Gordon had to navigate through traffic, and the move wound up paying off as he moved into second position when the leaders, including Johnson, pitted.

But, it didn’t take long for Johnson to get close to him, and the fresh tires won out, as Johnson, despite Gordon’s efforts, made the pass.

Kenseth will be pitting soon enough, and when he does, one of the championship contenders will likely be able to take over the lead and get those five valuable bonus points.

You’ve certainly got to like how the two championship contenders are battling, even for just one spot, but it might be making Rick Hendrick nervous, because he doesn’t want either of them getting knocked out of the race, and out of contention.

But, the two are smart enough to know what the limits are, and likely won’t make any unnecessary risks that could hurt themselves, each other, or their championship hopes.

As it stands, Gordon’s going to be hard-pressed to get some separation from Johnson, and it might require some more strategy to give himself a chance to chip into the deficit, which is now bigger with Johnson taking over the lead due to Kenseth’s stop, and Gordon getting passed by Martin Truex, Jr.

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The race has just passed the 200-lap mark, which means there are probably, at most, two stops left. Gordon just pitted, which keeps him out of sequence, and also put him a lap down, and near the back of the pack.

Will he get burned, or will it pay off in the end? The other leaders aren’t pitting for another 20 laps or so, so Gordon’s going to need to use his fresh tires and full tank to gain plenty of spots before the leaders pit, and for his sake, put himself in position to take the lead and get those bonus points.

No doubt will strategy come into play on the pit stops, and cautions may come into play as well, before it‘s all said and done. Whose favor will it work in? We’ll find out soon enough.

I’ll be back with another update soon.