LOUDON - For a fortunate dozen, the next 10 races are all about becoming a NASCAR champion, and securing successful finishes in the Chase for the Nextel Cup. For most others, those contests are about building a base for next season, and using track time to find tricks for the future.

But for some, they're simply about pride.

They are the drivers who don't fit in either category, neither contenders nor constructors, since they'll be splitting from their current teams at season's end. It's NASCAR's version of the two-week notice, and like any good employee on his way out, driver Tony Raines says he'll do everything he can to leave his No. 96 team in as good a position as possible when he climbs from his cockpit for the final time.

"I want to finish strong, and part on good terms. It's that simple," he said. "On a personal level you're just looking for improvement; on a team level you're looking to gather information and get better. However I can help them do that, that's the goal."

Of course, for Raines and the other drivers sharing his lame-duck status, there are certainly selfish motives as well. His contract set to expire, Raines has already been told by Hall of Fame Racing that he's out of his DLP ride at season's end, so he's looking to land a new job.

J.J. Yeley will fill Raines's seat, so he joins Dale Earnhardt Jr. in simply looking for wins before leaving his team, while David Reutimann is another free-agent-to-be, but at 40th in points he's got enough on his plate just trying to make each race.

Those personal pressures will pile on over the next nine weeks, as will the demands of sponsors seeking a piece of the Chase-obsessed spotlight - but the positive for the pilots is that one end will meet all of their various objectives.

And that's success.

"We're looking to win races," Yeley said. "That's all we have left to do. We're 19th in points, and if you haven't made the Chase, points really aren't that important as long as you're in the top 35."

And even if you aren't in that top 35, the mission remains the same.

"My mind-set is really no different than it's been all year. I've got to go get in races, and I've got to try and finish well," said Reutimann, who is rumored to be in line for a seat with Richard Childress Racing but hasn't yet reached a deal. "Certainly next year hangs over your head, and it bothers you, but I'm not really doing anything different than I have all year. You try to do all you can."

For some, though, that's limited by restrictions. For example, Earnhardt and Yeley both know they'll be with new teams next year, and both know where they're headed, but they can't escape their contracts until season's end.

There's a possibility they could get a chance to at least test with their future teams in a few weeks, when there's an open trial at Atlanta, though a series of dominos would have to fall if that's to happen. Yeley hopes to test the No. 96 car that Raines currently rides, which would allow his eventual replacement, Kyle Busch, to steer the Interstate Batteries Chevy, but in order for that to take place Earnhardt would have to be allowed to take Busch's seat in a Hendrick Motorsports machine.

Whether that'll happen, however, remains in question. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. president Teresa Earnhardt has already said Regan Smith will test with Junior's current team at Atlanta, but hasn't yet released her stepson to test with Hendrick, so the whole equation may break down and leave the lame ducks with their soon-to-be defunct teams.

"The biggest domino is if Teresa will let Dale Jr. go drive for Hendrick," Yeley said. "If that'll happen, I think you're going to see next year's lineup four months in advance, but that comes down to Teresa."

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