INDIANAPOLIS -- Elliott Sadler's dream weekend turned into a nightmare with 10 laps to go in Sunday's Allstate 400.

Running sixth on the final restart, Sadler was all set to make his move back to the front. And why not? He had led 39 laps after winning the pole Saturday and looked to be biding his time until the closing stages of the race.

But just as Tony Stewart was passing Kasey Kahne for the win, Sadler was slowing down, concerned about a possible tire issue. And with the ensuing pit stop, Sadler went from sixth to 32nd.

"I don't know what to say," a distraught Sadler said. "I thought I had a tire going down. I don't know if it was or not. I guess not. I don't know.

"It's just not our year. It's not meant to be. The guys gave me a great car and it's just not meant to be."

Suddenly, Sadler has gone from what seemed to be a Chase for the Nextel Cup lock to 12th in the standings. He's 460 points behind new leader Tony Stewart, as four drivers are now in a heated battle for what could be the final two spots in the Chase.

Those four -- Dale Jarrett, Carl Edwards, Jamie McMurray and Sadler -- are now separated by just 30 points. Jarrett finished 14th on Sunday, which puts him ninth in the points. Edwards vaulted two spots to 10th, six points behind Jarrett, with his 12th-place finish. "We started 38th with a backup car that only had about three laps on it," Edwards said. "We ended up finishing 12th, which is unbelievable for what we had." Jamie McMurray remained in 11th place after winding up 17th Sunday. He's 12 points behind Edwards and 12 in front of Sadler.