The man in the middle of everything is Martin. He not only has the pressure of trying to overtake Stewart at Homestead-Miami, a place where Stewart has dominated (victories in 1999 and 2000), Martin also has to maintain his calm and cool and not get dejected at being so close, yet so far away, from putting that elusive championship trophy on his mantle.

	Martin finished fourth at Phoenix on Sunday.

Martin faces potentially the most significant race of his career in south Florida. That's why Roush will be doing all he can in the coming days to keep Martin's attitude and spirit up and remain focused more on what the team has to accomplish to steal the championship away, rather than worry specifically about Stewart.

In other words, Martin has to run his own race and put Stewart out of mind.

"Mark, from time to time, gets down on himself, to the point of destruction, to the point of not being productive," Roush said. "I'm just trying to keep Mark focused. It would be great if he could win another race. It would be great if he could close on Tony, but Tony definitely has got the edge -- and it's based on NASCAR's action and the way Tony and that team has run all year. They've been the best team and the 25 points wouldn't have reversed the standings right now, it would have just made it closer."

When asked about the championship following Sunday's race, one in which he finished fourth, Martin, normally a very direct respondent when queried, deflected questions posed to him about the championship chase.

"We started off the year pretty darn good, too," Martin said. "We had a lot of bad luck in the summer and that dropped us back, but I'm very pleased with where we're at right now. You could certainly say we didn't fall off at the end. We've been fighting back hard."

About the only thing he would say directly is, when asked about the fact there's just one race left in the grueling 36-race season, Martin responded simply, "Thank goodness."

While the Roush/Martin camp plan their strategy, Stewart is acting like a guy without a care in the world, chuckling that his eighth-place finish at Phoenix was "just another day in paradise."

And although Martin finished ahead of him at Phoenix, the damage to Stewart's lead was minimal: he lost only 23 points from the 112-point edge he held heading into Sunday's event.

But, while his 89-point margin is comfortable, it's not invincible, either.

"We didn't get hurt too bad today," Stewart said. "Now we're going to a place I really like and a track I'm looking forward to. We've ran really good there. I got cheated out of my win there last year (Bill Elliott was the winner). I've got to go back and get my dominance back at my track.

"I want to win that thing (the championship). We went and tested this past week there (at Homestead-Miami) and we were fastest in testing. I feel like we can win that race. We've dominated there in the past and I think it's time we get our crown back."

Two guys who know a little bit about close championships -- Rusty Wallace and Jeff Gordon -- say the title is more Stewart's to lose than Martin's to win.

	“	Mark, from time to time, gets down on himself, to the point of destruction, to the point of not being productive. I'm just trying to keep Mark focused. It would be great if he could win another race. It would be great if he could close on Tony, but Tony definitely has got the edge ... They've been the best team and the 25 points wouldn't have reversed the standings right now, it would have just made it closer. ”
		— Jack Roush

"I'd rather be in Tony's seat, no doubt about that," Wallace said. "Trying to make up 89 points, that's a lot. Basically, Mark's got to have a pretty good day. If Tony has a failure, then Mark's got it because you can lose 151 (points) in one race if he wins and you finish dead last. I guarantee you they're both going into that last race with the trigger pulled, the safety off and they're going for it."

Gordon anticipates both title contenders could be extra-jumpy and anxious come race day at Homestead, where the least little things could be magnified one thousand-fold.

"I guess what's going to make you nervous all day (at Homestead) is if you hear a little vibration or feel a little vibration or you hear a different pitch in the motor, you're going to be wondering," Gordon said. "It just comes down to whether or not Tony has a problem or a failure. He runs too good (at Phoenix and Homestead). I think that by just beating him one the track is not going to do it. I think the only way Mark is going to win -- and I think Mark knows that -- is if Tony has some kind of major problem."

With three stout teammates in Sunday's race winner, Matt Kenseth, as well as Kurt Busch and Jeff Burton, Martin could go to Homestead feeling like an NFL quarterback with a strong front line in front of him.

Or, in NASCAR parlance, Martin's teammates could become potential blockers to keep Stewart pinned down and back in the field at Miami. But that's only in theory, not in reality, Roush adamantly said.

"The short answer to that is no (there will be no blocking)," Roush said. "We are one race team that races four cars, but the feeling of fair play does pervade the team.

"If Tony Stewart wins by more than 25 points, we'll certainly celebrate his victory as we should, as being our champion going into next year. The guys (his drivers), I'm sure, without any conversation, will give (Stewart) every consideration to have a clean track and an opportunity to do what he needs to do."

Stewart's crew chief, Greg Zipadelli, appreciates Roush's sense of fair play, but that doesn't make him feel any more comfortable, either, about the potential for unexpected disaster to occur at Homestead that could ultimately make Stewart's championship bid all for naught.

"I won't feel comfortable until (next) Sunday night," Zipadelli said. "89 points is just not a guarantee. If we go down and run as good as we tested there, we should have a strong, top-5 car. But (the points lead) is not enough to have a problem. There is not enough of a points gap, so we've just got to go down, stay out of trouble and just race hard and clean.

"We've got to just go out, run in the top-5 or top-10 next week and (the championship) is ours."

Jerry Bonkowski covers NASCAR for ESPN.com.