INDIANPOLIS (AP) _ After a rocky 18 months in which he was suspended for cheating, Chad Knaus is staying put.

The crew chief for series leader Jimmie Johnson signed a contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports through 2010. The move was announced Saturday and mirrors the team's recent agreements with Johnson and sponsor Lowe's.

Knaus has been Johnson's crew chief since the driver came to NASCAR's top stock car series as a rookie in 2001. In their first four seasons together, the No. 48 Chevrolet has finished no worse than fifth in the points and has twice been the series runner-up.

``I'm proud to have been with Jimmie and the Lowe's team since the beginning,'' Knaus said. ``I think we've proven ourselves, but there's still more to accomplish and I'm looking forward to the challenge.''

Knaus, who was in the final year of his contract, is considered one of NASCAR's more aggressive and creative crew chiefs and has been fined numerous times for infractions. He was suspended two races last season when Johnson's car failed inspection following a victory in Las Vegas. But Knaus appealed and the suspension was reduced to probation.

At this year's opener, Knaus was ejected from the track after inspectors found he had made improper modifications to Johnson's car during Daytona 500 preparations. He missed that race, which Johnson won, and was later suspended for three more races, fined $25,000 US and placed on probation for the rest of 2006.

``Sometimes you just push too hard,'' Knaus said after returning to work at Bristol. ``There are procedures that you follow in our industry, as a competitor you try to evolve with that and try to find an advantage on your competition. That is what I did and they didn't like it. So I watched on TV for a while and read the papers.''

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FRUSTRATED MAYFIELD: Jeremy Mayfield might soon be splitting with Evernham Motorsports.

``I doubt I'll be back,'' Mayfield said following his qualifying lap Saturday.

It's been widely speculated that Mayfield will not be driving the No. 19 Dodge next season, but the driver has been limited in what he can talk about since criticizing his team and owner Ray Evernham last month in Chicago.

Asked to expand Saturday on why he doesn't think he'll be back next year, Mayfield's public relations representative refused to allow the driver to answer further questions on the topic. The scene has been repeated several times since Mayfield's rant in Chicago.

Mayfield, who made the Chase for the championship the past two seasons, is 34th in the standings and having an awful year. He doesn't have a single top 10 finish, but teammate Kasey Kahne has four wins and is seventh in points.

Mayfield is believed to be angling for the third seat next year at Michael Waltrip's startup team _ Mayfield and Waltrip are both natives of Owensboro, Ky., _ and Elliott Sadler is expected to replace him at Evernham.

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HOLDING ON: Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s last two races have put him in an unenviable position.

With last-place finishes at New Hampshire and Pocono, Earnhardt is in 11th place in the Cup standings, just outside of the Chase for the championship.

And the drivers he is battling for a spot in the Chase include four-time series champion Jeff Gordon in ninth place and two-time and defending champion Tony Stewart in 10th.

``It's almost like it was scripted,'' Earnhardt said. ``But we'll see how it plays out. I think it's going to be tough to beat Jeff and Tony to get into the Chase. We're going to have to look at guys four and five spots ahead of us as our prey.''

Earnhardt's most recent race, the Pennsylvania 500, still bothers him, but not as much as the long wait afterward. The Cup series has been idle since an accident took him out of the July 24 race.

``I really didn't want to have that off weekend,'' he said. ``I really wanted to get back on the track, especially after the finish we had at Pocono.

Earnhardt is prepared to take chances to crack the top 10.

``If we've got to run on the ragged edge to make the Chase, we need to do it.''

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GLOOMY FORECAST: Former series champion Dale Jarrett, who won the Brickyard race in 1996, doesn't expect to be among the favourites Sunday or, for that matter, any time soon.

``I'd like to stand here and be positive, but our goal right now, with the way that we've run, is getting back to running respectably,'' Jarrett said. ``We haven't done that at all.''

The entire Robert Yates Racing team has been in an upheaval this year. Jarrett and Elliott Sadler announced they are leaving for other teams at the end of the season, followed by the release of both their veteran crew chiefs, Tommy Baldwin and Slugger Labbe.

``It's certainly been a little unsettling for the guys on the race team, but I think Robert (Yates) and Doug (Yates) have done a good job in communicating with the race team and making them understand why they're making changes and why Elliott and I may have looked at our decisions,'' Jarrett said.