All of the hype about Sunday's NASCAR race at Talladega Superspeedway turned out to be true: It really was the wild-card race in the Chase and ended up as unpredictable as everyone imagined.

After a shakeup in the Sprint Cup Series point standings and some disappointing days for some Chase drivers (MORE: See the Talladega race results here), here are some selected quotes:

CARL EDWARDS (points leader, finished 11th)

This race was one that is nerve-wracking for everyone. We came in here with a small points lead and we're leaving with a bigger one. That's a huge day for us.

MATT KENSETH (second in points, finished 18th)

It was disappointing to run in the front all day and then finish where we finished, but we made it through, so I guess the damage could have been worse.

BRAD KESELOWSKI (third in points, finished fourth)

We're still in contention and we have a damn good shot at winning this championship.

TONY STEWART (fourth in points, finished seventh)

I screwed up and got out of sync with Ryan (Newman) and crashed him, and after that you just had to pick up whoever you could pick up. ... I let Ryan down today.

KEVIN HARVICK (fifth in points, finished 32nd)

We wanted to be in the front. We thought that was the safer place to be in case the thing went green. ... I don't know what happened. It is just one of those deals.

KURT BUSCH (eighth in points, finished 36th)

Our championship hopes are done just because of this two-car Talladega draft.

DENNY HAMLIN (11th in points, finished eighth)

I was the odd one out for the whole race. The best I can describe it is we were stuck without a prom date, so I was just hitting on everyone's mom.