Two goals by Frenchman Yohan Cabaye and one from Papiss Cisse gave Newcastle a sixth straight victory to put them three points above Tottenham Hotspur and three behind third-placed Arsenal with a game in hand.
Chelsea, who dug in for a point at Arsenal despite making eight changes from the side that beat Barcelona in midweek, are now four points behind Newcastle with four games left and struggling to qualify for next season's Champions League.
Tottenham's dismal run, which has brought only one win in nine league games, continued as former player Adel Taarabt scored QPR's winner with a free-kick before half-time to lift them three points clear of the relegation zone.
Sandwiched between the first and second legs of Chelsea's Champions League semi-final against Barcelona, the lunchtime London derby at Emirates Stadium proved unappetising with a draw not much use to either club in the light of Newcastle's victory.
Newcastle took full advantage of the stalemate with Cabaye heading them in front from close range before Cisse, whose goals have fired Newcastle upwards, combined with the Frenchman to make it 2-0. Cabaye curled in Newcastle's third after the break.
"It's been a great season," said Newcastle manager Alan Pardew. "We targeted the last 10 games and said if we could be in and around it. Now we've just got four left and we'll try and win every one of them."
Robert Di Matteo's Chelsea, playing their third game in six days, reshuffled their side with Didier Drogba, scorer against Barca, not included because of a knee injury.
"It was a brilliant team performance," Di Matteo told Sky Sports. "The organisation, team spirit, effort and commitment was great. It was a magnificent point.
"This was our third game in six days, which personally I feel is crazy but we showed there is a great quality in this team."
