RICHMOND, Va. -- Jimmie Johnson's celebration seemed a bit subdued. Maybe all these trips to Victory Lane are becoming routine for the Hendrick Motorsports crew. Johnson gave Hendrick its seventh win in the past eight Nextel Cup races by leading teammate Kyle Busch to a 1-2 finish Sunday at Richmond International Raceway. (watch video) It was the third consecutive victory for Hendrick, which remained undefeated in the four races NASCAR has used its new Car of Tomorrow. But there was no gloating for a team all too aware how quickly the competition can catch up.
"Our team is in full stride, but this is a very circular sport," said Chad Knaus, the winning crew chief. "You get your time at the top and you fall to some degree. What you've got to do is make sure when you are taking your time at the top, you don't get too full of yourself that when it's your turn to fall, it doesn't break you apart."
Johnson, who was second to teammate Jeff Gordon last week at Talladega, finally broke through on one of the worst tracks on his resume. The .75-mile oval had given Johnson fits through his career, and he came in with just one top-10 finish in 15 previous visits. In this year of Hendrick Motorsports, everything has gone right and Johnson finally conquered the track for his series-leading fourth victory of the season.
"It's cyclical," the defending Nextel Cup champion said. "You enjoy it while you've got it, but we know that somebody is going to figure something out. We'll just hope that the valley's aren't that low and the valley isn't in the final 10."
Johnson used the victory to pull into second place in the standings, where he now trails Gordon by 211 points. But based on NASCAR's new seeding system for the Chase, Johnson would start the final 10 races with a 40-point bonus on the competition. And, five of the 10 Chase races will use the COT.
LAS VEGAS (March 11, 2007) – Despite new banking, a new tire, a brush with the wall and even a pit road penalty, when the 400-mile NASCAR Nextel Cup race ended late Sunday it was Jimmie Johnson standing in Victory Lane at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the third consecutive year. "Today was all about overcoming adversity," said Johnson, who notched the 24th victory of his six-year career, giving him sole possession of 24th place in all time Nextel Cup victories. "We had a couple of different things going on today. I got in the wall and tore the right side up. I thought that I had hurt the race car. We overcame that and started adjusting on the car. I thought we had a third- or fourth-place car, but Chad (Knaus, crew chief) started working on it and got the car right."
The victory marked the 150th since 1984 for Hendrick Motorsports. Although Rick Hendrick couldn't attend the celebration, drivers Jeff Gordon, Casey Mears, and Kyle Busch joined Johnson. "We wish the boss could have been here," said Johnson. "For us to get the 150th victory for Hendrick Motorsports is phenomenal," said Knaus. Johnson's performance Sunday didn't reach the drama of his last-lap finish of 2006 when he passed Matt Kenseth just yards from the checkered flag, but it was equally impressive.
"But all this must be suffered by those who profess the stern order of chivalry" Most Interesting Blog, June 16, 2008 and six other occasions. Lisa awarded him Best "breaking news" blogger March 31, 2008. Blog of The Day, Christmas Day, 2007. edhardiman wrote, "Falco's tribute to Rocket Richard reminds us all the stars of today stand on the shoulders of giants..." October 23, 2007. Three Golden Swirrly p00p Awards (Hockey, NASCAR and Use of Graphics), FlyingPig, July 18, 2007. 2007 Memorial Day Weekend Trifecta sponsored by williamwilman . Featured on WFORacingFans April, 2007. "Stylin'" award, Dusty, February 07. "One of ten new bloggers to watch" Dudski, January 2007.
