Jimmie Johnson meets Obama

Here’s a video of President Obama meeting with Jimmie Johnson to honor his 2010 Championship. Do you know why the President waited almost a year after the fact?

Who do you think will be meeting this time next year?

 

Dale Jr: Support Driver for Jimmie Johnson?

Is Dale Earnhardt Jr a Support Driver for Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 Team?

Jimmie Johnson did not win the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway Sunday without the help he received from teammate and drafting partner Dale Earnhardt Jr.  If Earnhardt had gotten just an inch further back Johnson would never have made it. The margin of victory was that close – .002 seconds and a tie for one of the closest finishes in NASCAR history with 6 cars crossing the finish line virtually as one. Johnson grabbed the lead for the final time just 6 inches from the finish line.

Earnhardt was a good team player. He needs to put that one in the bank because Jimmie Johnson owes him big time.

Johnson knows it too. Jimmie Johnson gave Dale Earnhardt Jr the checkered flag that he picked up at the finish line, although Earnhardt seemed a little reluctant to accept it. I wonder what Dale Jr will do with that flag.

So why did Jimmie Johnson give Dale Jr the checkered flag?

“Just came to mind,” said Johnson flatly. “I handed it to him and he said ‘Man, I don’t want that.’  I said, Well, I have to give you something for the push and working with me. He said, ‘No, that’s what teammates do.’

“I smiled and I said take the damn flag.  I’ll give you the trophy, too. He says, ‘No, I don’t want the trophy.  I’ll take the flag, though.’

“Man, he’s a riot.” Johnson continued on the subject of Dale Jr. “You guys scan all the time but to hear him on the channel and Stevie and the things he talks about — can I have this channel more often just to listen?

As Johnson’s No. 48 Chevy raced toward the finish line it almost appeared that his left wheels crossed below the double-yellow line for a split second but no penalty was assessed by NASCAR.

“I was not focused on where that yellow line was,” Jimmie Johnson explained after the race. “I was more worried about causing a big pile up and luckily the 5 quit coming down and then the 24 pulled back up. So I don’t know where my left side tires were, but I’ve heard that a statement has been released and everything is cool.  So I’m glad I’m not sitting here having to worry about that.

For a few seconds after the race it was unclear who had won. Then Dale Jr came on the radio and said “Hell, I think the 48 won.”

“I knew in my mind that if it that was the checkered, it was close, and I didn’t know if I had it won, said Johnson.

After the race No. 48 crew chief Chad Knaus summed it up with a quick radio call to Dale Earnhardt Jr: “Next one is on us, brother.”

So now it’s your turn to have your say. As always, you can vent or you can cheer. The floor is yours. Leave your thoughts in the comments below. And if you like this be sure to hit the Facebook Like Button.

Kevin Harvick’s Amazing Last Lap Pass

Kevin Harvick Comes Out of Nowhere to Shove Jimmie Johnson Out of the Way for the Win

Kevin Harvick led just one lap in the Auto Club 400 at California’s Auto Club Speedway today. But it was the one lap that mattered. Harvick chased down both Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson in the final laps – making a last lap pass for the lead on Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet just a few hundred yards from the finish line.

“Yeah, we led the right one, that’s for sure,” said a beaming Kevin Harvick of the battle to the final trip across the start finish line.

I have to admit that as I watched Harvick slice into the lead of Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson I thought he had taken 4 fresh tires on the final pit stop. I was surprised to learn after the race was over that Harvick had managed to not only catch, but pass the two leaders on old tires. You’re not supposed to be able to chase down Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch like that. Especially not at Auto Club Speedway, a race track the pair has dominated.

Why was Harvick’s No. 29 Chevy so fast on those tires? “Our car was able to get some air pressure built up in the tires and we were able to really fire off there right off the bat up top,” explained Harvick.

The key to Harvick’s victory – other than a fast car that came to life on old tires – was an aggressive push against the bumper of Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 Chevy down the backstretch at 200mph on the final lap.

That push allowed Harvick to build up a full head of steam going into turn three. And it cost Jimmie Johnson a split second of concentration. That was all Harvick needed to make the pass as Johnson’s car broke loose ever so slightly.

“I was after one thing,” said Harvick, “that was to run the very top of the racetrack.  I was hoping that he thought he was going to be going too fast to run the top of the racetrack and get loose.”

“I just wanted to roll in as easy as I could and lay back to the throttle, go into the center of the corner, hopefully be able to leave it down on the exit.  It all played out okay.”

What did you think of Harvick’s strategy and what else do you have to say about the race. Here’s your chance to have your say or talk about your driver. Have at it in the comments below boys and girls.

 

Will Jimmie Johnson Pass Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty

Will Jimmie Johnson Pass Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty

Jimmie Johnson now has 5 NASCAR Championships. Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt are tied with 7 each. Petty and Earnhardt never won more than 2 in a row.

Will Jimmie Johnson equal the record set by Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty? Could he pass the two 7 time champs and win 8 or more?

I’m taking a quick poll to see what you think – just leave your opinion in the comments below.

Johnson is NASCAR’s 5-Time Champ

I have to admit that I thought it was impossible for Jimmie Johnson to win 5 straight Sprint Cup Championships.

But then again I thought 4 straight was out of the question last year.

“Jimmie, you are a rock star, my friend,” crew chief Chad Knaus told Johnson on the cool down lap. “You have proven it time and time again. And you damn did it today, my friend.”

Today Jimmie Johnson proved all the doubters wrong by cruising to the championship with a 2^nd place finish behind a dominant Carl Edwards in the Ford 400 at Homestead.

“I’m just beside myself,” said Johnson as he celebrated with his crew in Victory lane. “Four was amazing. Now I have to figure out what the hell to say about winning five of these things. Everybody is going to want to know what it means. I don’t know. It is pretty damn awesome. I can tell you that.”

Denny Hamlin led the Chase heading into the final showdown. But when he spun his No. 11 Toyota into the infield grass and damaged the front splitter his championship hopes appeared to be over. But Hamlin wasn’t done. His crew repaired the car and he came back to make one more run at Johnson. But the damage to the car was just enough to give Johnson the edge.

“We just had a good car today and we did almost everything that we needed to do,” said Hamlin. “We put ourselves in position to run up front, and we ran up front and you know, in the end, we just got beat there on that last restart and they just out ran us.”

What do you think about Johnson’s 5 straight championships? Who can stop him from getting number six next year – if anyone can?

Jimmie Johnson’s Lead Shrinks as Part Confiscated

Jimmie Johnson saw his lead over Denny Hamlin shrink to 6 Points in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Standings following Hamlin’s win in the Tums Fast Relief 50 at Martinsville Sunday.

That lead may vanish altogether by Tuesday if NASCAR issues a penalty for a part that was confiscated from the No. 48 Chevrolet before the race started.

Dale Earnhardt Jr led 90 laps in today’s race after starting from the 28th position. Junior’s No. 88 was just tight enough to make it fast and he rocketed through the field to the lead.

No. 48 crew chief Chad Knaus saw how fast Junior was coming. H e radioed to Jimmie Johnson “if you hear a great scream and roar you’ll know that Dale took the lead” as Earnhardt closed in on the top spot.

As the field closed in on lap 300 that roar happened as Earnhardt passed Jeff Gordon for the lead.

For 90 laps Earnhardt Nation cheered on their driver. But when Dale made a pit stop the adjustments made the car too tight and it would no longer turn in the corners. Earnhardt fell back to finish 7^th.

Gordon turned by Busch

Jeff Gordon was a little too aggressive when he made contact as he passed Kurt Busch on lap 385. Busch immediately returned the favor and put Gordon into the inside retaining wall. I don’t think the payback fit the crime. Do you?

Trouble between teammates

Richard Childress Racing teammates Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick had a little dust-up for several laps as both drivers complained that the other was bumping and banging them.

Part Confiscated from No. 48

Prior to the race NASCAR confiscated a drive shaft cover from the No. 48 Chevrolet of Jimmie Johnson. The part is headed back to NASCAR’s Research & Development in Charlotte.

If the part is found illegal will they issue a penalty or let it slide? A drive shaft cover seems like a pretty insignificant part as far as a competitive advantage goes. But remember that Clint Bowyer was docked 100 Championship Points a few weeks ago for an height infraction that amounted to about the thickness of a quarter.

That penalty cost Bowyer the lead in the Championship standings. Will Jimmie Johnson get the same call?

In the media center after the race Johnson pleaded ignorance about the part in question. “I don’t know what you’re speaking about, to be honest with you. Is this before or after, Johnson asked. When told it was a pre-race issue Johnson responded: “I don’t have a clue. Not my job, man, as Juan would say. “

We’ll see what NASCAR has to say.

Mark Martin went 2 laps down early in the race after a crash into the outside wall. Martin rebounded to finish 2^nd in a wrecked race car. “Really a great time, great recovery from two laps down,” said Martin.

“That last hundred laps was fun. I’ve had guys pass me and I wondered how in the world they did that. Now I see how. What an incredible race car that Alan Gustafson and everyone gave me.”

As always your comments and opinions are welcome. What was your take on the race?

Biffle and Johnson Winners at Kansas

There were two big winners in Sunday’s Price Chopper 400 at Kansas Speedway: Greg Biffle and Jimmie Johnson.

Biffle won the race after leading 60 laps. Johnson moved to the top of the Sprint Cup standings and moved one step closer to his fifth championship.

Greg Biffle and his team made the right calls and right adjustments as the race closed to put the No. 16 in position to win. The car was a little too loose for Biffle’s liking in the early going – but the team had the car dialed in when it counted.

“It was a great run,” said Biffle. “The car started off really good; just got a little bit too loose. I couldn’t keep up with the 14. They beat me a little bit on the start. I was just so afraid to get the car too tight. Once you get the car sliding the nose off of turn four, you’re just dead.”

“I’ll tell you, those last two runs, it was amazing. Literally the best car I’ve ever driven here. I could drive anywhere on the racetrack. I could enter any line in the corner; push the gas down whenever I felt like it. It was pretty incredible,” Biffle said of his winning car.

Greg Biffle, his crew chief Greg Erwin and the No. 16 team also will divide a $100,000 bonus from Ford Motor Company.  Ford has put the added bonus out there for any Ford team that wins one of the final eight Chase races.

“It means a lot to me,” Greg Biffle said of Ford’s added bonus money. “I’m not sure what I’m going to do with my half of the money yet. But I’ll probably donate it to my charity; probably help some homeless animals or something with my cut of it.”

No one was surprised when the Sprint Cup Championship standings were posted following the race and Jimmie Johnson was at the top of the list. Haven’t we seen this before?

“It’s a great position to be in,” Johnson said of his points lead. “But it’s way too early to think about it, to worry about defending. You have Chase guys running so good each and every week.”

“Just can’t put your guard down,” Johnson continued very humbly. “Until that checkered falls in Homestead, it’s anybody’s championship.”

What do you think? Are 5 straight Championships a real possibility for Jimmie Johnson?

Jimmie Johnson’s Fifth Championship

Jimmie Johnson’s Drive for Five Championships is Alive and Well.

How is it that Jimmie Johnson can be so dominant when NASCAR is so competitive?

The rules are so tight that no one driver should be so prevailing. But Jimmie Johnson always seems to peak at the right time. How does he do it?

Sunday at Dover International Speedway’s Monster Mile Johnson started from the pole in the AAA 400. He led the most laps and won the race. “Maximum points” is how crew chief Chad Knaus described it.

According to Johnson it was “the weekend we would dream of, were able to get it with winning the pole, leading the most laps and winning the race.”

Johnson had little pressure from 2nd place finishing Jeff Burton in the closing laps. Although Burtons lap times were quicker than Johnsons at times Johnson was able to maintain a 2.637 second lead at the checkered flag; in part thanks to a speedy green flag pit stop by the No. 48 crew.

Mid-race A.J. Allmendinger, driving the No. 43 Ford, looked to have the car to beat. But Allmendinger ran over a ten cent washer and cut a tire. He went 2 laps down before rebounding to finish 10th.

“We played it smart,” said Jimmie Johnson about the press by Allmendinger. “He wasn’t a Chase guy. When he got to me and put pressure on me, I let him by. I just need to worry about those 11 other drivers and really about myself. Way too early to worry about stuff. Come the end of the race, he wasn’t there to have to fight with.”

The only other serious challenger to the No. 48 was Kyle Busch. Then Busch scraped the wall and lost the handle on his No. 18 Toyota. He was not a contender for the win after that.

The win moved Jimmie Johnson to 2nd in the Sprint Cup point standings – just 35 points behind Denny Hamlin with 8 races to go.

This is the time of the year that Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 crew always seem to bring out the big guns. They seem to pick up the pace when the Sprint Cup is on the line.

According to crew chief Chad Knaus it is the people on the team that make the difference. “We work hard to make sure we have the right people on the team, said Knaus. “I think we do. We’re not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. I can promise you, if something goes wrong, something falls short of what their goal is, there’s nobody that feels worse than what that individual does. To try to motivate from that point is unnecessary when you got guys like that.”

Can Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 team pull it all together one more time for a 5th championship? And how will that championship be received by the fans of NASCAR?

Jimmie Johnson’s Goal Was to Wreck Busch

Jimmie Johnson Admits That His Goal Was To Wreck Kurt Busch.

It looks like Jimmie Johnson has got his horseshoe back. In the closing laps of Sunday’s Lenox Industrial Tools 301 in New Hampshire Kurt Busch moved race leader  jimmie Johnson out of the racing groove and passed him for the lead. A roar erupted from the grandstand as Busch began to drive away.

“When we got going on the restart, Kurt knocked me out of the way, and I thought, ‘I don’t care if I win this race or not. I don’t care if I finish this damn thing.  I am running into him and getting back by him one way or another,” Jimmie Johnson said.

Johnson was not done yet. A few laps later Johnson put the same move on Busch and held on to win the race.

“I have to say I was a little shocked,” No. 48 Johnson said. I haven’t spoken to him or really seen any video to know.  If it was his intentions, that’s the first time in nine years racing with him that I have experienced that. It will definitely change the way that I race with him.”

After the race Kurt Busch said that he didn’t think that Johnson would intentionally wreck him to get the win.

“I hate that he felt that I wasn’t going to wreck him because that was my goal was to wreck him,” said Jimmie Johnson.  “I usually get caught up in it, so I knew what my thought process was. Wreck his ass.”

The win was Johnson’s fifth victory in 2010 and 2^nd in a row.

Kasey Kahne put on a strong showing for Ford leading 110 laps until suffering an engine failure.

Jack Roush, leader of the Ford contingent, was seen walking away from pit road before the race was over. That was a serious statement. Roush never leaves early. But he had seen enough today.  His best finishing car was Greg Biffle in 16^th place.

Jeff Burton was leading late in the race when a caution flag flew. Burton’s crew chief made the call to stay out when everyone else pitted for tires. But if Burton had pitted everyone else would have stayed out so he was in a no win situation. Burton quickly lost the lead. Then he was involved in an incident with Kyle Busch that sent Busch for a spin and both of them had to pit for tires.

Dale Earnhardt Jr continued to show steady improvement.  Junior started 31st and finished 8^th. Dale Jr will be in Victory Lane before the end of the year. Maybe as soon as Saturday Night at Daytona.

But it’s what you as a fan thinks that is most important. What do you think about today’s race?

Photo Courtesy NASCAR Media

Jeff Gordon & Jimmie Johnson Have At It

Jeff Gordon’s New Enemy May be the Best Thing to Happen to Him

Jeff Gordon once had a pretty tough driver racing against him to keep him on his toes and make him race his best. That driver wasn’t afraid to bang on Gordon’s bumper, question his manhood and hang nicknames on him like WonderBoy.

That driver was Dale Earnhardt.

Dale would intimidate Gordon and keep him on his toes. Dale Earnhardt made Jeff Gordon a better driver.

It should come as no surprise that Jeff Gordon hasn’t won a championship since 2001.

But now Gordon has a new enemy. Jimmie Johnson. Gordon and Johnson are taking NASCAR’s suggestion to “have at it, boys” to heart.

As Jeff Gordon was passing the No. 48 at Talladega Sunday Johnson moved Gordon out of the racing groove and Gordon fell through the field like a rock. Before he could regain his momentum Gordon was involved in a wreck.

“I can tell you the 48 is testing my patience. It takes a lot to make me mad and I am pissed right now.”

“He’s been testing my patience and it’s about reached its boiling point.”

“I was coming 10 mph faster than anybody. I don’t know what it is with me and him right now, but whatever,” Gordon said.

Last week at Texas Gordon moved Johnson out of the way in a pass for the lead. Johnson retaliated by slamming into the door of Gordon’s No. 24 Chevrolet.

“Four time’s a little upset,” Gordon said sarcastically. “He just wants to be treated different than everybody else.”

Jeff Gordon has finally had enough of Jimmie Johnson. And it doesn’t matter that Johnson is his teammate, or that Gordon owns an interest in the No. 48 car, or that Gordon helped Johnson get a ride at Hendrick Motorsports.

Gordon and Johnson are not friends any longer. They are going out for beer and pizza any time soon. Don’t look for Jimmie Johnson to hitch a ride on Jeff Gordon’s jet for the next race.

Jeff Gordon is really fired up over Jimmie Johnson winning all the races and championships. Gordon wants his share.

Jeff, what took you so long? Do you think Jimmie Johnson will get the message?

Photo courtesy NASCAR Media

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