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Written by Jay W Pennell
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Sunday, 11 November 2007 19:00 |
 By: Jay W. Pennell
For the fourth weekend in a row, Jimmie Johnson and his Hendrick Motorsports team – led by Chad Knaus – proved to the entire Nextel Cup Series they are the team to beat. With only two races remaining in the 2007 season, Johnson entered Sunday’s Checker Auto Parts 500 just thirty points ahead of teammate Jeff Gordon and on a three race win streak.
Pit strategy left Gordon and Johnson on different pit sequences throughout much of the afternoon, often miring Gordon deep in traffic. Gordon struggled passing cars and complained about the handling of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet when around other cars. After the race Gordon explained, “Traffic was so horrendous, we just couldn’t get up there.” After dominating the regular season, Gordon has struggled the past few weeks, even failing to lead a lap at the track he captured his 76th career win at earlier in the year.
Just as he has done for the past three weeks, Johnson was able to keep his nose clean and charge to the front in the final stages of the event. The defending Nextel Cup champion appeared calm, cool and collected in Victory Lane after Sunday’s event. \"Homestead is going to be a stressful weekend. We\'ve got seven more days, I\'m just going to try to keep my mind clear and focus on the things we need to do,\" Johnson told reporters. \"This is kind of where we were last year. We just have to go down there and be smart and see how it shakes out.\"
After the race, Gordon appeared discouraged and disappointed claiming, “It’s over…unless they have problems.” Gordon held a massive lead heading into the final ten-race Chase for the Nextel Cup and has struggled as of late to produce the top performances needed to stay in stride with Johnson and Knaus. After winning two in a row at Talladega and Lowe’s, Gordon earned a third at Martinsville, a pair of seventh place finishes at Atlanta and Texas and come home tenth yesterday at Phoenix. This is an impressive record for anyone, yet when compared to Johnson’s four consecutive victories, it simply has not been enough. Gordon explained, “You have to give credit where credit is due, and they deserve all the credit in the world.”
Heading into the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, both Hendrick Motorsports drivers will be hunting for their fifth win. Johnson will attempt to become the first person to win five races in a row since Richard Petty completed the feat in 1971. Gordon heads into Homestead trailing his teammate by 86 points, a significant margin, but one that is not impossible. Expect Gordon and his No. 24 team – led by crew chief Steve Letarte – to be on the top of their game as he goes for his fifth NASCAR title. Regardless of the outcome, this season has been dominated by Hendrick Motorsports. Earning 18 wins in 35 events so far (that’s a 51.4% win percentage), Rick Hendrick must be proud. ![](\"/images/stories/hcrflogo.jpg\")
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