The First Reid: Out of Cadence Early, Johnson Back On Milestone March
By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service
Don’t look now, Earnhardt Nation, but Jimmie Johnson is snapping at the heels of your No. 1 hero.
That’s right. With his long-overdue victory at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, Johnson visited Victory Lane for the 69th time in his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career. That leaves him seven victories behind the late Dale Earnhardt for seventh on the all-time list.
All else being equal, Johnson could reach that milestone as early as next year.
Johnson’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jeff Gordon, has already eclipsed Earnhardt’s win total. Gordon got his 77th victory in the 2007 spring race at Talladega Superspeedway, amid a shower of catcalls and beer cans.
Johnson almost certainly will follow. In 12-plus remarkable seasons of Sprint Cup racing, the six-time series champion has never failed to win multiple races in a single year. Only once, in 2011, has he won as few as two.
In a 2014 season that started slowly, the driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet now has three victories, having won three of the last four races and putting to rest any fears that the 48 team might have “lost it.”
At this point, Johnson’s progress toward the next rung on the Sprint Cup ladder, Earnhardt’s 76 victories, seems inexorable. Ultimately, Johnson figures to knock Earnhardt down another notch on the career win list, to eighth.
But “Six-Time” would do well to learn a lesson from his teammate. Just don’t do it at Talladega.
NASCAR NUMBER
4: Now that Jimmie Johnson has gotten his long-awaited victory at Michigan International Speedway, the six-time champion has reduced the number of active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series tracks at which he hasn’t won to four. The remaining venues—Kentucky, Watkins Glen, Chicagoland and Homestead—all lay ahead on the schedule this year.
8: The number of years between NASCAR Nationwide Series victories for Paul Menard, who won his first race in June 2006 in his last season of full-time NNS competition. On Saturday afternoon at Michigan, Menard won the second Nationwide Series race of his career in his only start this season.
625: The number of laps led by Jimmie Johnson in 25 races at Michigan International Speedway. That translates to 13.4 percent of the 4,662 laps Johnson has run at the two-mile track. No wonder the six-time champion was frustrated at his inability to win there—until Sunday.
3: The number of runner-up finishes for Kevin Harvick in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this season. On Sunday, for the third time in five races, Harvick chased the eventual winner to the finish line with arguably the fastest car in the race, gaining ground in the closing laps but running out of time.
9: In the last nine NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events at Sonoma Raceway, the number of different winners. They are: Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Juan Pablo Montoya, Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr. Of those, Stewart, Kahne, Bowyer and Truex, are prominent full-time drivers without a victory this season. Opportunity knocks?
IMSA NOTES
IMSA and the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship were well-represented in the 82nd 24 Hours of Le Mans this past weekend at the famed Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France. Racing against some of the top sports car drivers and teams in the world, TUDOR Championship competitors spent time at the top of the leaderboard throughout much of the 24-hour race, with full-time TUDOR Championship driver Giancarlo Fisichella earning a GTE Pro class victory in the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia. Other highlights for IMSA in the endurance classic: Corvette Racing finished second in GTE Pro with TUDOR Championship drivers Jan Magnussen, Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor sharing the No. 73 Corvette C7.R. … IMSA Cooper Tires Prototype Lites powered by Mazda driver Matt McMurry became the youngest driver to start and finish the 24 Hours of Le Mans at 16 years of age. … Actor/racer Patrick Dempsey finished fifth in GTE Am with American co-drivers Joe Foster and Patrick Long in the No. 77 Porsche 911 RSR.
@nascarcasm
· FACT: If NASCAR truly tries to “Jimmie-proof” the Chase as they are so often accused of doing, well, clearly they’re just really, really bad at it.
- Rick Hendrick on the secret to his team’s remarkable 5-race win streak: “Surrounding yourself with the best team possible, never giving up when the going gets tough, and giving the crappy engines to Stewart-Haas Racing.”
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 88 team fought hard all day and were able to get out of Michigan with a 7th-place finish. AND Ryan Newman, we’re hoping.
- Joe Gibbs’ directive to Kyle Busch in which he told him to watch his language on the radio was strictly enforced, as was evidenced by Kyle screaming “MOTHER…uh…HUBBARD” when the No. 18 suffered a mechanical issue early in the race.
(Follow @nascarcasm on Twitter. His unique views on NASCAR are his own – but chances are you have probably figured that out by now.)
Tweets of the Week
Juan Pablo Montoya
@jpmontoya
@NASCAR Thanks for having me back! Really enjoyed it. See you at the @IMS Brickyard! Amazing @Team_Penske, great team & sponsor
Jeff Gordon
@JeffGordonWeb
My stepdad, John Bickford, has been there every step of the way. Thx, John. Have a great day, dads! #NASCARwithDAD
Kyle Larson
@KyleLarsonRacin Really exciting news for @Katelyn_Sweet and I!! Baby Larson due December 2014
Darrell Wallace Jr.
@BubbaWallace
This is what we live for! We came. We saw. We conquered.
Tune-In: NASCAR On Television, June 16-22
Monday, June 16
5 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FOX Sports 1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBC Sports Network
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FOX Sports 2
7:30 p.m., NASCAR Camping World Truck Race at Gateway (re-air), FOX Sports 2
Tuesday, June 17
5 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FOX Sports 1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBC Sports Network
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FOX Sports 2
Wednesday, June 18
5 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FOX Sports 1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBC Sports Network
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FOX Sports 2
7:30 p.m., 100,000 Cameras: NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, FOX Sports 2
10 p.m., Kurt Busch 36, NBC Sports Network (re-air)
1:30 a.m. (Thu.), NASCAR’s The List: Greatest Finishes, NBC Sports Network (re-air)
Thursday, June 19
5 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FOX Sports 1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBC Sports Network
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FOX Sports 2
7:30 p.m., Empty Cup: Quest for the 1992 NASCAR Championship, FOX Sports 2
Friday, June 20
11:30 a.m., NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race at Gateway (re-air), FOX Sports 1
2 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub Special (re-air), FOX Sports 1
3 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice, FOX Sports 1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBC Sports Network
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Final Practice, FOX Sports 1
8 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FOX Sports 1
9 p.m., The 600: History of NASCAR’s Toughest Race (re-air), FOX Sports 1
10 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice (re-air), FOX Sports 2
3 a.m. (Sat.), NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice (re-air), FOX Sports FOX Sports 1
5 a.m. (Sat.), NASCAR Race Hub, FOX Sports 1 (re-air)
Saturday, June 21
11:30 a.m., NASCAR Nationwide Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, ESPN2
1 p.m., NASCAR Live, FOX Sports 1
1:30 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FOX Sports 1
2:30 p.m., NNS Countdown, ABC
2:45 p.m., NASCAR Nationwide Series Race at Road America, ABC
8 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Final Prac. (re-air), FOX Sports 2
9:30 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying (re-air), FOX Sports 2
11 p.m., The 600: History of NASCAR’s Toughest Race (re-air), FOX Sports 2
3 a.m. (Sun.), NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice (re-air), FOX Sports 1
4 a.m. (Sun.), NASCAR Nationwide Series Race at Road America (re-air), ESPN2
4:30 a.m. (Sun.), NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying (re-air), FOX Sports 1
Sunday, June 22
10 a.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice (re-air), FOX Sports 1
11:30 a.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying (re-air), FOX Sports 1
1 p.m., NASCAR RaceDay, FOX Sports 1
2 p.m., NSCS Countdown to Green, TNT
3 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race at Sonoma, TNT
7 p.m., NASCAR Victory Lane, FOX Sports 1
This WeeK
NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
The Next Race:
Sonoma/Save Mart 350
The Place:
Sonoma Raceway
The Date/Time:
Sunday, June 22, 3 p.m. (ET)
TV: TNT
Radio: PRN,
Sirius XM Channel 90
NASCAR NATIONWIDE SERIES
The Next Race:
Gardner Denver 200
Fired Up by Johnsonville
The Place:
Road America
The Date/Time:
Saturday, June 21, 2:45 p.m. (ET)
TV: ESPN
Radio: MRN,
Sirius XM Channel 90
NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES
The Next Race:
UNOH 225
The Place:
Kentucky Speedway
Date/Time:
Thursday, June 26
TV: FOX Sports 1
Radio: MRN,
Sirius XM Channel 90
NASCAR National Series Standings
This year, wins matter more than in any season in the 65-year history of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Essentially, a win locks a driver into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
2014 Winners
Pos Driver Wins
1. Jimmie Johnson 3
2. Kevin Harvick 2
3. Joey Logano 2
4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2
5. Brad Keselowski 1
6. Carl Edwards 1
7. Kyle Busch 1
8. Kurt Busch 1
9 Denny Hamlin 1
10. Jeff Gordon 1
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Pos Driver Points
1 Jeff Gordon 537
2 Jimmie Johnson 522
3 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 514
4 Matt Kenseth 513
5 Brad Keselowski 490
6 Carl Edwards 462
7 Joey Logano 454
8 Kyle Larson # 454
9 Kevin Harvick 447
10 Kyle Busch 446
11 Ryan Newman 440
12 Denny Hamlin 435
13 Paul Menard 420
14 Clint Bowyer 417
15 Greg Biffle 409
16 Tony Stewart 402
NASCAR Nationwide Series
Pos Driver Points
1 Regan Smith 485
2 Elliott Sadler 471
3 Chase Elliott # 465
4 Ty Dillon # 450
5 Trevor Bayne 435
6 Brian Scott 430
7 Brendan Gaughan 363
8 Chris Buescher # 362
9 James Buescher 361
10 Ryan Reed # 333
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Pos Driver Points
1 Johnny Sauter 261
2 Matt Crafton 251
3 Ron Hornaday Jr. 248
4 Timothy Peters 246
5 Ryan Blaney 244
6 German Quiroga 243
7 John Wes Townley 234
8 Ben Kennedy# 229
9 Darrell Wallace Jr. 218
10 Jeb Burton 211
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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