Team Lowe’s Leaves Vegas with Second-Consecutive Win

Jimmie Johnson earned his second-consecutive Sprint Cup Series win of 2010 with a victory in today’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
 
In scoring his 49th career win, the four-time defending Sprint Cup Series champion became the all-time winning driver on 1.5-mile tracks with 15 victories. (Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty and Jeff Gordon have 14.) The win moved Johnson to 12th on the all-time wins list, one race behind NASCAR greats Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson.
 
“Really proud of the car we brought to the track,” offered Johnson, who jumped seven spots in the standings to fifth in driver points. “We had to work on it some through the race.  But, you know, it was so fast on the long haul that we could make up ground from the 20th place starting position we had.  Worked up into the top 10.  Worked up into the top five… Great day.  Pit road, our guys had awesome stops.  One issue with the lug nut falling off, and they still recovered from that issue very well.  I think we’re pretty solid from a team standpoint from across the board.”
 
Johnson started the 267-lap event from the 20th position but steadily worked his way through the field when the green flag waved, moving into the top five on Lap 64.  He remained in top five positions throughout the race, but spent most of his time chasing teammate Jeff Gordon, who led 219 total laps.
 
Johnson led only one lap during the first 250 circuits. But when he finally caught and passed Gordon on Lap 251, he never looked back, leading the final 17 laps and collecting the win.
 
“Everybody at Hendrick Motorsports did a great job on this car,” said Chad Knaus. “People back at the shop had to get this car prepared, turned over.  We were back in California when they were building this car.  To send that car out from the shop, it run as well as what it did, they did a great job.”
 
 “We’re excited.  It’s early in the year,” said Johnson, who now has four wins in Las Vegas. “It is a relief to know that we worked in the right areas over the off‑season.  But, you know, Richmond is a long way away from right now.  We need to keep collecting points, winning races, make the Chase, then get to work for what we’re really here for.”
 
The Sprint Cup Series will head back to the East Coast for next weekend’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The event will be broadcast live on FOX beginning at 1 p.m. ET.

Team 48 qualifies 3rd, finishes 24th in Las Vegas

For the second week in a row, Team Lowe’s Racing driver Jimmie Johnson showed the strength of his Kobalt Tools Impala SS as soon as the green flag dropped on the weekend’s Sprint Cup Series race.

Johnson qualified third for the 467-mile event but led the field to green after pole sitter Kyle Busch was forced to the back due to an engine change.

Johnson led the first 50 of 285 laps before green-flag pit stops began. After those cycled through, Johnson regained the top spot, leading laps 57-75 before the day’s fourth caution flag was displayed.

When Johnson brought his No. 48 machine down pit road, crew chief Chad Knaus called for four tires, while many teams opted for two. Johnson restarted the race 10th, and spent the next 50 laps working his way toward the front.

On Lap 122, during caution number six, Knaus called Johnson in for a two-tire stop, sending him off pit road in first place. He led the next 23 circuits around the 1.5-mile track before teammate Jeff Gordon passed him on Lap 149.

Johnson continued to run in the top five for the next 70 laps and was running second when he headed to pit road for a green-flag stop on Lap 219.

Gordon was attempting a green-flag stop on the same lap but missed the entrance to pit road, locking up his tires in the process. Seconds later, Gordon’s left-front tire exploded, bringing out the 11th caution and trapping Johnson on pit road.

When the race restarted, Johnson was placed on the tail end of the lead lap, but showed dominance again by quickly passing leader Kyle Busch to get the lap back.

Finally, on Lap 258, the yellow flag was displayed for caution 12, enabling Johnson to round the track and position himself for a charge to the front. He restarted 16th on Lap 263 and moved to 10th by Lap 270 when Paul Menard brought out caution 13.

When the race resumed on Lap 279, Johnson was ready to make a dash to the front, in hopes of a top-five finish. But on Lap 281, Johnson’s Chevrolet got loose in Turn 2 and made hard contact with the outside wall.

Johnson hobbled his way down pit road where the Lowe’s crew made quick repairs and sent him back to the track. He managed to complete the last three laps to turn in a 24th place result, one lap down.

“I got down into Turn 1 on the outside of the No. 26 (Jaime McMurray) and maybe it was just a little too high and I got in the dirty stuff and just lost it,” said Johnson. “It was just unfortunate. We had the best car.”

Johnson’s finish left him 19th in the Sprint Cup Series driver point standings, 145 points behind Gordon, who now leads the series.