It was classic Jimmie Johnson.
Lap after tense lap, the four-time defending NASCAR Sprint Cup champion waited for his opportunity to pounce.
With six laps remaining in Sunday’s Food City 500, Johnson finally made a charge to the front and then held on for his first victory at Bristol Motor Speedway. TriCities.com
The four-time defending NASCAR champion could never get a handle on the .533-mile bullring, where he struggled far more than he ever succeeded.
Until Sunday, that is.
Johnson finally knocked Bristol off his to-do list, plowing from sixth to first in just three laps Sunday to grab his first career victory at the revered Tennessee track. ABC News
“Every win is extremely special,” said Johnson, who snapped an 0-for-16 skid at Bristol by charging from sixth to first over Sunday’s final 10-lap run. “But when a track kicks your butt for so long and you finally can win at that track, there’s just something really unique about that. That’s what I experienced today.”
“It was pretty high on his list,” crew chief Chad Knaus said. “Jimmie and I write a little preseason summary of what it is we want to try to accomplish for the upcoming season. Among other things, Bristol was pretty high on his list. For him to say that he wanted to focus on that and get better at this race track, for us to be able to go out there and do what we did, I think it speaks volumes about the dedication and desire he’s got inside. It’s not different at any other race track. We want to win every single event. This one has eluded us. We’re very proud to be able to have it.”
And yet, despite his track record on the half-mile oval, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Not after last season, when Johnson posted top-10s in both races on a track he once had to convince himself that he liked. Not after Saturday, when the No. 48 car led both Sprint Cup practice sessions. And not after an early part of the race where Johnson led 77 of 93 laps before getting shuffled back by cautions, pit strategy, and tire wear. When Knaus asked Johnson how he felt about the car, the driver responded with a simple answer that should have made everyone else shudder.
“Pretty happy,” he said.
Knaus had a feeling. “For the first time in my career, walking out of Atlanta, I said, ‘I can’t wait to get to Bristol.’ It was the truth,” he said. “We were excited about coming here. We unloaded. The car was fast. Jimmie was comfortable in the race car. He was finding his way around the track well and was able to lead us, tell us what the car was doing to where we could make significant changes to it to make it better.” NASCAR
Not only did Johnson win at Bristol for the first time in 17 starts here, but he claimed his 50th career Sprint Cup Series victory as well.
Johnson’s 50th victory placed him in a tie with Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson for 10th on the series’ all-time race winners list. MiamiHerald.com
Stewart finished second and was followed by Kurt Busch, who led 275 of the 500 laps and lost the lead by taking four tires on the final pit stop.
Biffle and Kenseth finished fourth and fifth and the top-10 was rounded out by Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jamie McMurray, Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton. AHN
The failure to win was especially painful for Busch, who finished third. He led 278 laps. On the final restart, he was bottled up behind two-tire traffic and didn’t get a shot to challenge for first.
“We were solid all day,” Busch said. “We just got beat by the luck of the draw on the restarts. It’s luck on which lane is going to go. I thought we had them beat. I’d rather lose to any of the other 41 teams but that 48 team.
“I feel exhausted. I feel disappointed.” FOXNews
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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Food City 500 at Bristol - Race Results
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