Out front is where Jimmie Johnson likes to be in autumn, and aside from the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup title, the reigning and three-time series champion is chasing other career marks.
A fourth consecutive title would make history. No NASCAR driver has won four consecutive championships. Cale Yarborough, whose record Johnson tied last year, is the only other driver to win three straight.
The latest of Johnson’s series-high six wins this season – last Saturday night at Lowe’s Motor Speedway – also was notable; it tied Buck Baker for 13th on NASCAR’s all-time win list.
That’s career victory No. 46 in 286 starts, meaning Johnson approaches this season’s final five Chase races from a position of strength.
He’s won the last two Martinsville events and five of the last six. His average finish during that span – five victories and one fourth-place finish – is 1.5.
Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon both own a series-best 124.3 Driver Rating at Martinsville, according to pre-race Loop Data. Auto Racing Daily
CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR 0 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Vaseline Men Body Lotion 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's / Carquest 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 7 Robby Gordon Toyota Robby Gordon Motorsports 7 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 9 Sterling Marlin Dodge Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Freight 12 David Stremme Dodge Penske Racing 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Old Spice / Office Depot 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M Filtrete 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's Halloween 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Best Buy 20 Joey Logano* Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet NationalGuard.com / DuPont 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell / Pennzoil 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet BB&T 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell 36 Michael McDowell Toyota Wave Energy Drink 37 Travis Kvapil Dodge Long John Silver's 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge McDonald's 44 A.J. Allmendinger Dodge Coleman Natural Foods 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie / Kingsford / Clorox 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Adaptive One 64 Mike Wallace Toyota Gunselman Motorsports 66 Dave Blaney Toyota Prism Motorsports 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 82 Scott Speed* Toyota Red Bull 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Amp Energy / National Guard 96 Bobby Labonte Ford DLP 98 Paul Menard Ford Schrock / Menards 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 171 David Gilliland Chevrolet TRG Motorsports 175 Derrike Cope Dodge FlipnBags.com / EZPCBackup.com 187 Joe Nemechek Toyota NEMCO Motorsports
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