Johnson started from the pole for the Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, relinquished the lead to Jamie McMurray on the first lap but regained the point on Lap 81 to lead 217 of the remaining 232 circuits en-route to winning a record third consecutive race at Phoenix, his seventh race of the season, and extend his lead to 141-points over fourth-place finisher Carl Edwards.
With the victory, his seventh of the season, his third in a row at Phoenix and the 40th of his career, Johnson widened his lead in the Chase to 141 points over fourth-place finisher Carl Edwards.
“This is what I’ve worked my whole life for,” Johnson said. “We’ve got a great points lead. We’ll go down to Homestead and try to wrap this baby up.”
“If he would have some terrible luck in Homestead, we still have a chance,” Edwards said. “We did the best we could, but it’s too big of a spread right now. It’s possible. Not probable, but possible.”
McMurray briefly moved out front again after a round of late pit stops, but Johnson blew past him in Turn 2 of a restart and was hardly challenged again. Kurt Busch made a brief run at him in the closing laps, but graciously settled for second and praised Johnson for his skillful late pass.
“I was third and the way that he went high, went low, and he was in the lead before you could snap your fingers,” Busch said. “It was unbelievable to watch that type of display, and it’s something pretty special.”
FIN ST CAR DRIVER MAKE
1 1 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet
2 3 2 Kurt Busch Dodge
3 2 26 Jamie McMurray Ford
4 15 99 Carl Edwards Ford
5 8 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota
6 5 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet
7 19 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet
8 14 18 Kyle Busch Toyota
9 24 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet
10 30 6 David Ragan Ford
11 31 16 Greg Biffle Ford
12 28 7 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet
13 11 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge
14 10 8 Mark Martin Chevrolet
15 34 17 Matt Kenseth Ford
16 13 10 A.J. Allmendinger Dodge
17 26 42 Juan Montoya Dodge
18 18 347 Marcos Ambrose Toyota
19 41 43 Bobby Labonte Dodge
20 23 22 Dave Blaney Toyota
21 40 28 Travis Kvapil Ford
22 29 20 Tony Stewart Toyota
23 21 1 Regan Smith * Chevrolet
24 25 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota
25 4 44 David Reutimann Toyota
26 9 15 Paul Menard Chevrolet
27 32 96 Ken Schrader Toyota
28 27 7 Robby Gordon Dodge
29 39 21 Bill Elliott Ford
30 22 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge
31 12 41 Reed Sorenson Dodge
32 37 109 Sterling Marlin Chevrolet
33 33 77 Sam Hornish Jr. *Dodge
34 6 12 Ryan Newman Dodge
35 42 38 David Gilliland Ford
36 16 5 Casey Mears Chevrolet
37 43 70 Johnny Sauter Chevrolet
38 17 66 Scott Riggs Chevrolet
39 35 45 Kyle Petty Dodge
40 38 84 Scott Speed Toyota
41 7 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet
42 36 83 Brian Vickers Toyota
43 20 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet
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