October 1, 2009
By Doug Demmons
It’s easy to understand why some people just can’t stand the thought of Jimmie Johnson winning yet another Sprint Cup championship.
Johnson is professional, well-spoken and non-controversial. Most NASCAR fans prefer drivers who are a little rough around the edges, pop off at the mouth occasionally and remind them of folks they grew up around.
Johnson, who is from El Cajon, Calif., doesn’t fit that bill. So it’s understandable why he isn’t soaking up the kind of adulation that would be rained down upon Dale Earnhardt Jr. if he were a three-time champion going for No. 4.
What is not understandable is the need for some drivers to claim that Johnson had an unfair advantage at Dover on Sunday because he got to participate in a Goodyear tire test at the same track back in early August.
One of the main complainers was Greg Biffle.
“What's probably most frustrating about the whole thing,” Biffle said, “and I hate to beat a dead horse, is that the 42 and the 48 and I don't know who else came up here and tire tested, and when we came back, look at the guys that didn't tire test, we ran terrible. It was a completely different tire, it had us off our game right when we unloaded off the truck, we couldn't even make a lap on the track. We got going there toward the end, but not like the guys that tested. That's the whole deal. We had a decent car, but we're not going to beat guys that came here and tested."
Actually, there were eight drivers who participated in the Goodyear tire test at Dover on Aug. 4-5 -- Johnson, Juan Pablo Montoya, Marcos Ambrose, Kyle Busch, David Stremme, David Ragan, Bobby Labonte and AJ Allmendinger.
That lists includes every manufacturer and a wide variety of NASCAR teams. Biffle had a Roush teammate, Ragan, at the test and presumably had access to whatever data was collected.
Goodyear holds tire tests throughout the year at various tracks in order to try to bring the right kind of tire for each race. They always invite drivers from each manufacturer and usually spread it around to different drivers during the year.
It was never an issue until this year when NASCAR banned testing at NASCAR-sanctioned tracks. That put a premium on tire-test opportunities.
Johnson readily admits that it was an advantage for him to be part of the tire test.
“Goodyear notifies us as to what tracks we're to tire test at. They asked us to test, we came and did our jobs,” he said. “It is beneficial to tire test. I saw some comments from Montoya where he said it's not beneficial. To be honest with you, it does. To get the data set, and the driver being in the car helps.”
He also pointed out correctly that there were other tire tests that he did not participate in that gave an advantage to other drivers.
“Nobody heard me complain about Indy and not being able to tire test there, and it definitely hurt us in qualifying,” he said. “But we just kept our heads down, went to work, made the car right and won the race.
“There are some guys that can't help but say stuff time after time,” he said. “And you guys see it each and every week. So, it is what it is. I guess as we move forward there's been some other tire tests going on, and we can all be mad at somebody else.”
While Johnson, Montoya and others had a certain edge from running laps at Dover, an even bigger factor in Johnson’s win might have been the fact that it was his fifth time in Victory Lane at the Monster Mile.
Johnson figured out Dover long ago. If anything, the big edge went to Montoya, who until Sunday had never even finished on the lead lap there.
But when you run up front for as long as Johnson has you are a much more inviting target for teams that are more than a little frustrated at seeing the No. 48 win and win and win.
Does Johnson care about that? Nope.
“I certainly hope that our performance today scares some people and affects them in a way that benefits us,” he said. “But, you know, I see guys get so worried about what other people think, what other people say and spend a lot of time in those areas. That's not what works for me.
“I tried to play some of those games in 2005 with Tony Stewart. It didn't work out for me. Since that day I realized I just need to run my race, put blinders on. Don't watch television. Don't watch or read any of the trade papers, magazines. Just ignore, ignore, ignore, and focus on my world and what's going on with my race car. That's what I'll do through the rest of the Chase.”
Doug Demmons is a writer and editor for the Birmingham News ~ he writes daily and weekly auto racing columns ranging from NASCAR to open wheel to Formula One, local tracks and more... you can read Doug's columns online at Blog of Tommorow
Follow Doug on Twitter: @dougdemmons
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
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