Jimmie Johnson Back In Victory Lane with Fuel Mileage Strategy

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By Ron Felix

CIA Stock Photo Johnson Get Push To Victory Lane

Jimmie Johnson and his crew chief, Chad Knaus, played a fuel mileage game to win the Subway Fresh Fit 500K at Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday night. While virtually every driver was pitting for fuel in the closing laps, Knaus was on the radio to Johnson begging him to "back it down, back it down, back it down." Johnson did and coasted to a win in a smartly called race.

"I ran out of gas on the backstretch," said Johnson. "We're back. I wish Rick (Hendrick) was here instead of just talking to him on the phone. We got a little off cycle and got a little behind there. We had to drive back to the front and still wound up saving fuel anyway."

It was the first victory of the season for Hendrick Motorsports and for Johnson. -- Johnson had enough gas to do a burn-out but his Polish Victory lap and trip to Victory Lane was courtesy of a tow truck. Jimmie Johnson led four times for 120 of 312 laps to earn WIX Filters Lap Leader of the Race honors.

"We led a lot at the beginning," Johnson continued. "I can’t tell you how good the race car was and how much fun I had the entire day. And then that last run with 80 laps left in the event, restart 14th with all the lap cars and get up to the 11 and the 8 and be right up there on those guys said a lot about the car that we had."

Clint Bowyer was also one of the drivers that didn't stop for fuel and he was coming hard in the final laps knowing that Johnson was going for the win without stopping. Bowyer missed the target by 8.07 seconds and finished in the runner-up position. "

"We were kind of conserving brakes there in that last run, backing the corners up, which in turn saved fuel," Bowyer said. "About halfway through that run, could you tell it might go all the way that we were strung out that far. Gil (Martin, crew chief) said to save as much gas as you can. I did. He told me we were only three laps shy of making it before that run started. I don't think I was near as worried about it as he was. I knew how much I was saving out there. I was pretty sure I saved enough."

The race was late getting started. Fox was trying to get the final out of a Yankees-Boston Red Sox game, a game that had been delyed by rain. NASCAR officials pushed up the start of the already late race by 15 minutes and Fox cut to the race when Fox switched the baseball game to their sister station, FX. But Fox still missed the first lap and the green flag.

Denny Hamlin was third while last week's winner at Texas, Carl Edwards was fourth.

"We passed a lot of cars and then we just had a problem in the pits, got a penalty," Edwards said. "We came back quickly, though. Everything fell into place, Robbie made some great calls, but then we had another bad pit stop, and that set us back. But to come out of here fourth with all the trouble we had tonight, that’s a blessing. I’m not going to complain too much about that.”

Mark Martin led a lot of laps but fell to fifth when he stopped for gas and finished there.

“Well, you know, we were saving gas," Martin said. "I thought we were trying to go, so we were real, real slow. I was just putting around out there. We had such an incredible car. I planned that run with 80 (laps) to go when we pitted. I said can we go? And we were just sort of saving the gas and trying to be there. I guess there was some confusion on the figuring and they decided that we were going to have to come (in for a pit stop). I’m just really proud of the team and I want them to keep their chin up because I want to win some of these races. And they can do it. They can do it on pit road. And they gave me a race car to win with tonight. Clearly (it was) one of the better cars out there on the race track, it no the best, you know, at the end. We sort of spent the whole race getting ready for a good run there at the end."

Jeff Burton, who still retains the NASCAR Sprint Cup points by 80 over his nearest rival, Kyle Busch, finished sixth followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr., Greg Biffle and Kyle Busch to round out the top ten.

Earnhardt was sure that he had the car to beat, but failed to win again.

"I am not frustrated. I don't know what our expectations truly were going in to the race," said Earnhardt. "But I don't think they were that good. I don't know if we could have made it. I don't know when we stopped, or how much I was burning a lap. I can't do the math. I just do what I told. We did the right thing. We can't run out and finish out of the top-10. We did the right thing."

Sam Hornish Jr. scored a 20th-place finish and took Raybestos Rookie of the Race honors for the third time this season. Unofficially Hornish Jr. leads the Raybestos Rookie standings by three points (78-75) over Regan Smith.

“It was rough for sure but we didn’t have that great of a car but we just kind of did what we needed to do today," Hornish said. "We adjusted on it and made it better and looking at the scoreboard there to be the top finishing of the teammates that’s the first time that’s ever happened. I’ve got to look at that and be a little bit happy. I know that Kurt and Ryan both had problems today and it didn’t work out that good but even that can make me feel a little bit better right now.

The Sprint Cup Series has a week off next weekend but returns to action at Talladega Superspeedway on April 27, 2008. The Aaron's 499 will be carried by FOX network and is scheduled for 1:30 PM Eastern time.


For full final race results...     (Insider Racing News)
For top-40 Nextel Cup drivers points...     (Insider Racing News)

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