5 time champ

congrats to jimmy johnson and hendrick motorsports.. incredible job coming from behind to take the championship.

They are good. Hamlin made too many mistakes and didn't have the speed. Harvick put on the best show. Too bad he was so far behind in points going in.

Regardless of what one thinks about the driver, team, or the series, to be a champ 5 times in a row, and coming from behind in points in the last race, is quite an accomplishment.

No doubt this will be beaten to death like the F1 thread, but, it's over, he is the champ, and there's a new season coming in 2011.

i love that all the rednecks are going to be totally sore about it for another whole year.

i hate nascar but i like when the lowes guys win and celebratory discounts on kobalt tools ensue.

Discounts on Tools? Where?

Honestly, I hope he wins another 5. Best driver, best team, best car.

Well done Jimmy Jim John James Jeff Johnson.

Anyone who gets the reference gets a cookie.

Don't think this will raise quite the rukus that Vettels win did- 5 in a row makes it darn hard to argue that he didn't deserve it. I've liked Jimmy ever since his reaction to this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YPvPgNxZaA&feature=related

Streetwiseguy wrote: Don't think this will raise quite the rukus that Vettels win did- 5 in a row makes it darn hard to argue that he didn't deserve it. I've liked Jimmy ever since his reaction to this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YPvPgNxZaA&feature=related

I remember when that happened. Didnt he lose his brakes or something to taht effect?

Dave Despain (Wind Tunnel... Speed) says his e-mail account is overrun with "we hate Jimmy Johnson" e-mails what's up with that ? still the "I can't believe he's dead" crowd ? or the Jr nation not able to get over the fact that he's basically a Nationwide capable driver ?

wbjones wrote: Dave Despain (Wind Tunnel... Speed) says his e-mail account is overrun with "we hate Jimmy Johnson" e-mails what's up with that ? still the "I can't believe he's dead" crowd ? or the Jr nation not able to get over the fact that he's basically a Nationwide capable driver ?

Judgeing by most of my friends I'll take number 2. I don't know where all the I can't believe he's dead people came from. I grew up an Earnhardt fan and most poeple I met went out of their way to say how much they hated him. As far as the hatred for Jimmie I don't get it. They know exactly what they need to do to win under this system and they stick to the plan perfectly. you can't fault them for that.

people are just sick of seeing the same guy on the same team with the championship year after year- i'm sure there are F1 fans that felt the same way about Michael Schumacher and Ferrari for a while there..

the 48 team always wins not because they race the hardest, but because they play the game the best. they race smarter not harder. they always do just good enough and get just enough wins during the first 26 races and try to avoid wrecking their cars so that they are at or near the top of the standings when the "chase" starts with 10 races to go, then they do just good enough and stay out of trouble enough to win in the end.

Kevin Harvick raced his ass off all year and had a 250 or so point lead over 2nd place after the last race of the "regular season" due to consistently being in the top 10 all year and getting a few wins, but because Denny Hamlin and Jimmy Johnson had more wins up to that point, they got to be the #1 and #2 positions going into the chase with Kevin Harvick being third. at least, i think that's how it shook out.. i forget which cars were where, but the 29 team was bumped down a couple of spots.

i don't think there are too many fans that are actually still pissed because Dale Sr. died or whatever, but they are sick of the same team playing the same strategy of just avoiding conflict and controversy year after year and being rewarded with championship after championship.

and yes, there are a lot of Dale Jr fans that think that Hendrick gives all the good parts and people to the 48 and 24 teams in the main shop while giving the 88 and 5 cars in the other shop a few miles away the second rate castoffs. it may or may not be true, but it sure seems that way to a lot of people.

i was pulling for the 29 car and Kevin Harvick all season long- i'm one of those people that would love to see RCR get a 7th championship with the old #3 team. but RCR doesn't have the conservative mentality that the Hendrick team has- they go to the track to race hard and hopefully win some races. i'm also one of those longtime fans that would love to see Dale Jr win some races and championships, but i don't see that happening at the Cup level. if he was to go back down to the Nationwide series full time and get out of the public eye and just concentrate on racing and having fun doing it, he'd clean house and win more championships at that level and maybe boost his confidence and ability to move back up to Cup and do some winning.

novaderrik wrote: and yes, there are a lot of Dale Jr fans that think that Hendrick gives all the good parts and people to the 48 and 24 teams in the main shop while giving the 88 and 5 cars in the other shop a few miles away the second rate castoffs. it may or may not be true, but it sure seems that way to a lot of people.

That's nonsense. If Jr could win a championship it would be a license to print money. I have a closet full of Jimmie Johnson champion T-shirts that I use to work around the house because at the end of the season you can get them for $3.00 a piece. Rick Hendrick is a smart man and if he could get Junior to run like Jeff, Jimmie, or even the Mark Martin I would think he would, but even Nascar building a point system around him hasn't worked.

I thought Jimmy Johnson got kicked off the island.

In reply to poopshovel:

Why? Did he take his erection drugs with him?

Wally wrote:

novaderrik wrote: and yes, there are a lot of Dale Jr fans that think that Hendrick gives all the good parts and people to the 48 and 24 teams in the main shop while giving the 88 and 5 cars in the other shop a few miles away the second rate castoffs. it may or may not be true, but it sure seems that way to a lot of people.

That's nonsense. If Jr could win a championship it would be a license to print money. I have a closet full of Jimmie Johnson champion T-shirts that I use to work around the house because at the end of the season you can get them for $3.00 a piece. Rick Hendrick is a smart man and if he could get Junior to run like Jeff, Jimmie, or even the Mark Martin I would think he would, but even Nascar building a point system around him hasn't worked.

i didn't say it's what i thought, but rather what i've read from other people out on teh interwebs- i think they start off the season with all of the teams more or less equal, then as the season goes on, they figure out where to allocate the resources to get the best shot at the glory. the pit crew swap in the middle of the race a couple of weeks ago was a perfect example of that- it took all of 5 minutes from the time the 24 was a twisted wreck with the driver in a fight with the car that spun him until that pit crew had replaced the 48 pit crew on pit road. i don't think the race even went back to green yet..

in the '09 season, Mark Martin was piling up wins and top 10 finishes left and right for a good chunk of the season, but as soon as he started to fade away, the 48 car started to get better. the 88 car just always seems to fade to the back right away, and the 24 just seems to have bad luck, but the 48 team always stays out of trouble and winds up with the best stuff by the end of the season- they've even said so themselves..

Rick Hendick is a business man first and foremost- that's why they race the way they do and why they win year after year. that contrasts with the way things are run over at RCR, where the owner- Richard Childress- started off as a racer and runs the whole operation as a racer would. they dig week after week, and that's why they had so much success with Dale Sr. even if they had the Championship locked up with 3 weeks left, they were still out there racing hard like they needed to win the last race to lock it up. they are like that over at Joe Gibbs racing, too. a team that is owned by a legendary Super Bowl winning football coach is going to always play to win, which is why he had 2 of his 3 of his cars in the chase, with one of them fighting until the last lap to win it all.

congrats to Jimmy on the 5th championship, while some rednecks will be bellyaching about it, he deserved the championship because he and his team did the best job under the current points system. the fact that he's already won 4 championships is just proof that he knows what he's doing and that this championship isn't a serious case of perpetual luck. yeah, it gets a bit irritating to have the same dude taking home the trophy year after year after year, but at this point familiarity breeds indifference rather than pure, unadulterated rage and malice like the nation's contigency of rednecks seems to have

seem to remember that if jimmy didnt loose a wheel in 2004 kurt busch would not have won by the 8 points , so it might have been his 6th championship ?

http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2004/data/standings_official.html

Slyp_Dawg wrote: congrats to Jimmy on the 5th championship, while some rednecks will be bellyaching about it, he deserved the championship because he and his team did the best job under the current points system. the fact that he's already won 4 championships is just proof that he knows what he's doing and that this championship isn't a serious case of perpetual luck. yeah, it gets a bit irritating to have the same dude taking home the trophy year after year after year, but at this point familiarity breeds indifference rather than pure, unadulterated rage and malice like the nation's contigency of rednecks seems to have

i don't think anyone thinks it's luck- but the old school fans don't like the way they are winning them year after year. it's more exciting if someone fights all season long to win than it is to see them constantly strategerizing (that's a word, right? it has to be, since i just typed it..) so that they can just kind of coast along and do just good enough to win it.

it's just one of the many things that are driving the old school fans away from NASCAR.

The only reason anybody could hate Jimmy is because losers hate winners. Losers feel that there is a limited amount of success in the world, and him using so much of it causes others to have less. Winners know there is an infinite amount of success out there, and if you reach hard enough, you can get some for yourself. I'd bet none of his ontrack competitiors dislike him for his success- maybe for some ontrack incidents, but as to success, they admire it.

Karl La Follette wrote: seem to remember that if jimmy didnt loose a wheel in 2004 kurt busch would not have won by the 8 points , so it might have been his 6th championship ? http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2004/data/standings_official.html

Kurt is the one who lost the wheel.

novaderrik wrote:

i don't think anyone thinks it's luck- but the old school fans don't like the way they are winning them year after year. it's more exciting if someone fights all season long to win than it is to see them constantly strategerizing (that's a word, right? it has to be, since i just typed it..) so that they can just kind of coast along and do just good enough to win it.

Yes,Sarah, that's a word.

Streetwiseguy wrote: The only reason anybody could hate Jimmy is because losers hate winners. Losers feel that there is a limited amount of success in the world, and him using so much of it causes others to have less. Winners know there is an infinite amount of success out there, and if you reach hard enough, you can get some for yourself. I'd bet none of his ontrack competitiors dislike him for his success- maybe for some ontrack incidents, but as to success, they admire it.

You hit the nail on the head.

Streetwiseguy wrote: The only reason anybody could hate Jimmy is because losers hate winners. Losers feel that there is a limited amount of success in the world, and him using so much of it causes others to have less. Winners know there is an infinite amount of success out there, and if you reach hard enough, you can get some for yourself. I'd bet none of his ontrack competitiors dislike him for his success- maybe for some ontrack incidents, but as to success, they admire it.

that's not it at all.. it's not that he wins year after year, it's that he doesn't fight hard for it week after week. he just kind of goes out there and makes laps while avoiding conflict.. yes, that's how you win and the current rules reward that kind of strategy.. but it isn't very exciting and is most definitely not the way it was done in the past. it makes for boring races and is the main reason the fanbase is shrinking.

NASCAR kind of made a half hearted attempt to make it look like they were changing this with the "Have at it, boys" statement before Daytona in February, but by keeping the silly chase format in place they are still rewarding the people that just ride around and stay out of trouble.

In reply to novaderrik:

Part of that statement is true and some of it is pure bunk.

Yes, there was a time when drivers would mix-it-up and throw punches. That was also the same era when races were won by one, two, three lap (or more) advantages.

There are reasons why Nascar has manipulated the race format to force close competition - because it's a myth that "it used to be that way". If the current competition wasn't as close as it is, people would turn off the TV and go mow the lawn.

While drinking just as much beer.

Hendricks just shuffled crew chiefs/drivers around, except for one.