After losing over 110 points to teammate Mark Martin at Texas Motor Speedway with only two races remaining, Jimmie Johnson knew he had no room for error, and needed a strong finish if he wanted to move closer to winning his fourth consecutive championship.
How’s a win sound?

Johnson dominated at Phoenix, leading 238 of 312 laps to win for the fourth time in the last five races at Phoenix. The victory allowed him to increase his lead to 108 points over Martin with just one race remaining.
Johnson needs a finish of 25th or better in this weekend’s finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in order to capture his record fourth straight Sprint Cup Series title.

Martin finished fourth, but watched as his championship hopes began to fade away.

“We gave it everything we had,” said Martin, who has yet to win a Sprint Cup Series championship and appears to be headed to his fifth career second-place points finish. “I definitely have been beat by the best - Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt. It wouldn’t embarrass me if it was Jimmie Johnson as well.”

Johnson, meanwhile, refuses to accept the championship just yet.

“I’m not one to let my mind wander and think about the possibilities—I’ve always known I’ve got to go out and race the race, get it done,” he said. “When I go home tonight, I’m going to be (mentally) driving laps, what I think I need to do in qualifying trim so I can put my best effort in on Friday. Same thing for race practice on Saturday, and go racing Sunday.

Jeff Burton had his best finish of the season, charging towards the front and challenging Johnson late before crossing the line in second. Denny Hamlin was third, followed by Martin in fourth. Ocean County native Martin Truex Jr. won the pole for the race and finished fifth.

All other chasers were mathematically eliminated from championship contention, leaving only Johnson and Martin left as potential champions. Other chasers’ results included Kurt Busch in sixth, Juan Pablo Montoya in eighth, Jeff Gordon in ninth, Greg Biffle in 14th, Kasey Kahne in 15th, Carl Edwards in 16th, Ryan Newman in 20th, Tony Stewart 25th, and Brian Vickers in 39th.

Nationwide Series: Carl Edwards led 109 of 200 laps to win the Able Body Labor 200 at Phoenix International Raceway last Saturday, and gained 57 points on points-leader Kyle Busch. But the win proved to be too little, too late, as Busch needs only to start next weekend’s Ford 300 to win his first career NASCAR championship. Kevin Harvick was second, followed by Reed Sorenson in third, Clint Bowyer in fourth, and Brad Keselowski in fifth.

Camping World Truck Series: Ron Hornaday finished fourth in last weekend’s CWTS event at Phoenix International Speedway to clinch his fourth career truck series title. At age 51, Hornaday was the oldest driver to win one of NASCAR’s three national series.

“When you drive (team owners) Kevin and Delana’s equipment, you feel like you are 18,” Hornaday said. “You feel young. The trucks they give me make me feel like a hero.”

Hornaday’s team owner Kevin Harvick won the Lucas Oil 150, followed by Kyle Busch in second, Aric Almirola in third, Hornaday in fourth, and Johnny Sauter in fifth.

The owner’s championship has yet to be decided, with Kevin Harvick Inc.’s No. 33 (Hornaday) holding a 60-point advantage over Billy Ballew Motorsports’ No. 51 (Busch).

Coming Up: Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where the 2009 Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series champions will be crowned. Don’t miss the final racing weekend of 2009.

Bruce Knoll, 17, of Eldora, can be contacted by email at bknoll jr4cmcherald@yahoo.com

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