Last week, the NASCAR world was talking about the luck Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 team had at Auto Club Speedway, beating the caution flag onto pit road to capture his first victory of 2010.

“When you’re a good team, like last week, people were talking about, ‘Man, look how lucky they are,’” Johnson’s teammate Jeff Gordon said. “That’s not luck. You do everything you can as a team right, and when everything is clicking, good things happen.”

Three races into the 2010 Sprint Cup season, and it appears the No. 48 team’s ticking is well underway.

Johnson took four tires late, chased down teammate Jeff Gordon, and cruised by with 17 laps remaining to capture the Shelby American at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Gordon’s No. 24 Chevrolet was dominant, leading 219 of 267 laps, and he seemed poised to capture his first victory in over 30 races. But when a caution came out with 37 laps remaining, the leaders hit pit road.

Gordon, who had debated with his crew chief Steve Latarte whether or not he should even pit, decided to take just two tires to ensure being first off pit road. Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus opted for four tires, and in the end, that proved to be the difference.

“I felt like we needed to come in and get some tires, but I felt like two tires was the right call,” Gordon said. “We just needed Jimmie to take two. They did the opposite of us. That won the race for them.”

It was Johnson’s second win of 2010 and the 49th victory of his career. It was also his 15th career victory on a 1.5-mile track, the most in NASCAR history.

Kevin Harvick was able to pass Gordon late, and finished second to Johnson for the second week in a row. But his team has nothing to prove to Johnson and the No. 48 crew. “We can run with them, and they know it,” he said.

Gordon was third, followed by Mark Martin in fourth, giving Chevrolet their second consecutive top-four sweep. Matt Kenseth’s Ford finished in fifth.

Polesitter Kurt Busch finished 35th after becoming involved in a wreck between teammates Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray. McMurray accepted blame following the incident, but Montoya wasn’t pleased.

“He ran us into the fence in Turn 2 and just flat wrecked us in Turn 3,” Montoya said. “For the Chase, this doesn’t help. We had a problem last week with the motor and this week this. He’s not doing us any favors.”

Ocean County native Martin Truex Jr. started 35th and finished in 20th.

Nationwide Series:

Kevin Harvick overcame struggles by his team on pit road, passed Denny Hamlin, and went on to win his 35th career Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas last Saturday. Harvick led a race-high 82 of 200 laps to capture the Sam’s Town 300.

Denny Hamlin was second, followed by Carl Edwards in third. Brad Keselowski came in fourth, and Brian Vickers rounded out the top five. Defending Nationwide Series champion Kyle Busch finished 16th.

Danica Patrick, making her final start before taking a four-month hiatus to focus on the Indy Car Series, was as high as third before being involved in a wreck with Michael McDowell midway through the event. She finished 36th. Her next scheduled race is June 24th at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Other Nationwide Series news making headlines last week was an incident involving 20-year-old John Wes Townley, driving for Richard Childress Racing. Townley was cited in Las Vegas for underage possession of alcohol. He issued a statement following Saturday’s race.

“I made a big mistake and feel terrible about it,” he said. “I have learned a valuable lesson and will do everything I can to make it up to those I have let down.”

RCR owner Richard Childress stated “Drivers are human and make mistakes like everyone else. However, we do not condone his behavior.” RCR will handle the incident internally, he said.

Coming Up:

The Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series head to the fastest non-restrictor plate track in racing, the Atlanta Motor Speedway, while the Nationwide Series takes a three-week break.

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

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