DPR Sports & Racing News

Dale Earnhardt, Jr

Hendrick Motorsports Celebrates 25 Years in Racing

Hendrick Motorsports drivers Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. drive 25th anniversary commemorative cars in practice for the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 500 at Daytona International Speedway.

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Jimmie Johnson

 Team 48 Sprint All-Star Race Preview

RACE NOTES

Lowe’s Motor Speedway – All-Star Events

In seven All-Star Race starts, Johnson has collected six top-five finishes, including two victories (2003, 2006).

Chassis

• Johnson has driven primary chassis No. 502 five times in his Sprint Cup Series career. He last piloted the machine to a ninth-place finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March.
• Johnson finished 13^th at Darlington last year in the backup chassis, No. 465.

NEWS & NOTES

Ø      Jimmie Johnson, Chad Knaus and special Lowe’s representatives will announce Memorial Day plans, Friday, May 15 at 4 p.m. at the Lowe’s Motor Speedway media center auditorium.

Ø      In honor of the Memorial Day holiday, LowesRacing.com is offering fans the opportunity to thank the military members who mean the most to them. Fans can submit photographs and stories of themselves, friends or family serving our country on the site.  Visit lowesracing.com now through June 1 to submit pictures and stories (150 words maximum).

JIMMIE JOHNSON QUOTES:

WOULD YOU HAVE MORE DRIVERS OR FEWER DRIVERS IN THE ALL-STAR RACE?  "It's an all-star event so in my opinion you need to do something exceptional to get into it. I think our system now works. There's a high car count so that's exciting. But in my opinion, it's a little forgiving. I think that you've got to make it special and unique. We have fan votes, which is a good thing; we need to have the fans involved. But it is pretty forgiving on how people are able to get into the show."

WHAT IS THE NO. 48 TEAM DOING SPECIFICALLY TO PREPARE FOR THE PIT CREW COMPETITION, AND HOW INVOLVED YOU ARE IN THAT, AND DO YOU VIEW THAT AS A TEAM BUILDING OPPORTUNITY ?  "It's definitely a team-building opportunity. The guys have been working real hard on the techniques needed for that particular event, which is unlike a normal pit stop as we all know. So they're trying to figure out exactly how to shave time and the steps and techniques; the way they push the car and the points and how they push the car across the finish line, I guess, in that respect. They're working hard on it. I certainly hope our guys can come through and win the thing. I'm usually not involved with the pit stop stuff, so I haven't been there first-hand to see it. But I know the work that goes into it and I hear the guys talking about it at the track and stuff."

SPRINT CUP SERIES CAREER NOTES

Career Wins

• Johnson has 41 wins in his Sprint Cup Series career, his most recent coming at Martinsville Speedway on March 29, 2009.
• The El Cajon, Calif.-native is 15^th on NASCAR’s all-time wins list.
• He also has the third-highest win total among active drivers, behind Jeff Gordon (81) and Bill Elliott (44).
• Johnson has won at least three Cup races a season since he posted his first victory in 2002. He is the only driver in the modern era to win at least three races in each of his first seven full-time seasons.
• Johnson has won Sprint Cup Series races at all but six ( Bristol , Michigan , Infineon, Chicago , Watkins Glen, Homestead ) of the 22 tracks on which the series competes.
• Johnson’s 10 wins in 2007 was the highest number recorded in a single season since Jeff Gordon posted 13 victories in 1998.
• The four-consecutive wins scored by the No. 48 team in the 2007 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup ties a modern-era NASCAR record.

Career Poles

• Johnson has collected 19 poles in his Sprint Cup career.
• The championship driver has earned at least one pole a year since his first full-time season in 2002.
• He had a career-high six poles in 2008.
• Johnson’s most recent pole position was at Phoenix International Raceway on Nov. 9, 2008.

Career Starts

• Johnson has finished in the top five in the Sprint Cup Series point standings each year since his first full season in 2002.
• Johnson is one of only two drivers to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup every year since the format was adopted in 2004. Matt Kenseth is the other.
• In 265 Sprint Cup Series starts, Johnson has posted 105 top five and 162 top-10 finishes.
• He has a top-five finish at every track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series circuit.
• Johnson has led a total of 7,754 laps (of 76,724) in his Sprint Cup career, covering over 102,282 miles.
• He has finished on the lead lap 203 times.