JIMMIE JOHNSON

JIMMIE JOHNSON

Posted on 11/30/2010. Filed under: JIMMIE JOHNSON | Tags: |

 What’s Next For Jimmie Johnson: Greatest Driver…Ever? 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Nov. 29, 2010) – There is no question Jimmie Johnson has built a dynasty with five consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championships.

o what’s left for the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet to accomplish? A few scribes have already posed the question: Is Johnson on track to become the best driver in the history of NASCAR?

While only time will tell if Johnson can eventually hold that title, he is certainly on pace to do so.

Johnson has put his name near the top of the two most important lists when discussing “best all-time”: championships and wins. His five titles are just two short of NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt for most all-time. His 53 wins rank 10th all-time, and most likely, he will stand alone in eighth by the end of next season (Rusty Wallace is currently eighth, with 55. Johnson has won three or more races in each of his nine full-time seasons).
Johnson’s pace on a number of other statistics suggest he could one day catch the usual names already included in the “all-time best” debate:
Championships: Johnson needed 327 starts to win his fifth championship. Dale Earnhardt needed 390 and Richard Petty took 655 starts to collect their fifth titles.
Wins: Only three drivers reached 53 wins faster than Johnson, who reached it in 319 races: Jeff Gordon (260 starts), Darrell Waltrip (288) and David Pearson (309).
Two other “win” stats to consider: Johnson has a winning percentage of 16.2%, sixth-best all-time. Those ahead of him are either members, inductees or nominees of the NASCAR Hall of Fame: Herb Thomas (21.1), Tim Flock (20.9), Pearson (18.3), Petty (16.9) and Fred Lorenzen (16.5).
Here is another compelling stat: Johnson has at least five wins in each of the last five seasons. Only three other drivers have accomplished that feat: Petty (10 consecutive seasons with five or more wins), Waltrip (eight) and Gordon (five).
His ability to be at his best during “crunch” time has set Johnson apart. Here are his statistics during the 70 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup events: 19 wins (second-best is Carl Edwards with eight); 40 top fives (second is Gordon with 27); 54 top 10s (second is Gordon with 45), 3,423 laps led (second is Matt Kenseth with 1,715) and a Driver Rating of 110.1 (second is Gordon with a 98.4).
 
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JIMMIE JOHNSON FIVE TIME SPRINT CUP CHAMPION

Posted on 11/25/2010. Filed under: JIMMIE JOHNSON | Tags: |

JIMMIE JOHNSON

PERSONAL

 

Birthdate: Sept. 17, 1975

Hometown: El Cajon, Calif.

Resides: Charlotte, N.C.

Marital Status: Married (Chandra)

Children: Genevieve

Hobbies: Snowboarding, biking, golf

CAREER STATS

Career Starts: 317

Career Wins: 53

Career Poles: 24

Best Points Finish: 1st (2006, ’07, ’08, ’09, ’10)

First Full Season: 2002

First Start: Oct. 7, 2001 (Charlotte)

First Win: April 28, 2002 (California)

First Pole: Feb. 9, 2002 (Daytona)

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

*First driver in NASCAR history to win   FIVE consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series titles (2006-’”10)

*2009 Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year

*Won the Daytona 500 and the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard in 2006

*Top-five finisher in all eight NASCAR Sprint Cup seasons

*Series runner-up in 2003 and ’04

WINS/POLES

WINS: 52 – California, Dover-1, Dover-2 (2002); Charlotte-1, New Hampshire-1, New Hampshire-2 (2003);

Darlington-1, Charlotte-1, Pocono-1, Pocono-2, Charlotte-2, Martinsville-2, Atlanta-2, Darlington-2 (2004);

Las Vegas, Charlotte-1, Dover-2, Charlotte-2 (2005); Daytona-1, Las Vegas, Talladega-1, Indianapolis,

Martinsville-2 (2006); Las Vegas, Atlanta-1, Martinsville-1, Richmond-1, California-2, Richmond-2, Martinsville-2, Atlanta-2, Texas-2, Phoenix-2 (2007); Phoenix-1, Indianapolis, California-2, Richmond-2, Kansas, Martinsville-2, Phoenix-2 (2008); Martinsville-1, Dover-1, Indianapolis, Dover-2, Auto Club-2, Charlotte-2, Phoenix-2 (2009); Auto Club-1, Las Vegas, Bristol-1, Infineon, New Hampshire-1 (2010)

POLES: 24 – Daytona-1, Charlotte-1, Talladega-1, Charlotte-1 (2002); Pocono-1, Kansas (2003); Charlotte-1 (2004); Chicago (2005); Martinsville-1 (2006); Richmond-2, Dover-2, Kansas, Homestead (2007); Daytona-1, Indianapolis, Pocono-2, California-2, Kansas, Phoenix-2 (2008); Watkins Glen, Dover-2, Charlotte-2, Homestead-Miami (2009); Talladega-1 (2010)

’10 RECAP

*Heads into the Chase second in the standings with 5,050 points

*Five wins on the year – Auto Club (2/21); Las Vegas (2/28); Bristol (3/21); Infineon (6/20) and New Hampshire (6/27)

*In 26 starts, he has 10 top fives and 14 top 10s

*One pole on the year —. Talladega (4/25)

*Four DNFs on the year — Daytona (2/14); Talladega (4/25); Darlington (5/8) and Daytona (7/3)

*Has been in the top 12 of the standings for 25 consecutive weeks of the 26 week regular season — since Auto Club (2/21)


PAST CHASES

*In, 2009, he won the championship for the fourth consecutive time. He posted four Chase wins at Dover (9/27); Auto Club (10/11); Charlotte (10/17) and Phoenix (11/15)

*In 2008, he won the championship for the third consecutive time. He posted three Chase wins at Kansas (9/23); Martinsville (10/19); and Phoenix (11/9)

*In 2007, he won the Chase for the second consecutive season. He posted eight top-10 finishes including four wins at Martinsville (10/21); Atlanta (10/28); Texas (11/4) and Phoenix (11/11).

*In 2006, he came back from ninth in the Chase standings to win the championship with six top 10s, a win at Martinsville (10/22) and four second-place finishes

*In 2005, finished fifth in the Chase with seven top-10 finishes including two wins at Dover (9/25) and Charlotte (10/15)

*In 2004, finished second in the Chase, eight points behind Kurt Busch. He posted seven top-10 finishes including wins at Charlotte (10/16); Martinsville (10/24); Atlanta (10/31); and Darlington (11/14)

LOOP DATA  Driver Rating – 107.4  Average Running Position – 9.557  Quality Passes – 1,653  Fastest Laps Run – 703 Laps In Top 15 – 6,181 Green Flag Passes – 2,178

YEAR-BY-YEAR
2009 Won fourth consecutive series championship, surpassing Cale Yarborough (1976-78) for the longest streak of consecutive championships in NASCAR history … Won seven races for a second consecutive season. … Had 16 top-five finishes (tied for series-best with teammate Jeff Gordon) and 24 top 10s (one off Gordon’s series-high) … Won four Chase races, improving his all-time series lead to 18 … Only driver to win four races during the 10-race Chase (three times: 2004, 2007, 2009). … Entered the Chase seeded third behind teammate Mark Martin, but took the points lead in the fourth Chase race after leading 126 of 250 laps and winning at Auto Club Speedway.… Led the rest of the season. … Beat Mark Martin by 141 points for the title. … First race car driver named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year in 78 years of the award.

2008 Won third consecutive series title, joining NASCAR legend Cale Yarborough as the only drivers to accomplish that feat. Yarborough’s titles came in 1975-78. … Finished with a series-high six poles. … Began the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup as the third seed. Took the standings lead after the third Chase race, at Kansas, and never relinquished it, winning the title by 69 points over runner-up Carl Edwards. … Remains one of only two drivers (Matt Kenseth is the other) to qualify for all five Chases. … Moved into 15th place on NASCAR’s all-time win list with 40 series wins. … Led four year-end Loop Data statistical categories – Average Start (8.5), Average Position (10.1), Laps Led (1,959) and Percentage of Laps Led (18.3).

2007 Won second consecutive series title. … Became first driver since Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon in 1997 and 1998 to win consecutive series titles; also the first since Gordon in 1998 to win 10 races in a season. … Became 15th driver to win multiple titles in NASCAR’s premier series. … Became 14th driver in series history to win consecutive titles. … Four consecutive wins late in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup solidified title run. … Came from 68 points behind Gordon following season’s 31st race to win title by 77 points over Gordon.

2006 Won the series title. … His 24 top 10s led the series. … Spent all 36 weeks of the season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup top 10. … Won Daytona 500. … Also won his first events at Talladega (in May) and at Indianapolis (in August). Other two victories came at Las Vegas and Martinsville. … Pole came at Martinsville (in April).

2005 Finished fifth in series points. … Won four races in his fourth season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, including the season sweep at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, which included a third consecutive Coca-Cola 600 win. Johnson is the first driver to win three consecutive Coca-Cola 600s. … Other victories came at the September event at Dover and at Las Vegas.

2004 Finished second in series points, only eight behind champion Kurt Busch, in the closest championship finish in NASCAR Sprint Cup history. … Led standings for nine race weeks during season. … Led series in wins with eight and top fives with 20. … Started Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup fifth in the standings, and dropped to ninth after first three races of Chase. Rallied by winning four of the year’s last six races, including three consecutive (Lowe’s-Martinsville-Atlanta). … Had three season sweeps, winning both events held at Darlington, Lowe’s and Pocono. … Repeated as Coca-Cola 600 champion and also won the Southern 500. … String of 70 consecutive weeks in series’ top 10 ended in Week 2, after 41st-place finish at Rockingham.

2003 Finished second in series points. … Spent all 36 weeks in the standings’ top 10, the only driver to do so. Started 2004 with a string of 69 consecutive weeks in the points standings’ top 10, best among active drivers. … Season highlight was winning rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 in May at Lowe’s, one week after winning the all-star event, a nonpoints event also held at Lowe’s. … Swept season events at New Hampshire. … Ended season by finishing in the top three in the last six events to secure runner-up finish in series championship.

2002 Finished fifth in series points as a rookie. … Won Daytona 500 pole in fourth career start. … First career victory (at Auto Club) came in 13th start. … Won three races (Auto Club and both Dover races). … Became first rookie in series history to sweep both races at a track. … Led standings for one week following Kansas in September.2001 Finished 52nd in series points. … Made series debut with three starts, best finish 25th at Homestead.

HISTORY  Finished eighth in NASCAR Nationwide Series points in 2001, driving for Herzog Motorsports. … Earned first career NASCAR Nationwide Series victory in the series’ first race at Chicagoland Speedway.… During first full season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, had six top-10 finishes and finished 10th in the point standings. …In 1999, started five NASCAR Nationwide Series races, led 22 laps and collected one top-10 finish.…Won Rookie of the Year honors in the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series in 1998. … Johnson won six off-road racing championships, including two MTEG Superlite championships (1992, ’95), the 1992 Miller Challenge Superlite title, the 1993 SCORE Class 10 Desert championship, and two SODA Winter Series Overall titles (1996, ’97). … Also was named 1991 MTEG Rookie of the Year in the Superlite Class and 1995 SCORE Rookie of the Year.… Began racing in motocross events at age five.

NOTEWORTHY Johnson and his wife, Chandra, founded the Jimmie Johnson Foundation in 2006 to assist children, families and communities in need throughout the United States. … During the 2000 season, Johnson was selected as one of People Magazine’s “Sexiest Men in the Fast Lane,” along with other NASCAR drivers. … Johnson was the youngest driver ever in the Mickey Thompson Stadium Truck Series. … Johnson and Jeff Gordon joined World Superbike champion Colin Edwards in Europe, and won the 2002 Race of Champions Nations Cup, an annual event pitting the world’s best rally, motorcycle and circuit racers against one another in head-to-head competition.

 Team Hendrick Motorsports

Team Web Site http://www.jimmiejohnson.com

Sponsor and Manufacturer Lowe’s Chevrolet

Owner Rick Hendrick

Crew Chief Chad Knaus

Engine Builder Hendrick Engines

Team Address 4400 Papa Joe Hendrick Blvd.; Charlotte, NC 28262 Team Phone (704) 453-2505 Team Fax (704) 455-0327 PR Contact Kristine Curley, GMR Marketing PR Address 1435 West Morehead St., Suite 190, Charlotte, NC 28208 PR Phone (704) 342-4450 PR Fax (704) 342-4452 PR E-mail kcurley@gmrmarketing.com


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