Jimmie Johnson fans can stop worrying the victory drought has ended with a record tying 0.002 second margin of victory over Clint Bowyer at Talladega Speedway. Like some horse races it was a photo/video finish due to the tight margin.
As expected, after Daytona, much of the restrictor plate race was run in two-car tandems equaling a NASCAR record total of 88 lead changes set in Talladega last year.
Johnson’s teammate, Jeff Gordon, led the white flag lap but when stock cars are virtually flying in formation almost anything can and did happen.
“When you’re four wide coming across the finish line, that’s a pretty good race,” Jimmie Johnson said. “There was just so much going on at the end of that thing coming to the stripe.”
Gordon was being pushed by another Hendrick driver, Mark Martin, and Bowyer was being pushed by Kevin Harvick. In almost ballet-like fashion entering the trioval, Johnson and the fourth HMS man, Dale Earnhardt Jr. dipped down to the low side and barely squeezed past the Gordon-Martin combo.
Not to be left out were the Roush Fenway Ford duo of Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle edging on the high side near the wall, and those eight cars made a for a picture that might have been done for a choreographer.. Gordon finished third, Earnhardt fourth, Harvick fifth, Edwards sixth, Biffle seventh and Martin eighth.
As expected, after Daytona, much of the restrictor plate race was run in two-car tandems equaling a NASCAR record total of 88 lead changes set in Talladega last year.
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| Kyle Busch spinning. (Photo: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
Johnson’s teammate, Jeff Gordon, led the white flag lap but when stock cars are virtually flying in formation almost anything can and did happen.
“When you’re four wide coming across the finish line, that’s a pretty good race,” Jimmie Johnson said. “There was just so much going on at the end of that thing coming to the stripe.”
Gordon was being pushed by another Hendrick driver, Mark Martin, and Bowyer was being pushed by Kevin Harvick. In almost ballet-like fashion entering the trioval, Johnson and the fourth HMS man, Dale Earnhardt Jr. dipped down to the low side and barely squeezed past the Gordon-Martin combo.
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| The final moments of the race. (Photo: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
Not to be left out were the Roush Fenway Ford duo of Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle edging on the high side near the wall, and those eight cars made a for a picture that might have been done for a choreographer.. Gordon finished third, Earnhardt fourth, Harvick fifth, Edwards sixth, Biffle seventh and Martin eighth.