What was thought to have been a foregone conclusion some weeks ago turned into reality as the laps wound down on the Ford 400 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday evening.
With the focus on Jimmie Johnson’s pursuit of a fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title, the outcome of the race was relegated to back-burner status for much of the race. As the only chaser within striking distance of the point’s leader, Mark Martin could do little to make the Championship Chase go down to the wire. Starting the day 108 points in arrears of his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, the driver of the No. 5 Kellogg’s/Carquest Chevrolet was never able to mount a challenge that would prevent Johnson new entry into the record books.
With everyone but Johnson looking to make a statement on the final day of the 2009 season, the fireworks flew early and often as Tony Stewart and Juan Pablo Montoya took the last day of school to challenge the authority of the sport to maintain discipline. By the end of the evening, the sand box where the two children had played was, for the most part, devoid of sand and toys as virtually everything had been hurled at one another over on the track and over the radio.
One final look at the 2009 Championship Chase will close the book on nine plus months of racing before starting the countdown clock to Daytona and the start of the 2010 campaign.
Jimmie Johnson completed his quest for the four-peat and captured an unprecedented fourth straight NASCAR Sprint Cup title. Starting from the pole position and proceeding to lead the first nine laps, the driver of the No. 48 Lowes Chevrolet settled into ‘safe’ mode for the majority of the race – keeping the No. 5 in his rearview mirror. Johnson briefly surrendered the lead to Marcus Ambrose before the Aussie driver went to pit road after brushing the wall. It would be the last time the Lowes Chevrolet would lead the race. Keeping the big picture (and big trophy) in focus, crew chief Chad Knaus and Jimmie Johnson played their cards close to the vest, taking few risks as the laps wound down on yet another championship run. With Mark Martin earning 127 points for a 12th place run, the No. 48 team could have finished 43rd on the day and still captured their fourth title.
Mark Martin, with a career fifth runner-up in his personal championship chase, had little for the No. 48 team on Sunday evening at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Running well back of Jimmie Johnson for most of the Ford 400, only the final standings from second to fourth were in doubt. As the checkered flag waved, Championship Chase positions one, two, three and four had remained unchanged on the day and Martin had yet another bouquet thrown from the bride. Afterwards, appearing somewhat fatigued from the season-long battle, the driver of the No. 5 Kellogg’s/Carquest Chevrolet remained upbeat and ready for the challenge that lay ahead in the new season and his continuing quest for the sport’s ultimate crown.
Jeff Gordon protected his turf in the Chase as he maintained the third place in the final Championship Chase standings. Starting 20th on the grid for the Ford 400, the driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet ran with the front pack all day but, like Martin, failed to lead a lap and ran sixth on the day.
Kurt Busch, looking to move up in the Chase standings, appeared to be making inroads throughout the race and was on the verge of breaking up the HMS one-two-three sweep but could not overtake Jeff Gordon. The driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge lead five times for 43 laps and finished fourth to close out his 2009 campaign.
Denny Hamlin, while winning the Ford 400 as well as leading the most laps, was no doubt the most underappreciated winning driver of the season. Sitting in victory lane while the Sprint Cup Champion is taking a victory lap will take a toll on the victory celebration. Leading three times for 71 laps and establishing a winning margin of almost three seconds, the driver of the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota had plenty to celebrate as he looked forward to a new season a few short weeks down the road. With six top fives offset by four finishes outside of the top 20, Hamlin will look back on the 2009 Championship Chase as a ‘missed opportunity.’ Additionally, the missed opportunity will show that Hamlin out-pointed Johnson in five of 10 Chase events, two more than any other chaser.
Tony Stewart was the regular season point’s leader and seemed destined to dethrone Jimmie Johnson for the 2009 Chase Championship. But a funny thing happened on the way to the awards banquet, it did not happen. Five top 10’s combined with five non-top 10’s and a Chase average finish of 13.9 did not allow the former champion to wrestle the Cup away from the four-time champion. Ending the season with three of the final four finishes outside of the top 20 the magic of the regular season never carried over to the Chase for the owner-driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet.
Greg Biffle completed the 2009 season with back-to-back 14th place finishes and moved to seventh place in the final Chase standings. After starting the Chase at the back of the pack, it was not the season envisioned by the driver of the No. 16 3M Ford Fusion. A new engine, a new season and expect to see a strong resurgence for the Roush-keteers come February 2010.
Juan Pablo Montoya, never one to leave his cards or his feelings on the table, ended the 2009 Championship Chase with considerable notoriety but not completely on a positive note. An on-track scuffle with Tony Stewart brought lots of attention to the driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet but could easily be translated into end of season frustration. Montoya shadowed Johnson for the first four weeks of the Chase until an unfortunate run on week five at Charlotte took the former open-wheel champion out of contention. The man and the machine are championship material; it is only a matter of time for Juan Pablo Montoya to rise to the top.
Ryan Newman, the other half of the Stewart-Haas tandem, took many of the racing world by surprise putting both cars into the 2009 Chase in their first season. Two top 10 finishes to start the Chase were quickly followed by mediocre runs combined with a highlight reel crash at Talladega. These less than stellar finishes relegated the driver of the No. 39 U.S. Army All-American Bowl Chevrolet to lower echelon of the Chase standings. A strong team organization, good equipment and solid driving talent should again make the Stewart-Haas duo contenders in the 2010 season.
Kasey Kahne started the 2009 Championship chase tied with Denny Hamlin for fourth and only 20 points back on the leader. A blown engine in the first Chase event quickly put the driver of the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge behind the eight ball. Four top 10 finishes were offset by four runs of 32nd or worse – not championship racing by any stretch. Off track upheaval did little to instill confidence in Kahne but rejuvenation could be in the offing if internal strife is reconciled prior to Daytona.
Carl Edwards, the most frequent visitor to victory lane in 2008, was unable to find the magic in 2009 and was never able to make positive strides in the Championship Chase. Three top 10s as well as a Chase average finish of 17.9 was, no doubt, disappointing for the driver of the No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion. Look for Jack Roush to make the most of the off-season and bring a strong contingent to the beaches of Daytona in February.
Brian Vickers was just never able to re-capture the magic that brought him into the Chase on the last weekend of the regular season at Richmond International Raceway. No top 10’s and a best finish of 11th (twice) will cause the driver of the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota to re-think their Chase strategy over the off-season and bring a new game plan when the new season starts.
A long and grueling season beginning in early February at Daytona International Speedway has finally come to a conclusion back in the Sunshine State where it all started back many weeks and miles ago. A four-time consecutive champion was crowned for the first time in NASCAR history and has set the standard for all to aspire. Whether the run of good fortune will continue or not will be seen as the NASCAR world again returns to Daytona in just over 11 weeks.
After 10 months of hard work, we wish each and every team Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year. You make NASCAR racing the greatest sport on the planet Earth.
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