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Johnson Rolls To 5th Cup Victory

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A Tribune wire report

Published: September 3, 2007

Updated: 09/03/2007 01:11 am

FONTANA, Calif. - Jimmie Johnson grabbed a Nextel Cup victory Sunday night at California Speedway, clinching a spot in NASCAR's Chase for the Championship and guaranteeing he will be no worse than a tie for the top seed in the 10-race playoff.

Johnson dominated the second half of the Sharp Aquos 500, a race that began in bright sunshine with temperatures hotter than 100 degrees and finished under the lights. It was his fifth victory of the season, but his first since May 6 at Richmond.

'It has been a few months since we won,' said Johnson. 'It's good to be back.'

'The season is all about a championship,' Johnson said. 'It's time for the pressure to pick up and the hard work to start. My guys are ready for it. ...We're hitting our stride when we need to.'

This one was just as important, though, with NASCAR awarding a 10-point bonus for each win this season in seeding the 12 drivers who will compete in the Chase.

There was some shuffling at the bottom of that group, with Martin Truex Jr. and Kurt Busch each moving up one spot to 10th and 11th, respectively, while Daytona 500 winner Kevin Harvick slipped from 10th to 12th.

Jeff Gordon retained the overall points lead with 3,679, ahead of Tony Stewart by 317.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. began and ended the race in 13th in the standings, despite a solid fifth-place finish. But he did cut his margin from 158 behind Busch coming in to 128 behind Harvick heading into Saturday night's race at Richmond, the final event before the start of the Chase.

'It doesn't look like we're going to make it, but we're not going to quit trying to,' Earnhardt Jr. said.

Johnson, who took the lead for good after a series of green flag pit stops 32 laps from the end of the 250-lap event, easily held off runner-up Carl Edwards in the waning laps. Kyle Busch finished third, followed by Jeff Burton, Earnhardt, Matt Kenseth, Truex, Brian Vickers and Kurt Busch.

Harvick finished 13th.

'Running second is terrible,' Edwards said. 'I just hope we run this well in the Chase.'

It has been typical for Johnson to start fast, persevere through a summer swoon and kick things back into gear as it comes time for the Chase. Last year, he finished second four times and won once in a five-race stretch late in the title drive that carried him to his first championship.

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