Jimmie Johnson Closing on the Finish Line

The race for NASCAR’s dash for the line of the Sprint Cup Championship is coming down to the last corner with Jimmie Johnson 108 points ahead of Mark Martin and the pack a distant sight behind him. Mark Martin was looking like he might have a chance to grab his first Sprint Cup Series title, but now the 2009 Sprint Cup Series title is pulling away from him and Jimmie Johnson is about to bask in the glory and money of a Sprint Cup Series championship. The celebration party after the last race is going to be a would-love-to-be-there event that would probably be the party of a lifetime for most folks, but this will in fact be Jimmie Johnson’s fourth consecutive Sprint Cup Series championship, after he finishes 25^th or better in the final race at Homestead Miami Speedway on Sunday.

Jimmie Johnson celebrates his win in the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500

One can almost feel sorry for Mark Martin, until one remembers that he’s a racer in one of the most popular and well paid motorsports in the world and has a great life. Just because you don’t win it all, doesn’t mean you should hang your head. Mark has had a tremendous year and unfortunately for him, he has been racing against a better overall package the last few years. Jimmie and his No.48, along with his team, have consistently been the best for four years running and it doesn’t look like they plan on making any changes, so there could be a difficult few years for his competition ahead.

One could make an argument for Jimmie Johnson being the best to ever sit behind the wheel of a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car. Jimmie is best when closing on the line of his goal, which is usually the line of a NASCAR competition, and now that he has gotten his bearing and line on the track back, the 2009 Sprint Cup Series could be over. He might have let off the gas a bit in Texas, but now he’s back on the pedal and his line to the Chase finish line appears to be clear ahead of him.

Jimmie will come to Homestead Miami Speedway confident and only really needing to stick to his lines and stay out of traffic that could possibly take him out of the race and it should be good enough for the win. This is Jimmie Johnson were talking about and he’ll come out and see if he can win the race, not play it safe. Legends are legends for a reason and Jimmie isn’t someone to play it safe or he wouldn’t be out on a NASCAR track. This doesn’t mean he’ll be reckless, but I do expect him to try to win, if the chance shows itself.

“Image: Zuma Press”