HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- The hard-core conspirators will think NASCAR scripted it. The reality is Jimmie Johnson was the fastest driver of the day.Johnson will start his No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet from the pole position in Sunday's Ford 400 at Homestead Miami Speedway -- the ultimate beginning to the last chapter in his quest to become the first driver to win four consecutive championships.
Of all things Johnson knocked his Hendrick Motorsports teammate -- and only title challenger left -- Mark Martin off the top spot on the qualifying speed chart. Johnson leads Martin by 108 points and needs only to finish 25th or better to clinch his historic championship.
Later Friday afternoon, rookies Scott Speed and Australian Marcos Ambrose bettered Martin's qualifying run, ultimately relegating the veteran to a fourth-place start.
"It is ironic and cool at the same time,'' Johnson said of knocking Martin off the pole. "It should be evident to all watching how hard both of us drivers are pushing.''
"I have to say, the car was better than I expected it to be,'' said Johnson who has collected four poles this season. "I'm definitely excited for track position and having the first pit stall. Being at the front is just the safest place to be.''
Typically that's a given, but Johnson finds himself surrounded by rookies in the biggest race of the year. His front row mate, Speed, in particular, has proven to be accident prone. The former Formula One driver insisted he didn't have a plan for the race start, but did say, "you don't want to be the idiot that wrecks the 48 either.''
Ambrose was more candid in his bid for situational awareness.
"Let's just say I'll be following him in line going into Turn One,'' Ambrose said. "He certainly knows his way around this place for sure. He's got like a halo around him.
"I won't be on his bumper though, I"ll be a little distance behind, let him do his own thing. He'll have a halo around him. It'll be like on the interstate, staying a car-length behind,'' Ambrose joked.
For his part, Johnson said he wasn't too worried about the starting grid.
"I'm not taking anything for granted,'' Johnson said. "But I'm happy to hear both Marcos and Scott know what's going on. They've both raced for championships before. They know.''
Of course that's not to say Johnson will be getting any free passes.
"It's a fine line between looking out for yourself and looking at the big picture,'' Ambrose said.
In other qualifying notes, Tony Stewart was fifth fastest, Jeff Gordon was 20th quickest and Juan Pablo Montoya, 23rd. Dale Earnhardt Jr. will start 32nd.
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
He is used to sitting on poles. Normally, its a france pole or hendrick pole that he sits on.
HE ALSO SEATS ON JEFF GORDON POLE.WHY DO YOU THINK JEFF GORDON HAS JUST BEEN RIDING ALONG WITHOUT EVEN TRYING?JG IS PART OF THE CHEAT CONSPIRACY INVOLVING NASCAR HENDRICK, JJ AND CHEAT KNAUS???
Grow up, dorks. I dislike Johnson as much as anybody, but I dislike immature douchebags even more.
Once again let me run this by all you gay conspiracy believers out there. The only way you could know if those guys were really gay is that ya'll were out on the town one night, went back to their motel room and took a di*k up your a**. The reason all you b*tches are crying is that your drivers haven't won a race and or isn't in the chase. What yall need to do is go help your drivers pull the d*ck from their a** so they can sit up straight in their car and drive like a big boy. And for the ones who think Jeff and Jr. should leave Hendrick's must not know much about contracts and that Jeff has a lifetime contract with Hendrick,there is no way Hendrick is going to let JR. get away due to the fact there is way to much money to be made off all the JR. nation fans. SUCKAS!!!!!
a real fan would not talk like that. LOSER
All the top dogs are gone. The only thing remaining on these threads are the fleas.
Go Jimmy!!! Strive for FIVE!!!
"I'm not taking anything for granted,'' Johnson said. "But I'm happy to hear both Marcos and Scott know what's going on. They've both raced for championships before. They know.''
I am sure everyhone knows whats going on!!! Nobody will get within two or three feet of him.. Course it will be ok to race everyone else, but if you get grass atains on superman, ther will be a price to pay.. Probably the same thing that happened to Mayfield
So what you are saying majicczone is that everyone is going to stay 2 or 3 feet from Jimmie. Then you must be saying everyone is going to ride behind him since he has the pole position for Sundays race. You must be out of your mind to even think that. The 42 other guys are still going to race just as hard and try to score every point they can for their team so they can finish as high as they can in the points this year and be in the top 35 in points for a secured starting position the first 6 races of next year. I would love to hear what Tony Stewart, Kyle Bush,Juan Pablo Montoya and so on would say if NASCAR told them not to get around Jimmie or not to race him if they had the chance for the win or even to pass him. Even his own team mates wouldn't go along for that B.S. Do you really think Mark Martin is going to lay back and let Jimmie just ride and not try to gain every spot he can incase Jimmie wrecks, blows a motor or even blows a tire. GET FOR REAL PEOPLE!!!
MAGICZONE, THE OTHER 42 DRIVER WILL BE DRIVING AS HARD AS NASCAR TELLS THEM TO.
IT HAPPENS EVERY YEAR;NASCAR TELLS ALL THE OTHER DRIVERS NO TO RACE HARD THE CHASE CONTENDERS AND TOWARDS THE LAST FEW RACES TELLS THE OTHER CHASE
DRIVERS NO TO RACE HARD THE PROJECTED CHAMP.
I think I struck a nerve or did I hit on something you don't want other people to know about you. Or is it just the fact that your driver is a c**ck sucker, or maybe the both of you are c**ck suckers and you are afraid of everyone else finding out. Everytime someone does good at something everybody that doesn't like them say they are gay. Sounds to me it's the haters who have the problems because they are just pi**ed off they don't have the n*ts to get in a race car and do what those guys do every week. That must mean you just have a flap over your pu**y to keep the dust out!!!
No, what happend to Mayfield was he started running his mouth about Ray Everham's personal life business to the media instead of going to him like a true man face to face and talking to him in private. Thats whats wrong with most of the people now a day's, they want to bitch and wine to everyone except the one they have an issue with
Most of NASCAR fans are lucky to be able to walk and talk at the same time. Thats why many years ago when this all got started it was centered around Alabama, where most of the people aren't smart enough to know better. Maybe thats why they all think Roll Tide is the best college team out there when they are simply the most over rated gave to team in college football history.
Go Jimmy!! Strive for FIVE!!!
I see you had to block a few letters there NASCAR JUSTICE. I'm most sure I got more knoledge in my little toe then you do in your head. And by the way you got all up set over my gay comment and everything, you must have something you want to tell us all, thats if your not from Alabama and can have an intelligent conversation on the NASCAR subject.
jeff
Did you bother to read the article or did you go straight to the post and start your lip service?
I quoted what Marcos and Scott said . go back and actually read the article and then actually think before you engage your mouth (in this case fingers)..
Marcos said that he would get in line behind superman and follow him through turns 1 and 2.. as well did Scott... I did not say in any context that Mark was going to roll over and play dead, those are words that you installed to help with your argument that NASCAR is all up and up straight.. What I did say was that the other racers would not race superman as hard as they will Mark, Jeff and the others.. ( last week several drivers got into Jeff and Mark both, while at the same time giving superdude a wide berth.. The closest they got to him was on restarts and even then they quickly moved away from him..
Superman keeps trying to justify all this and is doing a very good job of making it look as if it is indeed manufactured..
do I believe that his first two championships were earned,.... YES I DO... Do I believe that this one is being set up by NASCAR to make history... YES I DO... eveyone is talking about nascar, but not in the context that nascar had hoped for...
However if we can believe that nascar is totally on the up and up , then I guess we should also believe that AIG's failure was a hoax and was a bad dream by us as well.. That GM and Dodge really didn't have finacial problems... That banks haven't been failing...
Type in F1 scandals, in your search engine and see all the crap that Renault has done in manipulating F1 races.. Then there is the radio transmission of several years back when Schumachers teammate was told to slow and allow Schumacher to pass him for the win..
There is the recent (within a week) of the FIFA allowing a opvious bad call to settle the game with Ireland allowing the French into the world cup next year...
The BCS flap about manipulating the system to keep certain teams out..
Baseball and basketball should be the easiest sports in the world to repeatedly repeat, and they can't.... HMMMMMMMM
Then Hendrick himself has been convicted of lying to a grand jury... we know he wouldn't ever lie about anything again, because he domne been caught once...
Superman and Marks shocks are found to be out of tolerance earlier in the year.. they were told to be careful or there would be a penality.
Latarte Eury Jr. and other crew cheifs get suspensions for ther first offense. Chad Knaus doesn't get a suspension until his fifth infraction..
How dare anyone think that NASCAR would or could do the same thing... take off the BLINDERS Jeff they seem to be obscuring you vision..
Congratulation magic zone; you explained some of the nascar dirty dealing to JEFF POOP very well.
Lets hope that PSYCHO KIM reads this, or please be kind enough to explain it to her again someday.
thanks.The 48 is the biggest cheat in nascar history and nascar plus RE the briber is part of the conspiracy!.
I HOPE SOMEONE WILL TAKE jj OUT IN THE 1ST LAB SO MARK will win it all
i guess most of yall cry babies are either ahh ,18 fan or 14 fan,am right i know i am.but because the best driver there is, and always will be is 48. so stop being crying like 18.today 48 will make nascar history.not in ever sport has anyone done a 4 peat,48 will,what ever yah sport is .but give 48 his due, he is there best driver for 4 years now .and maybe a 5 peat, am sure if it was your driver you wud call it history, well it will be history today,one more thing ,i didnt know chit about nascar, till 4 years ago.i asked the wife i married. i asked her.i watch hockey on sundays .now you tell me what you want to watch. she said nascar.i told her i dont know chit about thuis spot educate me. as we watched the nascar race i told her i like the 48 car. she liked 8 which at that time was jr.she educated me on the pit stops and stuff. takin the windshield off.gas and tires. i still told her am going for the 48 car, and at that time i didnt know it was jimmie,after that one race i been hooked on nascar, and 48, i have two cars ,plates are 48nascr
the other one is nascr48,,go jimmie,read it and weep kyle cry babies fans
What would cap it off today is the 48 gets his 48th win of his career, by far more than anyone since 2002. Wins are what it's all about and nobody wins more than Jimmy.