JIMMIE JOHNSON
NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO
ROCKINGHAM PREVIEW
JIMMIE JOHNSON COMMENTS
HOW DOES THE NEW TIRE COMPOUND CHANGE THE WAY YOU LOOK AT ROCKINGHAM?
“It’s going to change the balance of the car. There’s no question about that. Our set-ups aren’t going to directly cross over to last year’s set-ups. So there’s going to be some work to be done when we all show up and we’re all going to be scrambling – especially at these first four or five intermediate track races – trying to understand the differences from our set-ups in 2003. It’s still the same track. They haven’t repaved it. So the characteristics will still be the same, but there will be a different balance with the car. We’ll find out shortly.”
ARE YOU CONCERNED ABOUT TIRE WEAR?
“No, I’m not really worried. Partly because I don’t now what tracks they’ve changed the compounds for. We run on numerous compounds and constructions on all the tracks. And I’m not so sure they’ve changed the tire for that track (Rockingham). I know that the spoiler will be different. But I think the softer tires are really on the mile and a half tracks and some of the other tracks. I don’t know if they’ve changed it for Rockingham.”
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT ROCKINGHAM?
“Rockingham has been another track that it’s taken me a while to get used to and get things sorted out. It’s been a lot of learning for me through years of Busch racing and years of Cup. Last year in the fall race, I finished second and was one of the leaders all day long and ran up front. So I’m very excited about going back and going back and I hope I’ll be able to get our first win of the season there.”
RACE NOTES
CHASSIS INFORMATION
· Johnson will be driving Chassis 4850 at Rockingham. Team 48 won both Dover races with this chassis in 2002 and ran it to a second-place finish at Rockingham in the fall of 2003.
STATS & FACTS
THE STREAKS CONTINUE
· Jimmie Johnson extended the longest current streak for consecutive weeks in the NASCAR Top 10 to 70 weeks with his 5th place finish in Sunday’s Daytona 500. It is the 9th longest streak in the modern era (1972-present). Should Johnson remain in the NASCAR Top 10 the entire 2004 season, he will pass Richard Petty and take sole possession of sixth place on the all-time list.
· Team Lowe’s Racing also extended its streak of consecutive top-five finishes to seven with its performance last week in Daytona. The team’s streak began in October of 2003 at Kansas City.
MOST RECENT RUN AT ROCKINGHAM
· Jimmie Johnson entered the 2003 fall race at Rockingham on a hot streak, having posted four consecutive top-three finishes. When the green flag dropped on the 400-mile event, Johnson began his steady charge from the 18th starting position to the front of the field. Being cautious, Johnson utilized solid pit stops and a steady pace to crack the top-10 by lap 40 and eventually climb into the top-five by lap 130, where he would stay for the remainder of the 393-lap race. Johnson, who climbed to a season-high second place in the point standings that afternoon, led a total of 78 laps in the event.
DAYTONA 500 RECAP
· Johnson started the race from the sixth position and was a fixture in the front of the field all day long. He used various drafting partners throughout the day to stay in contention and assumed the lead less than 40 laps into the race. He led five times throughout the day for a total of 16 laps. Single-file racing ensued past the midway point and the front pack of cars became separated after a series of pit stops. Johnson led the second draft of cars for the latter stages of the race, but his group couldn’t close the gap on the lead pack in order to make a run at the top spot. The finish was the team’s third consecutive top-10 finish at the 2.5-mile track and extended Johnson’s streak of consecutive weeks in the NASCAR Top 10 to 70. Johnson is fifth in the inaugural week of the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series points race.
IROC OPENER A SUCCESS
· Johnson started second in the 2004 IROC season opener at Daytona, a position picked by a member of the racing media at a special press conference. The 40-lap race showcased several leaders, including Johnson who led the most laps (12). Johnson used the draft to push toward the front at the end, making a last lap attempt at the checkered flag. Another competitor sent him spinning in the infield grass as he crossed the line in fourth place.
