Chevy Rock and Roll 400 - Jimmie Johnson Notes

Team 48 Richmond Preview

Jimmie Johnson and Team 48 travel to Richmond International Raceway on Saturday night for the 400-mile race on the short track. Johnson leads the 2004 points race by 50 points over Jeff Gordon. Only Johnson and the top five drivers in points have clinched places in the 10-driver, 10-race “Chase For The Championship” that begins in New Hampshire a week after the Richmond race.

Johnson’s performance is important not only his team but also to others as well especially if he continues leading the points after Saturday’s race. All drivers outside the top 10 within 400 points of the point’s leader after Richmond are also eligible to participate in the championship battle. No driver outside the top 10 is eligible now. Johnson is 449 points ahead of 11th-place Jamie McMurray.

Johnson will also compete in the third of the year’s four International Race of Champions races Thursday night at Richmond. It will be the IROC Series’ inaugural short track race.

Jimmie Johnson:

MOMENTUM: "It’s important to everybody and every team. (At California) We had a fair night, had a top-five car, but ended up 14th with some bad luck there at the end. We are more focused on that and the performance of our car than the points lead. It’s a nice thing but there is no money on the line and there will be only five points between first and second (when the “Chase For The Championship begins) and between second and third. It’s really no big deal being in the points lead but I definitely want to have a good Richmond so we can only have 10 cars in the final 10 races. Actually, the momentum we have from our last Richmond race has got me fired up more than anything about going to Richmond.”

HOW HARD WILL THE RACING BE AS DRIVERS TRY TO CLINCH A SPOT IN THE “CHASE FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP?” “I don’t know. I think we are all witnessing something new and will learn together. The guys running around the cut off spot are in a sense competing for the championship and having that pressure of the championship put on their shoulders. Usually you only have one or two guys competing with that type of pressure and we are all watching with a microscope to see how they act and how they will handle things. Now you have eighth through 15th and its going to be a totally different environment.”

IROC RACE ON THURSDAY: “I have never had to regularly use the brakes in an IROC race. So, yes, I think that is going to effect things and I think that is why it is going to be a great race. I think the other tracks, even though we have raced at Indy, Chicago, and Texas, have really been like restrictor plate style races for the IROC cars. The cars have a lot of downforce, they are very equal, and you just run in a pack drafting. At Richmond, the performance of the car is going to fall more into the driver’s hands. I would hope to see a road course on the IROC circuit and maybe even a dirt race. We race in Texas and there is a dirt track across the street. I would love to see more elements like that down the road. I think it would show more of the driver’s abilities and fairer to the drivers competing. Steve Kinser and Danny Lasoski are dirt racers and they are competing in races that are restrictor plate races which cater to NASCAR drivers…just to be fairer and equal to everyone involved IROC should have all elements involved.”

Crew Chief Chad Knaus:

TESTING FOR FINAL RACES: “We are going to Martinsville, Talladega, Phoenix, and Homestead to test. We wanted to try to save a little bit of time for us to pinpoint the tracks where we would be racing in the final 10 events. And, we wanted to be able to focus on those tracks.

“The No. 24 team is testing at almost the exact same tracks as we are except we are going to Talladega and they are going to Dover. They brought on the same plan we did. We feel like they are the team we have to beat for the championship and they feel the same about us. We picked the tests that we felt we needed that will propel us to the top.”

TESTING ADVANTAGES: “Any time you test you gain an advantage not only from performance standpoint but from a driver feel standpoint. When a driver goes to the race track and unloads for qualifying, you have an advantage if you were there a few weeks ago. He knows his rhythm he knows the groove he knows the rough spots in the pavement. That’s always an advantage.” RACE NOTES CHASSIS INFORMATION
Team Lowe’s Racing will bring car No. 4877 to Richmond International Raceway. The Lowe’s team built this car in 2004 and raced it to a fourth-place finish at Martinsville and a second-place finish at Richmond in May.

STATS & FACTS

At Richmond