Dominating day for Jimmie Johnson

By Mike Smith (contact)

Sunday, Oct. 19, 2008 | 8:35 p.m.

Jimmie Johnson led 339 laps to win under a green-white-checkered finish at Martinsville and took another large step toward reaching Cale Yarborough’s record of three consecutive championships. Without a doubt, the No. 48 team currently sets the gold standard in Sprint Cup racing.

Would someone please give this team a run for their money so we can see a duel for the points lead in the last four races.

Jeff Burton, who started the race second in points, dropped to third in the standings, finishing the race in the 17th position. He was philosophical in his post-race interview about a pit stop penalty that put him a lap down. Jeff never seems to get rattled and usually approaches adversity with a lot of perspective and maturity. No wonder he’s the “mayor” of the garage area.

Carl Edwards drove across the finish line in the third position and maintained his fourth slot in the points standings after he was unable to hold off a late-race charge by Dale Earnhardt Jr., who finished second.

Greg Biffle finished in the 12th place but jumped one spot to second in the points standings.

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Several drivers suffered right-front tire failures as a result of excessive brake heat. Martinsville has always been hard on brakes, but this race seemed to produce more brake and tire issues than in the past. Nevertheless, many teams completed the race without any tire problems. Suspension setup and the ability to conserve brakes probably kept these teams from kissing the wall as a result of a blown tire.

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I found myself a little depressed after the race since this is the last short-track race of the Chase. I know I’ve said it a million times, but we need more short tracks in the Sprint Cup Series. If a race is ever taken away from Martinsville and relocated to a cookie-cutter track, I hope NASCAR fans will march on NASCAR’s Daytona offices in protest.

What sets this track apart from so many other tracks in the series is its personality. The paper clip shape, a pit road that’s as tight as a can of sardines and curbing on the turns force the drivers to deal with a list of variables they wouldn’t face at other tracks. As a result, fans know that a race at Martinsville will always included the unpredictable. The sport could use a few more tracks that throw unusual challenges at the teams.

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I’m sure you read the reports from the past week that Petty Enterprises has had preliminary talks about a partnership with Dale Earnhardt Inc. In addition, Petty Enterprise’s Robbie Loomis reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to Dodge. I doubt DEI wound give up its association with General Motors and it obviously doesn’t sound like Petty’s team would consider leaving Dodge. So how could a Chevy team and a Dodge team merge or form a partnership? Well, what if GM and Chrysler became one company? Newspapers reported this past week that GM is holding merger talks with Chrysler. It’s probably not cost effective for a racing team to use two body styles and two engines, but if GM and Chrysler were to become one company, it might make a Chevy/Dodge team possible.

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