Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin take different paths toward winning 2009 Cup title
Hendrick Motorsports' Jimmie Johnson (left) talks to teammate Mark Martin at Richmond International Raceway in September. // Mark Sluder, NASCAR Scene
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CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Although he is an overwhelming favorite to win a fourth straight Sprint Cup championship Sunday, there is no slowdown in Jimmie Johnson.
He said Thursday he can’t wait to get to Homestead-Miami Speedway Friday to start practice and prepare for Sunday’s Ford 400. He doesn’t consider the championship a lock, although he’s 108 points ahead of Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin, the only other driver with a shot at the title entering the season’s final race.
Johnson said his recent experience at Texas Motor Speedway, where an early-race crash and poor finish allowed Martin to pull closer to him in the point chase, is a solid memory going into the final race.
“Luckily, Texas is still really close in my mind and something I think about,” Johnson said Thursday afternoon. “Because of what happened in Texas, I’m not letting my guard down, and I think about the ‘what-ifs.’ I’m trying to keep the same mindset and focus I had in Phoenix [during a race win last week]. It’s really that mentality. I’m dying to get to the race track. I’m worrying about qualifying trim and race trim. I’m eager for tomorrow [Friday]. It will help getting in the car and getting a feel for the track and the tire.”
From practice through the end of the race, the weekend will be “all business,” Johnson said.
“I am out of emotion,” he said. “There is no emotion. It’s all business. It’s all about putting down the best lap I can Friday and doing the best job I can Sunday. It’s all business this week.”
Martin, still in search of his first championship, said the year has exceeded his expectations regardless of Sunday’s results.
“I didn’t know if I could compete against Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. coming into this season,” he said of his three Hendrick teammates. “But I knew that I was going to give it everything, my whole heart. But I didn’t know for a fact that I could measure up to those guys in their prime.”
Asked about his place in the history of the sport and the general respect with which he’s viewed despite never winning a title, Martin said: “My record does not stand up against the greats in this business. I just want to be a winner. Just a winner. That doesn’t mean a career or at Monopoly or Scrabble. I just want to be a winner. And I’ve worked really hard to be that.”
Martin said he has never attempted to steal a championship “using a mask and a gun, but I’ve tried to work hard for it.”
Team owner Rick Hendrick is in the best position. He will come out a winner no matter what and will set a NASCAR record with 12 national touring series championships, including nine Cup titles. Hendrick could also become the first team owner in NASCAR history to sweep the top three spots in the standings.
“I would have to say this is probably as good as it gets,” Hendrick said. “You know, to have the three cars in the points where they are right now, having the championship as owner going into Homestead already secured, we've won a lot of races, and this has got to be as good as any season we've ever had.”
