So, we’re down to the last race, Sunday at Homestead. It’s been an a hell of a year—just amazing. Of course for our team, the Chase has been a bummer. It seems like the stuff that could go wrong went wrong for us in the most important stretch, these last nine races. But for us, as a young team, even making the Chase is just huge. It’s a big leap forward. And next year we’ll get even better. We’re already thinking of next year: our 2010 team photos are Tuesday. No rest.
But first: the Sprint Cup championship in two days. Jimmie Johnson going for it all.
If Jimmie can come through, like we think he will—finish in the top 25 or whatever, and win his fourth championship in a row, it’ll be just unbelievable. I don’t think he’s gotten enough credit in the sports world.
I don’t wanna take anything away from the racing greats, like Richard Petty, but when he went and won 200 races, there were maybe 1, 2, maybe 3 cars finishing on the lead lap. In the Chase era, we’re seeing 20-30 cars finish on the lead lap. We’re seeing 10 or 20 cars separated by tenths of seconds. And Jimmie Johnson, to be on top through all these races. For four years. To be that consistent—it’s unbelievable. It’s a great story. I know I’m proud of him.
To put it simply, I think this is probably one of the biggest, if not the biggest, races of our time. See you Sunday.
Watch Vickers and Johnson race for the Sprint Cup this Sunday 11/22 at 2:30pm on ABC.
Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR