KFDM COOP Posted May 7, 2007 Report Posted May 7, 2007 Hendrick Motorsports & Chevrolet dominates at RichmondRICHMOND, Va. -- Jimmie Johnson led teammate Kyle Busch to a 1-2 finish at Richmond International Raceway on Sunday, the third consecutive victory for Hendrick Motorsports.Hendrick has won seven of the past eight Nextel Cup races and swept all four races in which NASCAR has used its new Car of Tomorrow. Jimmie Johnson passed Kyle Busch on a restart on Lap 382 to win the Crown Royal 400 at Richmond Int'l Raceway.It looked as if Hendrick would finish 1-2-3 for the final 100 laps of the race, as Johnson, Busch and polesitter Jeff Gordon battled for the lead. But Gordon faded over the final 15 laps and gave up third place to Denny Hamlin.Gordon, who won the past two weeks, settled for fourth as Chevrolets took the top four spots in the race that began briefly Saturday night with 12 laps run under caution before it was halted because of rain. It started fresh on Sunday.Johnson, the defending Nextel Cup champion, won for the fourth time this season but first at RIR. The .75-mile track has been among the worst on his resume, with Johnson having scored only one top 10 finish in 15 previous visits."This means the world to me to win here," Johnson said. "We haven't been that strong here. It reminds me of Indy last year, and we beat a track that's been tough on us. We looked at it as a new opportunity for the team and myself to learn the right setup and for me to learn the right rhythm of the track and had some awesome racing with my teammate."In this year of Hendrick Motorsports, everything is clicking and the competition is admittedly frustrated."You can argue that Hendrick has all the best drivers," Hamlin said. "It's tough to beat them when they've got four very, very good teams. We've got three good teams, but when you've got four like they have -- all competitive and all running up front every week, the information that they exchange is going to be better."Only Casey Mears, the fourth driver in the Hendrick stable, is struggling. He was wrecked early and finished 18th.
wehc17 Posted May 9, 2007 Report Posted May 9, 2007 Hendrick Motorsports are in a class of themselves! Great equipment, great crews, & great Drivers! 1,2, & 4 finish @ richmond. They have won every C.O.T. race thus far. Gordon is a great leader with stable mates of the likes of Johnson, Kyle Busch, Casey Mears, and Truex Jr.
Recommended Posts