On Sunday at Fontana, four-time reigning Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson came off pit road on lap 227, took the lead, and never lost it in winning his first race of the 2010 season.
He benefited from some good fortune when the caution came out when he was already in his pit box, allowing him to charge to the front.
Lucky? Perhaps.
Everyone needs a little, and championship performers and championship teams often make their own.
It prompted Kevin Harvick — who is on track to have an outstanding season himself — to suggest that Johnson has a horseshoe lodged in his backside.
Johnson laughed, but then quickly pointed out that his success isn’t based solely on a four-leaf clover or rabbit’s foot.
“Yes, we were lucky today,” Johnson said after Sunday’s checker. “But you don’t get lucky and win four championships and 48 races. Things went our way with the pit stop, but I had to go out there and hold off Kevin. I’m not discrediting the fact that we were handed a huge gift when we were on pit road and the caution came out. It is what it is and we’ve had plenty of races go the other way on us.
“From how consistent we’ve been from the first races we’ve been in from eight seasons ago until now, it’s because we’re a good race team.”
No doubt about that. And he gets the job done in a low-key manner.
He rarely feuds with other drivers, he stays on an even keel emotionally whether he wins or blows an engine, and basically just shows up at the track, does his media obligations, then races.
He’s not a “rock star” like Dale Earnhardt Jr., nor is he quick-witted — and often biting — like Tony Stewart.
In a way he reminds me of Pete Sampras. Pete won 14 Grand Slam titles in a 15-year career. He went about his business in such a workmanlike fashion that some fans found him boring.
I can’t think of any memorable Johnson quotes or infamous dust-ups he’s had on the track. That being said, he should be judged by what he does in the cockpit, and what he has accomplished behind the wheel of a NASCAR machine is hardly boring.
Still, Johnson has more goals.
“For me there’s a few tracks on the series that have given me a hard time,” he said. “The track in Sonoma. A road course race in general is something I want to win at. Plate stuff I feel like I’m doing better. It’s taken me a while to learn the (Car of Tomorrow) and plate racing. I want to do better on the plate tracks.
“But when you come to the short tracks and mile-and-a-half, two-mile tracks, we’ve been really, really strong on those. You know, not to be corny, but (the goal is to) just keep winning. If we’re winning races, we’re going to win a championship.”
Johnson has already done both, thanks to being one of the greatest drivers of his generation and working for a team that might be the greatest in NASCAR history.
And a little luck here and there hasn’t hurt, either.
It's all about luck baby!
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