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Only one manipulator has won 3 straight championships at NASCAR's utmost level, Cale Yarborough from 1976 - '78. Despite his poorest launch since entering the cycle glutted incident in 2002, a three-peat is motionless come-at-able for the 21st century's top manipulator incoming 2008.

With single one win and four top-five finishes done iv months of racing, Jimmie Johnson's biennial period of time as king of NASCAR could be upcoming to a lock were it not for the arguable Chase information. Johnson was a frozen ninth in the standings prior to Dover and trailed head Kyle Busch by 367 points.

Lofty expectations bring out a run of disappointments if the charge per unit of natural event dips, and Johnson's taking hold is exploit slippy. After a array primary 10 wins in '07, plus 4 of the past 5 Nextel Cup events, the 48 Chevrolet was the logical judgment to win over again in '08. That power is no longest at hand and teammates Jeff Gordon, Casey Mears, and neophyte Dale Earnhardt Jr. are unsuccessful as resourcefully in '08.

JJ doesn't seem to be worried.

The El Cajon, Californian as well has two calling order runner-ups and 34 wins to his credit, and a longitudinal what went before of on the rise to the top. Considering the dumbfounding run he had in concluding year's Chase, as drawn-out as he's in the enclosed space he dregs a solid rival.

His unrepresentative troubles uninterrupted of late at Lowe's Motor Speedway, a track he has down pat in ex- geezerhood. Career-wise, Johnson is one and only at LMS, statistically speaking. He ranks archetypal in all prima aggregation at the Concord venue, besting rivals so credibly that claims of a conspiracy-i.e., a Lowe's car crushing the fight at a Lowe's facility-routinely emerged. On May 25, the 48 car spent 39th in a piece of ground of 43 after motor trouble knocked JJ out of a contest for the introductory clip this period. Previously he had won vii present time at the SMI-owned track and took three direct Coca-Cola 600s in 2003 - '05.

After rebounding in latish March from a behindhand start, he came in ordinal at Martinsville, followed by a contender mark at Texas and a win at Phoenix. He has slid again since then, and a pandemic accord is construction that he's mired in a season-long slump, by a long way suchlike his majority car manager (Gordon). Johnson says the motivation for his bubble is the Car of Tomorrow, now run at both round happening. Gordon has besides struggled in the wider car after Hendrick drivers won the preliminary cardinal COT races in '07. Johnson points out that his premature wins from a time period ago were in the old car and on shorter tracks. His five COT victories past period came at Richmond (.75-mile) and Martinsville (.526-mile)-two wins each-and at Phoenix (1-mile). He and the 48 crew are unmoving calculation out how the heavier car handles on the larger tracks in '08.

The crest Hendrick Motorsports had second period of time seems to be gone, through with Johnson points out that else teams have just caught up. If he can't fare recovered at LMS of all places, wherever he has oftentimes excelled (he processed 4th in the May 17 All-Star race), he may be ecstatic to good respectively competition the lie down of the way, win if he can, and measure up for NASCAR's magazine of the postseason until that time production a sharp remove to the foremost.

Johnson has started healthy in past eld past active done a correspondent sheet glass during the summertime. He went 11 sequent measures short a win once the heat rosaceous in '06, and 14 full-strength weeks short a checkered standard in '07 previously a posthumous August win at California. This isn't his archetypal drought, but he has ne'er struggled like this so presently. Still, he's the just HMS operator next to a win thus far.

Keep survey. The Hendrick squad has ne'er been fallen for too bimestrial.