It’s become about as routine this time of year on the sports calendar as the start of the NFL season or the baseball playoff stretch drive. If he keeps driving like this, NASCAR can expect another regular fixture in November: Johnson hoisting the series trophy and celebrating a championship.
Johnson thumped the competition in the second Chase for the championship race, sweeping the season races at Dover International Speedway to accelerate his bid for an unprecedented fourth straight Sprint Cup title.
“I’m pretty sure that dude is Superman,” runner-up Mark Martin said.
He was pretty super on the concrete in the No. 48 Chevrolet. If three championships weren’t enough to intimidate the rest of the Chase field, the way he won on Sunday should send another message: He’s just really getting going on a fourth.
“As far as sending a message, I hope it does,” Johnson said. “I hope people are worried.”
Johnson cut Martin’s points lead with the victory — his fourth of the year and 44th overall — in the second of 10 races in the Chase for the championship.
“I’ve seen that dude up close and I see why he’s so successful,” said Martin, Johnson’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate. “He works harder at it than anybody else, I think, on the circuit.”
No winner of the second Dover race has ever gone on to win the Cup championship. If any driver can reverse that trend, it’s Johnson. Much as he did in May, Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet was out in front for the majority of the 400-mile race.
“I certainly hope that our performance today scares some people and affects them in a way that benefits us,” Johnson said.
