By: Jeremy SmithWhat else can people say about Jimmie Johnson? What he has accomplished in only seven seasons in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is staggering. In seven seasons Johnson has totaled 40 Wins, 156 Top Tens, 23 Poles...and most importantly the last three NASCAR Sprint Cup Championships. He is only the 2nd driver ever to three-peat the other being Cale Yarbrough, and now being the clear favorite entering the 2009 season, the only question is can Johnson do something no driver has? Can he win four straight championships? We will all soon find out with the season set to open up in one month on February 15th with the Daytona 500. And with the Daytona 500 comes many changes as well. Tony Stewart is now with his own team and Ryan Newman is his teammate, and Joey Logano is replacing Stewart in the Home Depot car. This season promises to be both historic and exciting.
For the past decade, Jeff Gordon has been thought of as the greatest driver in the series, and while he has the most active championships (4) and the most wins of an active driver (81), Gordon has only eight wins the past three seasons, and went winless in '08 for the first time in his career, while Johnson has 22. Being teammates and car owner of Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon has seemed to have lost some of the edge he used to have on the competition. The 2009 season will have some interesting storylines. Will Johnson win his 4th straight title, will Gordon knock Johnson off his throne, or will the kid Kyle Busch who dominated the series in 2008 until faltering late come through with a title? Questions that fans will all soon find out.
These are a few story lines, but there are more. Keep writing your doing good.
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I'm not a huge NASCAR fan but one of the story lines I'm looking forward to the most is seeing how Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch extend their "relationship". But either way I most likely be watching a little more NASCAR than usual.
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You're right in your assessment about Jeff Gordon's past dominance. But it is becoming very apparent that he may be on the downside of a great career. And if anything, Johnson just keeps getting better and better. As for Kyle Busch... I think he's good for the sport, but I don't think he has what it takes to be champion. He reminds a lot of Terrell Owens: loads of talent but questionable "me-first" attitude. And if that attitude infiltrates his own team, he will go nowhere. Because just like in football, NASCAR drivers are really only as good as the team around them. Jimmie Johnson has bundles of talent and great awareness, as well as one of the top crews in the business. Kyle Busch will continue to set track records during qualifying and he'll start some fights which will get him on SportsCenter, and Jimmie Johnson will just keep winning championships.
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