Daytona Beach, Fla. – Cheaters prospered Sunday at Daytona International Speedway.
Driver Jimmie Johnson, whose crew chief was expelled from the Daytona 500 for flunking a post-qualifying technical inspection and being a habitual offender, won the 48th “Great American Race” at the misty 2.5-mile oval.
Johnson followed Jeff Gordon as the second consecutive Hendrick Motorsports driver to win the Daytona 500 by holding off a pack of cars during two late restarts. Like Gordon a year ago, Johnson – minus crew chief Chad Knaus, who was banned from the premises – won NASCAR’s biggest, richest and most prestigious race in a green-white-checkered overtime finish before an estimated crowd of more than 200,000.
Casey Mears and Ryan Newman finished second and third in the scheduled 200-lap race, which went 203 laps and featured a record 18 different leaders. It ended under caution as Johnson was approaching the checkered flag, just after the 11th yellow flag came out because of a Greg Biffle wreck.
“If you think about what we overcame, and the pressure that’s on any team, in any sport, if they were faced with something like this, this is a huge, huge statement, something that I’m very proud of,” Johnson said.
“We play within a set of rules. Chad broke the rules. He’s admitted that. He’s in Charlotte watching the race today. … We’re serving our penalty. We’re doing everything we can do. We stepped up today and won the biggest race in our sport.”
Johnson, who worked with substitute crew chief Darian Grubb, led four times for 24 laps, including the final 17. He was running in the top 10 for most of the race, and took his first lead at lap 108. He also led from laps 121 to 125, 156 and 187 to 203.
He got by Brian Vickers for the winning pass on lap 187, just before a four-car accident unfolded on the backstretch. Johnson led the rest of the way and, despite running among a testy field, he pulled into Victory Lane with barely a scratch on his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet.
Car owner Rick Hendrick called Johnson’s win – worth $1,505,124 – “double sweet,” because of the challenges the team faced without Knaus.
“You work so hard for Daytona,” Hendrick said. “Just proud of the organization. Jimmie drove a smart race. Darian did a super job. We’re just happy to be here, happy to be in this position.”
Johnson’s first career victory at Daytona didn’t sit too well with Newman, who was running second or third during the last two restarts.
“It’s just disappointing,” Newman said. “I think a lot of Jimmie Johnson and his talent and stuff, but I’m pretty sure at least three out of his last four, if not three out of his last three wins have had conflictions (sic) with the cars being illegal. You know, it’s not necessarily good for the sport.”
Mears, who was a groomsman in Johnson’s wedding last year, said: “The fact that they got caught earlier in the week took every doubt out of my mind that they actually would do anything, you know, to possibly cheat in this race. I think it was a well-earned victory.”
Newman and Mears agreed drivers, or their entire team, should not share in the penalties of their crew chiefs. Some competitors before the race said Johnson’s team shouldn’t have been allowed to race.
“Some drivers know what’s going on with the car as far as what the crew chief’s initiatives are. Some drivers don’t have a clue,” Newman said.
Johnson holds off field
Keys to victory: Minus his exiled regular crew chief, Jimmie Johnson passed Brian Vickers for the lead with the scheduled 14 laps to go, and held on during the last two restarts, the latter coming in overtime.
Traffic report: There was lots of bump-drafting and other contact among cars, but just three multicar accidents, and mild ones in comparison to the big wrecks that have taken out a quarter of the field in the past.
The pits: Tony Stewart might have had the best car, but the defending series champion ruined the chances at winning for Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth and perhaps himself. Stewart, who tapped Gordon into the wall early, was sent to the back of the field twice, for wrecking Kenseth and running over his jack in his pit stall.
What you might have missed: A record 18 drivers led the race, and there were 32 lead changes.
Staff writer Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-820-5453 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
