Joe Gibbs Racing should have won at Bristol Motor Speedway. Instead, it was a Richard Childress Racing sweep.
Once again, Hendrick Motorsports was nowhere near Victory Lane.
Five races into the season, the team that won 18 of 36 races last year is still looking for its first victory. Yet to call it a Hendrick slump might be overstating what’s really going on right now in NASCAR.
For the first time in recent memory, there appears to be parity in NASCAR’s top series.
All four manufacturers and four different teams have won at least one race this year, and Carl Edwards made Roush Fenway Racing the only multiple winner. At this point last season, Hendrick had three wins and Chevrolet had four.
Early results hinted this season wouldn’t be a repeat of Hendrick’s runaway rout, and Sunday’s race at Bristol solidified it. Jimmie Johnson was the only Hendrick car to lead laps — a meager 14 of them — but none after Lap 53.
Instead, Gibbs drivers Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch battled each other for the lead while combining to pace the field for 372 of the 506 laps.
When they weren’t out front, a Childress car was: Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton combined to lead 115 of the laps. Then it was Burton jumping past Hamlin for the lead during the two-lap overtime sprint to the finish, and taking Harvick and Bowyer with him for the first 1-2-3 team sweep in NASCAR since Roush did it in the 2005 season finale.
“A lot of times just to have three cars finish Bristol is amazing,” Childress said.
It was more than luck that pushed the three Childress cars to the front on Sunday. It was hard work and a commitment — from every team in the garage — to step up and try to knock Hendrick off the throne it has occupied the past two seasons.
In fact, it was Burton himself who loudly declared before the season that everyone was gunning for Hendrick.
“We’re not coming into this year to take a butt-whipping,” he said in January. “We’re not here to run second. We’re not here to talk about how good Hendrick is.
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sooner or later hendrick will have a win…martinsville is coming up and were great at this track
well… they should be equal… they’re in the same cars!
must be the toyota graphics are lighter than the rest of them… and Jr brought his curse to hendrick with him
jr brought his curse to hendrick??? Than why is he the only one doing good there?
Ripper wrote:
Yeah i don’t know about the Junior one. But good laugh
on the toyota graphics.
Who wants parity????????In all other forms of racing the fastest car and best driver wins.
Take a trip to ELDORA and see some real racing.
Ripper must be a johnson fan…Dont hate cause nascar wont let jj use traction control anymore an cant drive.
JG and JJ aren’t running up front, as Hendrick
has to let JR run up front and “TRY” to win
a race. Don’t think JG and JJ have forgotten
how to drive. Some fans think, JR is getting
the best equipment. The season has just
begun.
Here is the deal…Hendrick does not play Favs with their equipment….they all have equal stuff…and EACH team has the oppertunity to use the others setups via the computers in the haulers/garage area…they can use whatever they want off of another team car…anyone stop to think you cant be GOOD all the time? Johnson had his time..and he needs to have a bad year so he can actually PROVE he is a good driver…he has never had basd equipment…therefore he should have all those wins…
Saying Hendrick is giving Dale Jr the best equipment is nothing more than a COPOUT….People rag on JR all the time saying how bad he sucks and all this crap and quite frankly im tired of it…Your just mad because he is the #1 Hendrick driver right now and your trying to use this as justification why Gordon and Johnson arent having another awesome season….GET OVER IT…..you think gordon and johnson would sit around saying this stuff…NO cause they know better…They know they all get the same stuff…This isnt DEI were talking about…
Jr has 17 CUP WINS….thats more than A LOT of drivers..and he did it in very poor equipment…He will win and can win..They just don’t want to put their points position in Jeopardy by taking chances….CONSISTENCY wins championships not winning races…Just ask Kasey Kahne 6 wins in a season but finished almost last in the chase…and 2003 when Kenseth won the Cup Title…he won what 1 race the whole season? My point exactly…
Furthermore….No matter what Dale Jr does…no one will give him credit…they will FIND SOME reason to rag on him some more….he could win 8-10 races this season and the championship and someone would run their mouth bout how they cheated…or they had this and that…GROW UP, Quit whining about Gordon and Johnson and blaming JR for them struggling….Hendrick only hires the people he beleives will suit the company well…
Feel free to bash me I couldn’t careless…but this community is by far the worst Nascar commmunity on the internet that I have been in…Everyone is passionate about their driver but that doesn’t give you authority to run your mouth about someone else’s just because yours sucks at this point….
EVERY
i smell some jealousy from the rest of the Hendrick camp that JR is doing better than them…BOO FREAKING HOO…make all the excuses you want..still not going to change the fact Jr is 5th in the pts with 3 straight Top-5s and gordon and johnson have ran like crap…cry about it some more…you cant be good all the time people…
I’m not crying, I don’t consider JR one of the
Hendrick Drivers!!!!!
How can you say, he has been driving bad
equipemnt, the previous years?? He drove
(if you call it driving) for his Father’s team.
Wait till he has 81 wins, then post your
praise.
hahaha your not crying huh? sure seems that way…and how can you not consider JR one of the Hendrick Drivers? Did you miss out on all the coverage last year with him switching teams? or are you completely retarded….Hes the TOP DRIVER at HMS and he will be until your boy Jeffy and Jimmie get out of each others coaches and get their cars driving the way they should be…
And Dale JR drove for his Fathers team in 2000….that was it…2001 it became TEI…and it has been ever since…she didnt give a crap about the motorsports part of the company…all she cared about was Dale Srs legacy..thats it…you want to argue that one? bring it on……that company is nothing without Dale Jr or His late father and you know that…your just one of those typical gordon fans who think hes god…gordons been in there since what 92? he should have that many wins…Jr hasnt even had 10 seasons..gordons pushing 20 seasons here in a few years…that is if he dont puss out at 2010 like hes talking about….been a long time your drive for 5 has been going…..gordon will never reach the magic 7 Titles…he won all his glory when the competition was Jeremy Mayfield and RIcky Craven type of drivers…really hard to beat those guys let me tell u…they got what 7 wins between the 2?…Pull your head of out of your but and see the light of day…Dale JR is a new face at HMS…and your going to see a lot more of him…but your man Jeffy will be looking at his rear bumper….but probably his rear as well
am i saying Dale JR is a racing god…NO…he has to win alot more races and a championship before I consider him one of the elite drivers…and HMS equipment will allow that…but he has put his place in history and has won many of races….had he had teammates in the 500 he might have won that but no…Jimmie cant stay out of trouble (in the back where he belongs) and casey mears sucks..and gordon broke a suspension piece……you must forget he had the 2006 Fall Dega race won til Hendrick Motorsports WRECKED HIM…but i guess thats the way Gordon and Johnson do things…seen it plenty of times…how many races has johnson won because of a late race “debris” caution to allow him to catch up? give me a break…Darlington last year….caution every 5 laps at the end so Gordons engine would last and he would win…i could say stuff to you all day long but it woudl never get thru your thick skull that JR will end up being a good choice for HMS and he will win races and championships…i got my 88 gear and it has an HMS logo on both my hat and jacket…but i do not and i will not support the other 3 drivers that are there..PERIOD…
LOVE HIM OR HATE HIM “luv24car” Dale JR IS A HMS Driver and will be till 2012 then he will get extension of course…so as i said earlier GET OVER IT!!!!!!….boo hoo so and so gets better equipment…thats why my driver cant finish the race…boo hoo….you whine and cry just like gordon..maybe you guys should get married? ingrid is more manly than him anyways…step in her place why dont you……you will change your tune when Jeffy steals JRs set up and wins a race….loser….get your facts straight or shut the hell up…end of discussion
NO COMMENTS FISHA695, WOW………..
Its fun to watch you Chevy guys argue…lol.
I dont agree on this article saying there is parity. I am a joe gibbs racing fan and i dont know about everyone else but it sure looks like JGR and their TOYOTA’S have dominated darn near all the races so far. Including Daytona.
Well said darrell I agree,and something that has always got me is the teammate crap this isnt baseball or football im real sure jr cares where jj or gordon finish Im sure they feel the same way how can you be mates when you compete against each other.
I wouldnt say that james really if edwards hadnt broke trans at atlanta toyota would still be winless.
yeah james…you can dominate all you want…but the person who takes the checkered means the most…just because you lead all the laps…and NOT win the race doesnt mean your dominating…No one is dominating cause its only been 5 races….and If toyota gave my race team, which was already a top notch team, like $15 million i think i would be running very well too…..but the wins arent there and they know that…so they arent dominating…Toyota teams are ONLY good b/c of Joe Gibbs…if not they would still be trying to qualify…
i think its funny how everyone says HMS and chevy are stuggling…yet Dale Jr has 3 straight top-5s comfortably and not by lucky pit stops at the end….and hes been strong in every race cept bristol..and he was strong at the end..which is what counts..so when we come back around to Daytona and then we will see who is dominating and who is struggling….its wayy TOO early to see that now…
Wow, now that was a heated debate. People dont get too excited the season has just begun. BTW heres a well known fact about DEI they didnt even own a 7 post shaker rig until junior decided to leave for Hendrick they were using his. It really says alot about a racing company dont it.