Hendrick teams are their toughest competition
Rea White / Special to FOXSports.com
Now it's come to this. The Hendrick Motorsports teams have improved so much that they are discovering that their toughest competition week to week is coming from their own shop.
At Martinsville, Jimmie Johnson held off Nextel Cup points leader Jeff Gordon for the win. Kyle Busch was fourth and charging.
At Bristol, Busch was holding off Gordon until Jeff Burton nosed in on a late restart.
At Las Vegas, Johnson led Gordon across the line.
At California, Gordon, Johnson and Busch finished in the top seven.
All three are in the top five in the standings heading into the off week.
It's been an amazing display of early season dominance. With the exception of Casey Mears, who has endured setbacks in the opening stretch, this team has been near perfect on a weekly basis. And, if possible, the teams are simply getting more confident and more consistent as each race passes.
They've been the cream of the crop in the first two races with the car of tomorrow, the new NASCAR model that will appear in 16 events this season, and, except for crashes, have looked solid everywhere
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Just six races into the season, people wonder not whether Hendrick can win the championship this season, but rather which team from within the organization will do so.
"It is kind of one of those starts that you dream about," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "You would like to be in that position to take advantage of the cars running well. We have got a lot of momentum, everybody is working well together and the breaks have kind of gone our way."
No one disputes it's been an outstanding start to the season. Gordon looks as good as he ever has, showing the ability to adapt to changes quickly that marked his championship days. Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus know when to plow forward with their own changes and when to completely change the game plan and start anew, such as they did Sunday when Knaus put Gordon's setup in Johnson's car. Busch continues to mature and combine aggression with smart decisions to be a weekly factor.
Mears' team is the outsider, but Gordon says that team just needs more experience before it boosts its performance as well.
"I can't wait to get Casey Mears and (crew chief) Darian Grubb a little bit more experience and get the cars working the way they want them to because I think they're capable of being right up there, too, but it's going to take some time," Gordon said.
No one within the organization seems surprised by the performances. Gordon has four Cup titles and Johnson is the defending champion, so they're obviously not newcomers to this level of success. Busch made the Chase For The Nextel Cup last season, but struggled once the playoff segment began. Those setbacks, and the ones that cost him almost certain wins earlier this season, appear to be mere pieces of the past at this point.
Now, all the teams head to the track confident of success, whether it's in the Car of Tomorrow or the so-called "regular car."
And that makes them even more difficult to contend with.
"I couldn't be more proud of the start that Hendrick Motorsports is off to," Johnson said. "This is the fourth win for Rick this year. We have had a very strong current car program and the (Car of Tomorrow) has been good for us. Kyle won last week and this weekend's success with three in the top four — all in all, (I'm) just very proud of the effort that has gone into it."
It says a lot about the team that Gordon showed irritation and frustration at the end of the race Sunday in Martinsville after finishing second. He's been in the top three — but not the winner — after battling teammates the last two weeks.
Perhaps that was compounded by the fact that his team shared its setup with the team that went on to beat it, but Gordon says that the Hendrick Motorsports philosophy of working together is the reason the multi-car team is finding success this year.
No matter what temporary annoyances surround them, the bottom line is these drivers not only expect to race closely with one another, they also respect the talent each brings to the track.
And how do they maintain that level of partnership and sharing when each is capable of winning the title?
That all goes back to Hendrick himself. Every driver, every crew chief, every person linked to the team speaks highly and fondly of Hendrick, the man who built the empire and now has it on top of its game once more.
"On the Hendrick wins, all that goes to Rick Hendrick," Busch said. "He's a great individual — not only a great boss. He's the best owner. He's the best person to work for. When you work for a guy like him who gives you all the tools and all the opportunities, it's great. He believed in me when I was nobody."
Now Busch is a 21-year-old who could win a title. The one working with a 35-year-old four-time champion and a 31-year-old defending champion. The one who is really just a piece of the well-oiled machine that is Hendrick Motorsports this season.
The team has been gaining ground year to year. Now, Gordon thinks they are just continuing that upward swing. Three Hendrick drivers made the Chase last season. The team worked on developing the car of tomorrow early and has melded crew chiefs with drivers perfectly.
All of those factors combined to create a formidable group. One that has everyone watching carefully to see if this is the breeding ground for the 2007 champion.
"I think we've seen it throughout the history of this sport, when you get a group of guys together that work well together and you keep them together, they usually continue on to have success and I think that's what we've done so far," Gordon said.
Rea White / Special to FOXSports.com
Now it's come to this. The Hendrick Motorsports teams have improved so much that they are discovering that their toughest competition week to week is coming from their own shop.
At Martinsville, Jimmie Johnson held off Nextel Cup points leader Jeff Gordon for the win. Kyle Busch was fourth and charging.
At Bristol, Busch was holding off Gordon until Jeff Burton nosed in on a late restart.
At Las Vegas, Johnson led Gordon across the line.
At California, Gordon, Johnson and Busch finished in the top seven.
All three are in the top five in the standings heading into the off week.
It's been an amazing display of early season dominance. With the exception of Casey Mears, who has endured setbacks in the opening stretch, this team has been near perfect on a weekly basis. And, if possible, the teams are simply getting more confident and more consistent as each race passes.
They've been the cream of the crop in the first two races with the car of tomorrow, the new NASCAR model that will appear in 16 events this season, and, except for crashes, have looked solid everywhere
For more news from the track and the shop, check out our NASCAR Scene headlines page.
Get NASCAR Scene headlines
Just six races into the season, people wonder not whether Hendrick can win the championship this season, but rather which team from within the organization will do so.
"It is kind of one of those starts that you dream about," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "You would like to be in that position to take advantage of the cars running well. We have got a lot of momentum, everybody is working well together and the breaks have kind of gone our way."
No one disputes it's been an outstanding start to the season. Gordon looks as good as he ever has, showing the ability to adapt to changes quickly that marked his championship days. Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus know when to plow forward with their own changes and when to completely change the game plan and start anew, such as they did Sunday when Knaus put Gordon's setup in Johnson's car. Busch continues to mature and combine aggression with smart decisions to be a weekly factor.
Mears' team is the outsider, but Gordon says that team just needs more experience before it boosts its performance as well.
"I can't wait to get Casey Mears and (crew chief) Darian Grubb a little bit more experience and get the cars working the way they want them to because I think they're capable of being right up there, too, but it's going to take some time," Gordon said.
No one within the organization seems surprised by the performances. Gordon has four Cup titles and Johnson is the defending champion, so they're obviously not newcomers to this level of success. Busch made the Chase For The Nextel Cup last season, but struggled once the playoff segment began. Those setbacks, and the ones that cost him almost certain wins earlier this season, appear to be mere pieces of the past at this point.
Now, all the teams head to the track confident of success, whether it's in the Car of Tomorrow or the so-called "regular car."
And that makes them even more difficult to contend with.
"I couldn't be more proud of the start that Hendrick Motorsports is off to," Johnson said. "This is the fourth win for Rick this year. We have had a very strong current car program and the (Car of Tomorrow) has been good for us. Kyle won last week and this weekend's success with three in the top four — all in all, (I'm) just very proud of the effort that has gone into it."
It says a lot about the team that Gordon showed irritation and frustration at the end of the race Sunday in Martinsville after finishing second. He's been in the top three — but not the winner — after battling teammates the last two weeks.
Perhaps that was compounded by the fact that his team shared its setup with the team that went on to beat it, but Gordon says that the Hendrick Motorsports philosophy of working together is the reason the multi-car team is finding success this year.
No matter what temporary annoyances surround them, the bottom line is these drivers not only expect to race closely with one another, they also respect the talent each brings to the track.
And how do they maintain that level of partnership and sharing when each is capable of winning the title?
That all goes back to Hendrick himself. Every driver, every crew chief, every person linked to the team speaks highly and fondly of Hendrick, the man who built the empire and now has it on top of its game once more.
"On the Hendrick wins, all that goes to Rick Hendrick," Busch said. "He's a great individual — not only a great boss. He's the best owner. He's the best person to work for. When you work for a guy like him who gives you all the tools and all the opportunities, it's great. He believed in me when I was nobody."
Now Busch is a 21-year-old who could win a title. The one working with a 35-year-old four-time champion and a 31-year-old defending champion. The one who is really just a piece of the well-oiled machine that is Hendrick Motorsports this season.
The team has been gaining ground year to year. Now, Gordon thinks they are just continuing that upward swing. Three Hendrick drivers made the Chase last season. The team worked on developing the car of tomorrow early and has melded crew chiefs with drivers perfectly.
All of those factors combined to create a formidable group. One that has everyone watching carefully to see if this is the breeding ground for the 2007 champion.
"I think we've seen it throughout the history of this sport, when you get a group of guys together that work well together and you keep them together, they usually continue on to have success and I think that's what we've done so far," Gordon said.
