Scripps Howard News Service
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. ó A chance meeting with football great Mike Ditka ó and a few other sports superstars ó helped Jimmie Johnson put his three consecutive NASCAR championships into perspective.
“The day after the championship, Mike Ditka came up to me and said, ‘I saw you yesterday on TV, and you are a dynasty.’ I didn’t know the man,” Johnson said Thursday during Media Day at Daytona International Speedway.
“Then I met Ken Griffey Jr. and Jerry Rice at the Super Bowl, and they congratulated me. People pay attention to that third championship. Anybody winning three championships in anything is pretty special.”
Johnson, 33, had a special 2008 season, winning three times over the last 10 races to beat Carl Edwards by 69 points. In 2007, the California native won four straight Chase events in capturing his second crown.
Sporting a beard and looking trim, Johnson said he and the No. 48 team aren’t content after matching the record three consecutive titles won by Cale Yarborough (1976-78).
“(Yarborough) was a hero of mine as a kid, and being in the record books with him means the world to me,” Johnson said. “I do believe we have a very good chance at winning a fourth championship. If we’re composed and organized come September, we’ll have a very good chance.”
Fox TV analyst Jeff Hammond said Johnson is an old-school driver. The former crew chief compares Johnson’s skills and demeanor to the legendary David Pearson.
“I envy (crew chief) Chad Knaus because I think Johnson’s a fantastic driver,” Hammond said. “I would compare him to Pearson. He was a smart, sneaky driver. (Johnson’s) not going to rough you up to beat you, but if you get to messing with him, he’s not afraid to rough you up.
“If you want to beat Jimmie Johnson, you’re going to have to change something. You’re not going to beat him by doing the same thing because it hasn’t worked the last three years.”
Mark Martin, Johnson’s new teammate, won’t be racing in Saturday’s Budweiser Shootout. But Martin is excited about driving on the same team as Johnson ó Hendrick Motorsports.
“What drove me to take (this ride) was Rick Hendrick, Hendrick Motorsports, Jeff (Gordon), Jimmie and Dale Earnhardt Jr. as teammates … and the opportunity to drive a blazing fast race car that could win a race,” Martin said. “That’s why I did it.”
Said Dale Earnhardt Jr. of his new teammate: “I like Mark a lot. What’s not to like? He had some great battles with my daddy, but he’ll treat you like a gentleman on and off the track.”
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SHOOTOUT PRACTICE: Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson put on what could be a preview of both Saturday night’s Budweiser Shootout and the Feb. 15 Daytona 500, topping the opening NASCAR Sprint Cup practice of the season at Daytona International Speedway.
Busch, whose great performance in 2008 was blunted by a poor run in the season-ending Chase for the Championship, was fast with a lap of 191.453 mph Friday as only the 28 cars entered in the Shootout got to run on the 2.5-mile oval. Three-time reigning Cup champion Johnson was close behind at 191.156.
Carl Edwards, last year’s Cup runner-up, was seventh on the speed chart and narrowly avoided a crash when he had to make a quick move at high speed to avoid a piece of debris that flew off another car.
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ARCA: Justin Lofton outran local driver Alli Owens to win the pole for the season-opening ARCA race at Daytona International Speedway.
Lofton earned the third pole of his career Friday with a fast lap of 182.120 mph on the 2.5-mile Daytona oval. The 22-year-old finished 13th in points last year as a rookie. Owens, a second-year ARCA driver from Daytona Beach and the only woman in the field, was second at 181.510.
The 18-year-old NASCAR phenom Joey Logano will start third in Saturday’s Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 after running 181.324.