Five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson has hit back in this year’s title chase with victory in the AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway.
Johnson picked up his fifth victory of the season, his record eighth at the Monster Mile and the 65th of his career.
Johnson held-off a determined Dale Earnhardt Jr. who at the final round of pit stops took four tyres, while Johnson took right-side rubber only. Earnhardt Jr. climbed from fourth place on the re-start with 26 laps remaining to be on Johnson’s bumper by the back straight.
Johnson kept his cool as he did enough to beat home his Hendrick Motorsports team-mate.
The result put a dent in the points lead of Matt Kenseth, who crossed the line in seventh place. Johnson has closed to within eight points of Kenseth.
Joey Logano ran third, followed by Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch, as Chase drivers claimed the top 10 finishing positions.
Kasey Kahne (13th place) suffered engine problems with 10 laps to go, the second week in a row he failed to finish on the lead lap. While Carl Edwards was the lowest-finishing Chase contender after he left the track to head to the garage as the race wound down because of a broken left-rear hub.
Last year’s champion and Dover winner Brad Keselowski was forced to the garage after a failure in the rear-end housing.
Australia’s Marcos Ambrose finished 16th.
RESULTS: AAA 400 – Dover International Speedway
|
POS |
Car # |
driver |
MFG |
Start Pos. |
Laps |
Laps Led |
Final Status |
Points |
Bonus Points |
|
1 |
48 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | 8 | 400 | 243 | Running | 48 | 5 |
|
2 |
88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr | 88 | 1 | 400 | 80 | Running | 43 | 1 |
|
3 |
22 | Joey Logano | 22 | 11 | 400 | 0 | Running | 41 | 0 |
|
4 |
24 | Jeff Gordon | 24 | 16 | 400 | 3 | Running | 41 | 1 |
|
5 |
18 | Kyle Busch | 18 | 14 | 400 | 30 | Running | 40 | 1 |
|
6 |
29 | Kevin Harvick | 29 | 12 | 400 | 0 | Running | 38 | 0 |
|
7 |
20 | Matt Kenseth | 20 | 2 | 400 | 36 | Running | 38 | 1 |
|
8 |
39 | Ryan Newman | 39 | 3 | 400 | 6 | Running | 37 | 1 |
|
9 |
16 | Greg Biffle | 16 | 19 | 400 | 0 | Running | 35 | 0 |
|
10 |
15 | Clint Bowyer | 15 | 23 | 400 | 1 | Running | 35 | 1 |
|
11 |
1 | Jamie McMurray | 1 | 7 | 400 | 0 | Running | 33 | 0 |
|
12 |
55 | Brian Vickers | 55 | 22 | 400 | 0 | Running | 0 | 0 |
|
13 |
5 | Kasey Kahne | 5 | 20 | 399 | 0 | Running | 31 | 0 |
|
14 |
31 | Jeff Burton | 31 | 25 | 399 | 0 | Running | 30 | 0 |
|
15 |
56 | Martin Truex Jr | 56 | 10 | 399 | 0 | Running | 29 | 0 |
|
16 |
9 | Marcos Ambrose | 9 | 24 | 398 | 0 | Running | 28 | 0 |
|
17 |
17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 17 | 15 | 398 | 0 | Running | 27 | 0 |
|
18 |
27 | Paul Menard | 27 | 21 | 398 | 0 | Running | 26 | 0 |
|
19 |
14 | Mark Martin | 14 | 29 | 397 | 0 | Running | 25 | 0 |
|
20 |
11 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | 18 | 397 | 0 | Running | 24 | 0 |
|
21 |
78 | Kurt Busch | 78 | 9 | 397 | 0 | Running | 23 | 0 |
|
22 |
43 | Aric Almirola | 43 | 5 | 397 | 0 | Running | 22 | 0 |
|
23 |
42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 42 | 13 | 397 | 0 | Running | 21 | 0 |
|
24 |
13 | Casey Mears | 13 | 26 | 395 | 0 | Running | 20 | 0 |
|
25 |
34 | David Ragan | 34 | 27 | 395 | 0 | Running | 19 | 0 |
|
26 |
47 | AJ Allmendinger | 47 | 17 | 395 | 0 | Running | 18 | 0 |
|
27 |
30 | Cole Whitt | 30 | 33 | 394 | 0 | Running | 0 | 0 |
|
28 |
83 | David Reutimann | 83 | 39 | 394 | 0 | Running | 16 | 0 |
|
29 |
10 | Danica Patrick | 10 | 31 | 394 | 0 | Running | 15 | 0 |
|
30 |
38 | David Gilliland | 38 | 28 | 393 | 1 | Running | 15 | 1 |
|
31 |
93 | Travis Kvapil | 93 | 30 | 392 | 0 | Running | 13 | 0 |
|
32 |
51 | Ryan Truex | 51 | 36 | 392 | 0 | Running | 0 | 0 |
|
33 |
7 | Dave Blaney | 7 | 40 | 391 | 0 | Running | 11 | 0 |
|
34 |
36 | J.J. Yeley | 36 | 32 | 390 | 0 | Running | 10 | 0 |
|
35 |
99 | Carl Edwards | 99 | 4 | 385 | 0 | Running | 9 | 0 |
|
36 |
32 | Timmy Hill | 32 | 42 | 381 | 0 | Running | 8 | 0 |
|
37 |
2 | Brad Keselowski | 2 | 6 | 355 | 0 | Running | 7 | 0 |
|
38 |
33 | Landon Cassill | 33 | 37 | 275 | 0 | Suspension | 0 | 0 |
|
39 |
87 | Joe Nemechek | 87 | 41 | 168 | 0 | Suspension | 0 | 0 |
|
40 |
40 | Tony Raines | 40 | 43 | 154 | 0 | Vibration | 0 | 0 |
|
41 |
95 | Reed Sorenson | 95 | 35 | 139 | 0 | Brakes | 0 | 0 |
|
42 |
35 | Josh Wise | 35 | 38 | 128 | 0 | Brakes | 0 | 0 |
|
43 |
98 | Michael McDowell | 98 | 34 | 107 | 0 | Brakes | 1 | 0 |
STANDINGS
|
Position |
driver |
Points |
Behind |
Starts |
WINS |
Top 5 |
Top 10 |
DNF |
|
1 |
Matt Kenseth | 2149 | Leader | 29 | 7 | 8 | 16 | 3 |
|
2 |
Jimmie Johnson | 2141 | -8 | 29 | 5 | 12 | 18 | 1 |
|
3 |
Kyle Busch | 2137 | -12 | 29 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 3 |
|
4 |
Kevin Harvick | 2110 | -39 | 29 | 2 | 7 | 15 | 2 |
|
5 |
Jeff Gordon | 2110 | -39 | 29 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 5 |
|
6 |
Greg Biffle | 2108 | -41 | 29 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 0 |
|
7 |
Ryan Newman | 2101 | -48 | 29 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 5 |
|
8 |
Clint Bowyer | 2098 | -51 | 29 | 0 | 8 | 15 | 2 |
|
9 |
Kurt Busch | 2094 | -55 | 29 | 0 | 9 | 14 | 2 |
|
10 |
Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 2092 | -57 | 29 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 3 |
|
11 |
Carl Edwards | 2084 | -65 | 29 | 2 | 8 | 14 | 1 |
|
12 |
Joey Logano | 2083 | -66 | 29 | 1 | 9 | 15 | 3 |
|
13 |
Kasey Kahne | 2071 | -78 | 29 | 2 | 8 | 11 | 3 |
|
14 |
Jamie McMurray | 819 | -1330 | 29 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
|
15 |
Brad Keselowski | 799 | -1350 | 29 | 0 | 7 | 12 | 2 |
|
16 |
Martin Truex Jr. | 781 | -1368 | 29 | 1 | 6 | 12 | 3 |
|
17 |
Paul Menard | 768 | -1381 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 |
|
18 |
Aric Almirola | 741 | -1408 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
|
19 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 727 | -1422 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
|
20 |
Jeff Burton | 724 | -1425 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
|
21 |
Marcos Ambrose | 721 | -1428 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
|
22 |
Juan Pablo Montoya | 714 | -1435 | 29 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 0 |
|
23 |
Casey Mears | 597 | -1552 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
|
24 |
Tony Stewart | 594 | -1555 | 21 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 0 |
|
25 |
Denny Hamlin | 552 | -1597 | 25 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
|
26 |
David Ragan | 542 | -1607 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
|
27 |
Mark Martin | 530 | -1619 | 22 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
|
28 |
Danica Patrick | 529 | -1620 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
|
29 |
David Gilliland | 498 | -1651 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
|
30 |
Dave Blaney | 441 | -1708 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
|
31 |
Travis Kvapil | 401 | -1748 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
|
32 |
David Reutimann | 395 | -1754 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
|
33 |
J J Yeley | 382 | -1767 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
|
34 |
A J Allmendinger | 378 | -1771 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
|
35 |
David Stremme | 362 | -1787 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
|
36 |
Bobby Labonte | 347 | -1802 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
|
37 |
Timmy Hill | 153 | -1996 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
38 |
Michael McDowell | 138 | -2011 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
|
39 |
Michael Waltrip | 102 | -2047 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
|
40 |
Scott Speed | 99 | -2050 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
|
41 |
Ken Schrader | 92 | -2057 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
42 |
Terry Labonte | 77 | -2072 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
43 |
Boris Said | 48 | -2101 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
44 |
Ron Fellows | 31 | -2118 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
45 |
Alex Kennedy | 21 | -2128 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
46 |
Justin Marks | 14 | -2135 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
47 |
Scott Riggs | 11 | -2138 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
|
48 |
Victor Gonzalez Jr | 10 | -2139 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
49 |
Brian Keselowski | 9 | -2140 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
50 |
Tomy Drissi | 8 | -2141 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
51 |
Jacques Villeneuve | 3 | -2146 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
52 |
Jason Leffler | 1 | -2148 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
53 |
Landon Cassill | — | — | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
|
54 |
Reed Sorenson | — | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
|
55 |
Paulie Harraka | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
56 |
Tony Raines | — | — | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
|
57 |
Elliott Sadler | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
58 |
Joe Nemechek | — | — | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
|
59 |
Max Papis | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
60 |
Austin Dillon | — | — | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
61 |
Regan Smith | — | — | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
|
62 |
Trevor Bayne | — | — | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
63 |
Mike Bliss | — | — | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
|
64 |
Ryan Truex | — | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
65 |
Josh Wise | — | — | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
|
66 |
Johnny Sauter | — | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
|
67 |
Brian Vickers | — | — | 15 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 4 |
|
68 |
Kevin Swindell | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
69 |
Cole Whitt | — | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
70 |
Owen Kelly | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
71 |
Morgan Shepherd | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
72 |
Sam Hornish Jr | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
73 |
Justin Allgaier | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
74 |
Brendan Gaughan | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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