Johnson steals victory in Vegas
Jimmie Johnson won the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Nevada by leading one lap - the last one
The race ended with a green-white-checker finish, Matt Kenseth leading Johnson at the restart. But Johnson stayed on Kenseth's bumper before diving around the outside through turns three and four on the last lap to snatch victory from Kenseth on the run to the line.
Johnson's victory was his second consecutive victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and his 20th in Nextel Cup in just over five years of racing in the top series. It is also his second victory in three races without banned crew chief Chad Knaus, with 'fill-in' crew chief Darian Grubb proving to be a more-than-able replacement.
While it was joy for Johnson, it was disappointment for Kenseth. Having led over half the race, to lose victory at the end was painful. An ailing engine meant Kenseth knew he would struggle to hold off Johnson in the dash to the line, and that's how it turned out.
Johnson's teammate Kyle Busch finished third, Las Vegas Busch race winner Kasey Kahne fourth while Jeff Gordon made it three Hendrick cars in the top five with fifth place. Pole sitter Greg Biffle came home eighth while Ryan Newman blew a tyre and finished last, in 43rd place.
With two wins and a second place in three races, Jimmie Johnson leads the point standings, with Kenseth 52 points back. Kasey Kahne is third, 85 points behind Johnson, with Casey Mears one point further back.
Pos Driver Make Laps 1. Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 270 2. Matt Kenseth Ford 270 3. Kyle Busch Chevrolet 270 4. Kasey Kahne Dodge 270 5. Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 270 6. Mark Martin Ford 270 7. Jeff Burton Chevrolet 270 8. Greg Biffle Ford 270 9. Casey Mears Dodge 270 10. Denny Hamlin Chevrolet 270 11. Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 270 12. Robby Gordon Chevrolet 270 13. Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 270 14. Elliott Sadler Ford 270 15. Clint Bowyer Chevrolet 270 16. Kurt Busch Dodge 270 17. J.J. Yeley Chevrolet 270 18. Jeff Green Chevrolet 270 19. Dale Jarrett Ford 270 20. Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet 270 21. Tony Stewart Chevrolet 270 22. Brian Vickers Chevrolet 270 23. Jamie McMurray Ford 270 24. Terry Labonte Chevrolet 270 25. Jeremy Mayfield Dodge 270 26. Carl Edwards Ford 270 27. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 270 28. Scott Riggs Dodge 270 29. Kyle Petty Dodge 270 30. Bobby Labonte Dodge 270 31. Dave Blaney Dodge 269 32. Scott Wimmer Chevrolet 269 33. David Stremme Dodge 267 34. Brent Sherman Dodge 266 35. Michael Waltrip Dodge 266 36. Sterling Marlin Chevrolet 258 37. Kevin Lepage Ford 251 38. Kenny Wallace Chevrolet 250 39. Travis Kvapil Chevrolet 216 40. Reed Sorenson Dodge 206 41. Ken Schrader Ford 187 42. Chad Chaffin Chevrolet 157 43. Ryan Newman Dodge 88
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