FONTANA, Calif. – After a slow start to the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, Jimmie Johnson and his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports received a much-needed boost with a top-10 finish in Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway.
After finishing inside the top-15 with finishes of 12th and 14th at Las Vegas and Phoenix respectively, Johnson overcame a 33rd place start to finish ninth, his 17th top-10 at the 2.0-mile oval.
“Each week we have been getting a little bit better,” said Johnson. “We are definitely not happy with where we are right now but we are seeing the improvements, we have been seeing it internally. We are making the cars drive better and better and we are getting more competitive.
“So, a strong day for the Lowe’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. We are not where we want to be but we are getting closer every week.”
Johnson and his Hendrick Motorsports teammates were unable to qualify Friday after they were unable to get their No. 48 Lowes for Pros Chevrolet through pre-qualifying inspection. Johnson’s was one of 13 drivers who didn’t post a lap and relied on their owner points to determine their starting position.
While Johnson had a slow start to the race, as the laps worn, however, Johnson’s Chevrolet came to life and he began marching his way though the field. At the end of Stage 1, he finished fifth.
During Stage 2, Johnson maintained his presence inside the top-10, but battled tire wear throughout the stage and finished seventh.
Johnson’s day was nearly all for not on the restart of Stage 3 when his No. 48 Chevrolet broke loose off Turn 2 in a traffic-jam, but Johnson recovered and battled back from 14th to finish ninth, his 342nd career top-10.
The seven-time Cup champion said he was surprised with the durability of the left-side tire, especially with lower air pressure.
“It just seemed like we had more durability with that left side tire on lower tire pressures,” added Johnson. “I don’t believe we had any issues relative to that and that is something we are always scared of here, especially on green flag stops when those tire pressures are low.
“We didn’t have that today, but we had some great pit stops, Chad (Knaus) called a great race, and we had a good solid day – so we will take it.”
With the finish, Johnson climbed eight spots in the standings from 25th to 18th heading to Martinsville Speedway, historically, one of Johnson’s best tracks on the circuit. In 32 Cup starts, Johnson has earned nine wins, 19 top-five and 24 top-10 finishes since 2002.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
