Hendrick surprised Johnson won so quickly

FONTANA, Calif. -- From Geoffrey Bodine to Jimmie Johnson, the lineage of drivers that have placed a Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in Victory Lane is truly astounding.

Eighteen years. Nine different guys. 104 wins. One constant:

Rick Hendrick.

Jeff Gordon (left) talks with Johnson in the garage. Johnson won in just 13 starts -- fourth-quickest in the modern era. Credit: Allsport/Getty Images

No owner in the modern era has taken more drivers to the winner's circle. In fact, only Wood Brothers Racing is close - eight drivers have taken their car into victory lane.

When informed of that fact after Johnson's win in Sunday's NAPA 500 at California Speedway, Hendrick turned philosophical.

"I guess that means I'm the oldest owner on pit row now," he joked. "I've been very blessed."

Typical Hendrick. Having survived a bout with cancer, he's a reflective individual who takes everything in stride -- be it good, bad or indifferent. Sunday was a day of triumph for him, a day he was admittedly surprised to see.

"We just knew (Johnson) was a young guy with a lot of talent," said Hendrick, who has fielded race-winning cars for Bodine, Darrell Waltrip, Tim Richmond, Ken Schrader, Ricky Rudd, Terry Labonte, Jeff Gordon, Jerry Nadeau and now Johnson.

	Johnson smokes the tires after crossing the finish line. Credit: AP

"When you see them, you just try to take advantage of it. I never dreamed we'd do this well this quick."

From 1979 to 1999, rookies won just three Winston Cup races. From 1999 to present, rookies have won nine Winston Cup races.

Hendrick didn't win with Gordon until the mid-point of Gordon's second season. Richmond won seven times in his first year at Hendrick, but he'd been around awhile.

This was Johnson's 13th race.

Hendrick shunned the credit, handing it over to Gordon and Herb Fishel, the Chevrolet executive who introduced the young Californian to the prominent team owner.

"Herb and I have been close friends for years, and I got a call from Herb and he said 'I got this young guy who's really gonna be a star and we want to take care of him,'" Hendrick said. "I think we put him in a Late Model (1997) and didn't see him or talk to him for a bit."

That all changed when Johnson wore Gordon out at a Busch race in Michigan. After that, the phone calls were more frequent, the conversations more intense call-by-call. Then, at Darlingon, his true mettle was revealed.

"Jeff happened to be over there helping Ricky (Hendrick) at Darlington," Hendrick said. "Jimmie was parked right beside them. Jimmie got around the place really well, so we asked Jimmie how many times he'd been there testing. He said it was his eighth lap on the track. Then Jeff and I started talking about it."

Now, just 13 races into his tenure at Hendrick, Johnson is a winner.