Season brought joy, pain to Hendrick stable

This is the second in a series documenting the top 14 NASCAR Winston Cup teams of 2002. The top 14 teams represent the Top 25 drivers in 2002.

HARRISBURG, N.C. -- Hendrick Motorsports' 2002 Winston Cup season outstripped some expectations and fell short of some others -- not surprising considering the operation fielded four full-time teams.

Raybestos Rookie of the Year runner-up Jimmie Johnson's season was among the top surprises of the year. With the help of crew chief Chad Knaus, Johnson ended up driving the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet to fifth in the standings.

From the time he won the Bud Pole Award for the season opening Daytona 500, through winning three races and three more pole positions, Johnson was a legitimate championship threat until faltering late in the season.

Too little, too late for Gordon

	Joe Nemechek has secured driving duties for the No. 25 Chevrolet in 2003. Credit: Autostock

Defending Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon never had a chance to win his fifth title in the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, after a career-long losing streak stretched nearly a year, from the last eight races of 2001 to Bristol in August.

Although Gordon broke the drought with back-to-back wins, he was too erratic in the stretch to mount a serious threat to champion Tony Stewart and series runner-up Mark Martin, though a closing burst pushed Gordon past Johnson into fourth in the final standings.

Flashes of greatness not enough for Labonte

	Terry Labonte suffered through another disappointing season in 2002. Credit: Autostock

New crew chief Jim Long gave former two-time Winston Cup champion Terry Labonte a burst of hope with some early season performances that were stronger than the way Labonte had ended 2001 in the No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet.

But in the end, the Texas veteran had precious little to show for the season in the way of top-10 results, although he did lead a race lap, something he'd failed to accomplish the season before. Only failing to qualify for a race would've made this season any worse.

Up-and-down year for No. 25 car

Hendrick's No. 25 UAW-Delphi Chevrolet showed both the best and the worst the sport had to offer while employing no less than two drivers and two crew chiefs during the season.

YEAR IN REVIEW  •  Bill Davis Racing

Jerry Nadeau started his third season as a Hendrick pilot in the No. 25, with crew chief Tony Furr.

Both were gone by the middle of the summer.

Veteran Joe Nemechek stepped into the ride and while he totaled an alarming number of DNFs, after he was paired with experienced crew chief Peter Sospenzo near the end of the season, the pair's production escalated to the point they were offered HMS contracts through 2003.

Also ...

The Hendrick organization also had the pleasure of delivering driver Johnny Benson his first career Winston Cup victory in the No. 10 Valvoline Pontiac owned by engine shop customer MBV Motorsports.

The Haas CNC Racing team and its driver, three-time Craftsman Truck Series champion Jack Sprague, were heavily supported by the Hendrick organization in a limited program prior to making a full run in 2003. But Sprague missed as many races as he made, though two of them resulted from qualifying rainouts.

Team owner Rick Hendrick planned to field a car for his son Ricky's Winston Cup debut, but the younger Hendrick retired from driving after he was unable to shake the mental effects of a serious crash in a NASCAR Busch Series race at Las Vegas in the spring.

Upon his retirement, Ricky Hendrick took a management role at Hendrick Motorsports.