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A wrecked primary car on Saturday put the No. 48 team in a pinch, but they rallied on Sunday. Credit: Autostock
A wrecked primary car on Saturday put the No. 48 team in a pinch, but they rallied on Sunday. Credit: Autostock

Johnson finishes seventh in backup car

By Marty Smith, Turner Sports Interactive
October 6, 2003
11:10 AM EDT (1510 GMT)

Banquet 400: Results | Winston Cup Standings | Photos

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- After a not-so-Happy Hour Saturday at Kansas Speedway, Jimmie Johnson didn't know what to expect in Sunday's Banquet 400.

Having ranked sixth in the weekend's final practice session, he knew his Chevrolet was fast.

But how fast?

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Very. Johnson rebounded from Saturday's mishap to finish seventh in his second trip to Kansas, leading three separate times for 20 laps in a car that required significant attention from the crew.

"The guys did awesome. The car wasn't that good when we unloaded and they had to do a lot of work to it. A lot. They did a great job," Johnson said.

"The strategy at the end bit us. But, heck, we overcame so much we can't even look at that strategy being a problem. I'm so proud of my guys. It was just a great day."

Playing cat and mouse will Bill Elliott for the race lead, Johnson pitted when Michael Waltrip crashed with 67 laps to go.

Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus opted for four tires, while everyone else chose two -- or none. Hence, Johnson was mired deep in the field with only one fuel run to make it up.

He managed, surging to seventh as the checkers fell to post his 14th top-10 of the season, third in the past four events and fifth in the past seven.

  Johnson comes in for four tires and fuel. Credit: Autostock
Johnson comes in for four tires and fuel. Credit: Autostock

And while he made a prosperous weekend from unfortunate circumstances, he still lost a position to Ryan Newman in the championship standings. Johnson entered Sunday's event in fourth position, 13 points ahead of Newman.

He now trails Sunday's winner by 16 points.

Is he happy?

"What do you think? We were leading and hauling butt, so yeah," Johnson said. "It's huge. To overcome everything we did is amazing. The guys could have gotten down and they didn't.

"They stepped it up, didn't let it get them down. Just an awesome, awesome day. I'm so proud of my team."

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