Johnson doing just fine without help from NASCAR

You can almost envision them gathered on some remote hilltop under cover of darkness, their angry faces illuminated by torchlight. You can almost see them brandishing pitchforks and ranting about how they're mad as hell and they're not going to take it anymore. You can almost feel the rage of this minority demographic within NASCAR Nation, a roiling mob ready to storm the castle gates.

Yes, the 48 haters are at it again.

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It doesn't take much to set them off. The spark this time was a pit stop late in Sunday's event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where Jimmie Johnson won for the third straight year. A tire gets away from the No. 48 crew, a NASCAR official stops it from rolling onto pit road, Johnson zooms away from his stall without receiving a penalty, and there's an outcry as if the whole thing had been orchestrated by the bookies at the MGM Grand.

Whether Johnson actually committed a violation is immaterial. There's that one segment of the Nextel Cup fan base that's always going to dislike the guy, simply because he's too clean-cut, too media-savvy, too sponsor-friendly, too good. These are the same people who think Johnson cheated to win last year's Daytona 500, that crew chief Chad Knaus is some evil genius, and that NASCAR is beholden to car owner Rick Hendrick, who can get away with anything he wants.

It's an uninformed mindset that neglects some basic truths. It overlooks the fact that Johnson, now with 24 career victories, has been the best driver in NASCAR the last five years. It overlooks the fact that Knaus has been consistently ahead of the curve, going as far as to use hand signals and notes rather than pass strategic information over open radio channels during a race. And it overlooks the fact that Hendrick Motorsports gets busted more often than a shoplifter out on bail.

Think the No. 48 team is bulletproof? It didn't seem that way last year, when Knaus was suspended four weeks for violations at the Daytona 500. Or in 2005, when Knaus was fined $35,000 and Johnson docked 25 points for violations at Las Vegas. Or in 2004, when Johnson was fined $10,000 for knocking a PowerAde bottle off the top of his car at Pocono. Or in 2003, when Knaus was fined $2,500 for violations at Charlotte. Or in 2002, when Knaus was fined $25,000 for violations at the Pepsi 400, and another $5,000 for using foul language during a TV interview at Dover.

Clearly, there's favoritism at work. (Continued)