Johnson's run proves he's worthy of another Cup title

"Aaahhhh." That was the only sound this reserved broadcaster could muster whilst pulling the hair from my head during the last few laps of the race in Texas over the weekend. My body began to cavort wildly. Sweat was racing from my pores. Only during a UNC basketball game do I respond this physically while simply being a spectator. What was a person to do though, right?

Beau Estes co-hosts the Jack Daniel's Post-Race Show with Nikki Alexander. It can be seen following every Nextel Cup race live on NASCAR.COM.

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This was going to be the defining moment of the Chase. It all came down to a mad dash through the tumbleweeds of Texas -- Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth sliding around Texas Motor Speedway like hot butter on a frying pan. Patriots and Colts be damned, this was the gutsiest, perhaps craziest display of reckless abandon I'd seen since Robby Gordon north of the border.

Somehow though, I realized in that moment something larger was taking place. It was the kind of captivating performance that NASCAR needed so desperately if it could wrap its arms around it as it should. The points leader was driving as if he didn't care about the points at all (hmm) and that made the entertainment that much greater. (Consider the previous sentence a clue for whoever tinkers with the Chase in the offseason.) It was checkered flag or bust for the 48 team. His by-the-seat-of-his-pants driving had everyone not restricted by a seat belt watching off their own hind end for Johnson's electric win.

Throughout the Chase I have posted the standings as they would sit if the points weren't reset with 10 races to go, and if you are into plain points racing you know that Jeff Gordon has dominated this season. To be fair, it's not particularly close and frankly wouldn't have been interesting to watch him win the championship this year. In fact, he was just too good for his own good. It was for instances just like this that the Chase was created and thus Jeff Gordon's dominance in some way, has perhaps cost him another championship.

Frankly, I've wrestled with this system for a while and must admit that for the majority of this year's Chase I felt Jeff Gordon was getting hosed if he had to even get out of second gear to grab the Cup. That ended Sunday under the setting Texas sun. To me, the biggest difference between ball and stick sports playoffs and NASCAR's is that in other sports you must win to advance, in NASCAR you might never win and still emerge victorious. Now, thankfully, the 48 team has put that idiotic proposition to bed for the year. By winning the last three races and five of the last 10, Jimmie has at least proven that he deserves a part in the final act of this play. Regardless of what else happens, Johnson will have won the most races in 2007 -- a minimum of 25 percent of the races run.

The onus is now on Jeff Gordon to bounce back and not just run well, but win. There is no other option as I see it. Jimmie Johnson has proven that he is darn near willing to throw the whole season away in pursuit of the ultimate goal in each race -- victory. Therefore, the 24 team is now behind the not so proverbial 48 ball.

The strange part about all of this is that by running like he didn't care about points, Johnson has in fact forced his teammate and car owner to do the same thing. Are you following me here? What it now comes down to is this: The only two guys with a realistic shot at the points championship must now run as if they couldn't care less about points in order to win the points championship. Stupefying in its brilliant simplicity. Better still is that no matter who wins between these two Sunday drivers, the biggest winner of all is the fans. (Again, this isn't a coded message for whoever tinkers -- somehow make these guys run to win every week.)

The Real Champion
As Gordon loses his firm grasp on the Nextel Cup championship he clinches another, slightly less prestigious and hugely less financially rewarding, title. Gordon is "The Real Champion" of 2007. As a points racer he ran like no other. Yes, Johnson has 50 percent more wins on the year than the 24 car, but the points gap is more aptly described as a points gulf between these two. For the last time of the year I'm going to post the standings and invite any fan who owns a trophy shop to e-mail me with some ideas for a fitting memorial to Gordon's dominant 2007 run. I'm thinking something that looks like a cup on top.

As we head to Phoenix, I'm reminded of the fact that Dale Earnhardt Jr. only has two more races for his father's team. With so much focus on Jimmie and Jeff, wouldn't it be nice to see DEI put together a fast car that didn't fall apart down the stretch in an effort to give the legend's son a proper sendoff?

Enjoy the race.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.