Johnson confident as quest begins for three in a row (cont'd)

"It's really tough to stay up there too long but I think as preseason favorites, Hendrick is, the 48 and 24 [Gordon] are favorites, but we've got a lot of racing left, so it's tough to say."

As far as Daytona goes, Johnson's looking forward to the start of drafting practice, which in the past has been on the test's third day.

"I'm hopeful that more people will want to draft," Johnson said. "Otherwise there's not a lot to learn [because] single-car runs with the rules that NASCAR has and the templates and stuff, there isn't anywhere to work.

"I think the days of puffs you'd see on the sides of the cars and people adapting new noses or side panels [during test sessions] -- those days are gone. One of our cars is painted, so there's really not a lot to do.

"We're hopeful we can get out there and get into race mode and understand this car, because this track is so abrasive, whoever gets it handling right is going to win the [Daytona] 500.

"With this car and the splitter, the real important stuff is in that setup, because the geometry is so much different we can spend a lot of time in the draft trying to pinpoint what we need."

Due to the adjustment limitations of the COT, which is the only NASCAR chassis in use this season, Johnson's really looking forward to four days of testing at the end of this month, when all the Sprint Cup teams will test for two days apiece at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and California Speedway -- especially since he didn't test the car this past fall at Atlanta in its first mass test on a 1.5-mile track.

One thing he's not concerned about is fan reaction after his second consecutive title.

"I feel that fans support their driver and I'll probably hear the same amount of boos -- maybe more noise in general," Johnson said. "I think hardcore racers respect what we've done. They may not be a fan of myself or the team, but it's hard to frown on what we've done as a race team, because we've done a lot of great things.

"So I think it will probably be similar to what it's been, just a lot more noise."

The bottom line is that Johnson is thrilled to be back in the seat, even if it is a less-than-scintillating superspeedway test.

"I'm glad to have testing get started and I'm looking forward to the California and Vegas tests that are coming up [at the end of the month], because I'm looking forward to getting focused back on driving racecars again," Johnson said. "I've had a great offseason, but if I would have spent much more time away from the track, I probably would have ended up with another broken bone or something -- I was starting to get bored, wanting something to do."

In December 2006, Johnson broke his wrist when he fell from a golf cart at a charity event, but it didn't impede his 2007 test schedule.

"I feel that our team did a lot of growing again in '06 and '07 -- even if I look back at our rookie years, I think we've grown more and learned more about ourselves through the '06 and '07 seasons and hopefully it's going to make us stronger and better for the years to come."

Johnson said his 2006 title, which came after his first four years in the series finishing in the top five in points, was a watershed moment.

"I think the confidence has been when I think big picture. I really try not to focus on too many small things through the course of the season, I need to learn from mistakes, but move on and celebrate and enjoy the good times, but move on," Johnson said. "I think, in the big picture winning the '06 championship helped me recognize the team's got it, I've got it and we can do it -- if we just do our jobs and do it in a harmonious way, not trying to kill each other -- we'll be competitive, we'll have a shot at it."