Johnson wins the race; Bowyer gets in the Chase

RICHMOND, Va. -- Sunday's weather-delayed Chevy Rock & Roll 400 left Jimmie Johnson with an abundance of optimism and Clint Bowyer with a sigh of relief.

In a race postponed from Saturday night by the threat of Tropical Storm Hanna, Johnson held off Tony Stewart in a thrilling side-by-side battle in the closing laps at Richmond International Raceway to win his second consecutive race, his fourth of the season and the 37th of his career, tying him with Bobby Isaac for 16th on the all-time victory list.

Johnson secured the third seed for the Chase for the Sprint Cup behind Kyle Busch, who has eight victories, and Carl Edwards, who has won six times this season.

Stewart and third-place finisher Denny Hamlin also clinched spots in the Chase. Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran fourth, followed by Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, David Reutimann and Kurt Busch.

Bowyer clinched his spot in the Chase with a 12th-place finish -- but not without his share of anxious moments along the way. After a slow pit stop left him mired in race traffic -- and behind David Ragan, his closest pursuer for the final Chase berth entering the race -- Bowyer recovered as Ragan faded (watch video).

Bowyer, who finished third in last year's championship standings, claimed the last Chase position by 69 points over Kasey Kahne (19th on Sunday) and 77 over Ragan, who survived an early spin in Turn 2 to finish 32nd.

"We knew it was going to be a roller-coaster all day," Bowyer said. "We lost track position when we had a couple of bad pit stops, but it worked out pretty good. We've got a lot of work to do here. We've got to prove we're in this thing for a reason."

Johnson held the lead for a restart on Lap 375 of 400, after an accident in Turn 2 involving Paul Menard and Patrick Carpentier bought out the 14th and final caution of the race. Johnson pulled away at the beginning of the run, but Stewart closed the gap, and by Lap 388 he was hounding Johnson through every corner.

Running the bottom of the track while Johnson was committed to the outside line, Stewart nosed his No. 20 Toyota ahead of Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet at the start-finish line on Laps 390 and 391, but Stewart couldn't clear Johnson's car, and Johnson won the race to the line on Lap 392. (Continued)