Johnson upset about losing spots, points late at LMS

CONCORD, N.C. -- Jimmie Johnson more or less runs things at Lowe's Motor Speedway, considering his past success at the track. Therefore a top-10 finish at the "house that Jimmie built" seemingly is no longer acceptable for the driver with six victories at the North Carolina track.

After Saturday night's Bank of America 500, Johnson was visibly upset as he walked into the post-race news conference with a bowed head and morose tone.

"The first two-thirds was good for us, then we were junk at the end," said Johnson, who led twice for a race-high 67 laps -- accumulating 10 bonus points toward his lead in the Chase (watch video). It's a lead the No. 48 team has maintained for three consecutive weeks over Roush-Fenway Racing drivers Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle. Now it's Jeff Burton on his tail in the standings.

"We took a lot of risks [Saturday] trying to get as many points as I could on [Biffle] and trying to hang with [Burton] and get by him," Johnson said. "Damn near threw it away a couple times. Just hate the last third of the race. We got out in left field and couldn't get it back."

Race winner Burton and Johnson were racing side-by-side for the lead nearing the final laps when the No. 48 Chevrolet took fresh right-side tires on the last round of pit stops (watch video).

"That's what put me on pace with him," Johnson recalled of the tires. "The old characteristics showed back up in the car, what we were dealing with. But for sure it's frustrating not being able to complete the pass. I thought I was going to clean us both out. Fortunately, that didn't happen. But I was certainly frustrated slipping back through the field. You don't know how important those points are going to be until the end of the year."

This season, few of Johnson's wins have come down to side-by-side finishes, but rather in dominating fashion. At Auto Club Speedway in August, Johnson led 228 of the 250 laps. It's a style he is comfortable with.

"I had to take a lot of chances [Saturday] to get the results we did," Johnson said. "I don't like putting myself in that situation. I almost lost the car a handful of times. So that frustration of being on pins and needles out there, trying to run as hard as you can, watching positions slip by ... I've got a good hour of being upset in me. It will take a little while to get it out of my system."

Looking at the point standings, Burton and third-place Biffle are both less than 100 points back of Johnson. Carl Edwards is 168 points behind in fourth. Despite his tumultuous night, Johnson feels like he has narrowed the field to the top three drivers.

"In some ways I do, but it's such a relative situation," he said. "If we have problems, those guys are right back in it. As we get down to fewer races on the schedule, I think that margin becomes more comfortable. That's a decent margin. But it took other guys having problems to let me into it."

Heading to Martinsville Speedway next week, Johnson is hopeful. He has four Sprint Cup Series wins at the short track.

"Right now I'm pissed about [Saturday]," Johnson said. "But, you know, tomorrow, Tuesday whatever it is, I think we'll be real good over there. [Martinsville] has been a great track to us."