FONTANA, Calif. -- You knew it was coming, like the traffic snarls on Interstate 10 during rush hour or the low, dark clouds obscuring the summit of Cucamonga Peak. You knew that Daytona was an aberration, a restrictor-plate circus, and the real NASCAR season started Sunday on this 2-mile race track nestled among the truck depots and industrial sprawl of the Inland Empire. You knew that Jimmie Johnson was going to come to Auto Club Speedway, surrounded by family and friends from nearby San Diego, and take the first step toward reestablishing his authority.

“

Jimmie is a good friend of mine, but there's no way of getting around how lucky they are. They did a good job [Sunday] in winning the race, but they have a golden horseshoe stuck up their a**.

”

-- KEVIN HARVICK

What you didn't expect was the team chasing him to the finish, making the four-time series champion sweat on a track he's dominated, nearly stealing the victory before a scrape with the wall squashed any drama. There was no better indication of Richard Childress Racing's renewed strength than Sunday, on a track where RCR has never won, when for the second time in two weeks the organization had arguably the two best cars in the event. They didn't get the victory, but they left Southern California with the top two positions in the point standings, and showing every sign that they're ready to challenge the No. 48.

"We felt good about what happened in the fall, over the winter. But until you start racing, you don't know where you are, honestly," said Jeff Burton, who finished third Sunday behind teammate Kevin Harvick, the new leader in Sprint Cup points. "You feel good about it. I had quite a bit of confidence coming in. But until everybody gets out here and they're going to give somebody a trophy, you don't really know where you stand. I expected to run well."

This well? Hard to believe this is the same organization that cratered last season, going from three cars in the Chase the previous year to nobody in the top 14. Yes, there was visible progress late last season after a restructuring effort, but would it transfer into 2010? Would there be lingering tension over Harvick's potential move to another organization after this year? Would RCR field three cars or four? Everyone expected them to be better. But there were so many questions, so many unknowns, it was almost natural to wonder if they were improved enough to challenge Hendrick Motorsports and the other organizations at the top of the sport. (Continued)