NASCAR / nascar cup series

By Zane Miller First round (8) #48 Jimmie Johnson v. (1) #29 Kevin Harvick (7) #31 Jeff Burton v. (2) #24 Jeff Gordon (6) #11 Denny Hamlin v. (3) #18 Kyle Busch (5) #14 Tony Stewart v. (4) #99 Carl Edwards The opening race of the postseason got underway at Dover, where Jimmie Johnson continued to exert his dominance as seen in the previous season. Leading 191 laps, Johnson got the race win handily while Harvick, despite being the #1-seed, struggled out of the gate in 15th. Jeff Burton got the early advantage over Jeff Gordon, with the 2006 champ claiming the runner-up spot as Gordon finished an underwhelming 11th. Kyle Busch ended the run of upsets with a sixth-place run after leading 46 laps, as teammate and playoff competitor Denny Hamlin came home in ninth. Having the roughest day of all eight racers was Tony Stewart, who ended up two laps down in 21st while Carl Edwards cruised to the initial series lead in fifth. The next race at Kansas would see a close duel between Johnson and Harvick, as the latter desperately attempted to keep his season alive. However, Johnson was just a few car lengths ahead of Harvick as the pair trailed race winner Greg Biffle in second and third respectively. The battle of the Jeffs (resurrected from the first matchup in 2007) saw Gordon get the better of Burton, taking the fifth spot as Burton struggled in 18th. Busch was involved in a pair of on-track incidents with fellow Toyota driver David Reutimann, eventually finishing a lap down in 21st. Hamlin enjoyed a far less adventurous afternoon, coming home 12th to keep his title hopes afloat. Stewart led the most laps on the day with 76, though Edwards rallied from a sub-30th starting spot to also make his way inside the top-10. However, Stewart was able to hold off Edwards on the final green flag run, grabbing the fourth spot as Edwards took sixth. Most of the first-round competition was still in play at Auto Club Speedway, but one driver whose hopes were dashed before the checkered flag was Kyle Busch. With 45 laps to go, his engine gave way down the frontstretch despite being comfortably ahead of Hamlin. With Busch now out of contention, Hamlin claimed a solid eighth to move on to the semifinals. Burton also had a disappointing day, finishing well behind the leaders in 23rd while Gordon advanced with a ninth-place run. The final race between Stewart and Edwards was also a lopsided one, as Smoke survived a green-white-checkered shootout to nab the race win. This was simply icing on the cake as far as the postseason was concerned though, as Edwards was 13 laps down in 34th due to mechanical issues suffered earlier in the day. Semifinal (8) #48 Jimmie Johnson v. (2) #24 Jeff Gordon (6) #11 Denny Hamlin v. (5) #14 Tony Stewart Despite starting from the pole at Charlotte, Gordon did not get off to a roaring start in the semifinal round. He only led the first seven laps before starting the slide back through the pack, eventually finishing a lap down in 23rd. Meanwhile, teammate Johnson stayed much closer to the front and claimed a third-place finish for the early advantage. Hamlin also got the better of his former teammate in Stewart, earning a fourth-place result while Stewart was a non-factor throughout the evening and took the checkers as the last car on the lead lap in 21st. At Martinsville, both Johnson and Hamlin were determined to give themselves an extra week of ‘vacation’ before commencing their championship bout. Despite leading 56 laps during the event, Gordon was done in by an accident and could only muster a 20th-place finish while Johnson picked up the fifth spot to punch his ticket to the finals for the fourth consecutive season. The Hamlin-Stewart battle was similarly uneventful, as Stewart flopped once again for a 24th-place run. In contrast, Hamlin went on to lead the last 30 laps of the race on the way to his seventh victory of the season. Final (8) #48 Jimmie Johnson v. (6) #11 Denny Hamlin With Talladega being rendered inconsequential for the playoffs, the championship battle kicked off at Texas Motor Speedway. While this race was best known for the mid-race pit crew swap between Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon as Gordon wrecked out in a bizarre incident under caution with Jeff Burton and Johnson’s crew had been floundering all afternoon, Hamlin stole back the headlines after leading the final 29 laps and scoring his eighth race win of the year. Johnson could only get back up to ninth in the final running order, even with the unorthodox pit crew change. Receiving the message loud and clear from Texas, the #48 team was on the ball at Phoenix. From a midpack starting spot, they helped rally Johnson into the top-five by race’s end. Hamlin took a gamble on fuel and tried to stay out to the end to remain ahead of Johnson, but was eventually forced down pit road late due to an empty gas tank and finished 12th. In the finale at Homestead, Johnson proved once again that he was one of the cars to beat, staying inside the top-five all race long while Hamlin was involved in an early accident after starting deep in the field. While Hamlin was able to stay on track, he could only salvage a 14th-place finish, while Johnson nabbed the second spot to secure his third career Cup Series title. Jimmie Johnson’s stats for 2010 were six victories, 17 top-fives and 23 top-10s as he claimed the real-life championship as well. 2010 Cup Series standings in real life: https://scorum.com/en-us/nascar/@zmiller82/2010-nascar-cup-series-season-recap