Gordon and Johnson navigating friendship during championship chase
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina: Jimmie Johnson was languishing in the Busch Series, facing possible sponsor problems, when he had the good fortune to be seated next to Jeff Gordon during a drivers meeting.
He needed advice, and gathered up the nerve to ask Jeff Gordon for help. It led to a chat that grew into a solid friendship as Jeff Gordon made Johnson his hand-picked protege and helped him land his ride at Hendrick Motorsports.
That was more than seven years ago, and that friendship is being tested on the race track as they battle each other for the Nextel Cup title.
"If things continue on the way they are, it's definitely going to push the limits of it and put it to the test," Jeff Gordon said last week. "We both want it so bad. We both want to win. We both want to win the championship. I know Jimmie well enough to know that friendship is as important to him as it is to me.
"But we're race car drivers, and we want that championship."
Jeff Gordon already has four titles, and Johnson earned his first last season. With 12 wins between them this season, they have been on a crash-course toward another championship all year.
The two went to Lowe's Motor Speedway last weekend locked in an intense battle, with Jeff Gordon leading Johnson in the standings by a mere nine points that he earned with a last-lap pass of his teammate to steal a win at Talladega. With it shaping up to be a two-man race to the title, their competitors moved closer to conceding.
"I know it probably won't happen, but it would be nice if Jimmie and Jeff quit sharing notes, started to hate each other and wrecked each other on the racetrack," contender Carl Edwards said. "It would really help the rest of us out."
Then Johnson had an uncharacteristic spin at Lowe's that took him out of contention for the win. The error pretty much handed the victory to Jeff Gordon, who won for the second consecutive week to open up breathing room in the standings.
Johnson, who worked his way back to the front after the spin, had a pickup problem on the final restart that contributed to a 14th-place finish.
He now trails Jeff Gordon by 68 points as they head into Martinsville Speedway, where the two staged a classic duel in April.
The two ran nose-to-tail for the final 53 laps as Jeff Gordon frantically tried to bump his teammate out of the lead. Jeff Gordon tried everything short of wrecking Johnson, and never could make the pass.
"That was probably the hardest driving I've ever done," Johnson said after holding Jeff Gordon off for the win by 0.065 seconds.
Jeff Gordon, who handed over his notes before the race to help Johnson make his car more competitive, was upset after the finish.
"The only way I could get by him was to wreck him, but he's my teammate and I tell you what, there's going to be some interesting racing going forward because he blocked me really bad," Jeff Gordon said.
The two have made good on that promise by turning up the heat on each other as they race for the title.
Johnson was frustrated when he allowed Jeff Gordon to pass him at Talladega for the win, and he was disappointed when his mental lapse opened the door for Jeff Gordon at Charlotte.
He's always aware when Jeff Gordon is around him on the track, and the passes aren't as easy as they were before the Martinsville finish in April.
"Our racing has intensified since then," Johnson said. "He's gotten pretty aggressive around me, and I race people how they race me. That happens all the time. ...
"Lately, Jeff and I always end up racing each other really hard. That's all just part of the different relationships you have with everyone on the track."
Now, as the stakes have never been higher, the two have to figure out how to balance the on-track competition with their off-track friendships
Jeff Gordon has raced a teammate for a title before, losing the 1996 championship to Terry Labonte by just 37 points. And both Jeff Gordon and Johnson were in the hunt for the 2004 Chase championship, which was won by Kurt Busch.
Since Johnson entered the Cup Series in 2002, he's been one of the most dominant drivers and Jeff Gordon has had to contend with him every week. With five races to go in the Chase, they are certain nothing will change.
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