is there any reason to think Jimmie's not the favorite next season as well? The drive for five? I know there are still five races left, but why should anyone think Jimmie won't win the championship again next year. Kudos to Jeff Gordon for racing Jimmie hard at the end.

Jimmie Johnson is the best.

What suggestions would one make to tighten up the chase? NASCAR has a hard enough time keeping fans tuned in this time of year with football and the baseball playoffs going on, and then to have the 48 running away with the Chase only halfway through doesn't help either.

Five races is all that's left in my NASCAR tank as well. I've had enough. I just can't watch anymore, and I've been doing it for 30 years. I've got better things to do than spend 5 hours sleeping in front of the TV. It used to be fun and exciting, when characters with personality ran races, when big cars driving 200 mph could bang fenders without destroying each other's chances, when each race mattered but did not mean the difference between a champion and an also-ran, when innovation was encouraged instead of regulated out.
RACING: Sliding sideways around the corner, leaving a cloudy trail of bias-ply rubber in their wake, maybe bumping into each other yet somehow maintaining control. RACING: A car spins coming out of turn 2, but miraculously there is no yellow flag. Better get moving, the field's gonna lap you. RACING: Introducing an X-pipe exhaust when nobody else has thought of it, and it's somehow within the scope of the rules. Thinking should not be illegal. RACING: When independent owners could go to Daytona with a shot at actually winning. That, my friends, was the reason for the dual qualification races, it's not an exhibition. RACING: 220 mph in a Thunderbird. Dangerous? Oh yes. To quote the Intimidator, "Don’t come here and grumble about going too fast. — Put a kerosene rag around your ankles so the ants won’t climb up there and eat that candy ass."
Eliminate the chase. 10 bonus points for winning a race. 2-car maximum per owner, with thorough oversight to discourage ghost owners with hidden affiliations. 115-inch wheelbase. Radials at tracks 2-miles or longer, bias-ply everywhere else. Fewer templates, that thing you're driving looks nothing like what's in my garage. No restrictor plates, reduce the displacement if you need to.
Let's go racing.
Bye NASCAR, I'm going to go watch some racing at Irwindale and Redwood Acres.

The 48 has won 3 of 5 2009 Chase races. He's won 5 of the last 6 at Martinsville. He's got 3 straight Chase Championships (that's an important distinction). It's boring. Every race, it's a Hendrick parade. Come those final 10 races? Jimmie shines. I really can't respect a sport where you can be okay for 26 races and then turn it up at the final 10....the same final 10 year in and year out. Jimmie's probably winning every Chase til he retires.......luckily, the fans will have tuned out by then.

Question: Is the competition for the #48 team that weak....or is the duo of Chad and Jimmie that good?
Sometimes in sports we get lulled into thinking we are watching the height of excellence because the games or races are close competitive battles. These teams (car or stick & ball) must be great because neither one has an advantage. Until, somebody comes along who is so far and above what we're used to that now, all of a sudden, our happy little world gets turned upside down. Can this team really be that good? Or, are they exploiting the fact that we have been stuck with teams that are really no better then each other, mediocrity at it's finest, if you will. Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus are such a team, they have taken the sport of racing to a new level that literally no one can match at this time. Some strive to come close, but can't maintain the level necessary to really be competitive. Are Jimmie and Chad that good, or is everybody else that bad? I know one thing, dynasties in sports never last more then a brief moment in time and this one will fade away also, and when that happens, be thankful that you got to witness it when your stuck watching mediocrity battle it out once again.

This is too funny. You people that say your done with Nascar and this is it for you are full of it. You'll have your butts parked in front of the tv next year at the drop of the green in Daytona just like the rest of us. So many times I've heard this and sure enough, there they are on the forums and blogs all over again saying the same crap. haha

BTW I really like that picture. hmm think I'll save it in my 48 file.

Kg very good that's the point.

kg- thank you for that. You are absolutely right. It doesn't matter if their that good or the others are that bad. There will always be someone else to come along who will be better.

kinggeorge... YES & YES to your questions! Good points, I believe JJ, Chad and team are just that focused. They don't talk about other teams as some other drivers do. They are only focused on what they need to do at each track. RCR and RFR have dropped their game this year. Their drivers are frustrated and driving all over the place. Not focused. I'm not a big fan of the #48 team, but they deserve their 4th title!

UNCLE!! If we all acknowledge the greatness of Jimmie and Chad, can we change the playoff system next year? This really isn't good for anyone but fans of the 48. Hey NASCAR: if you're listening, a DNF for the 48 at Martinsville might be just what the doctor ordered.

Fresh for 2010: The Chase to the Chase! After nine Chase races, the standings will be reset. Jimmie will start in 43rd and be 184 points behind everyone else. So, basically, whoever wins the race, wins the Chase to the Chase. Only then, will there be any excitement for this sport's championship.

@Jimmie48: Fans give it a chance because we love the sport. We've grown with the sport. I know one thing, if the 48 wins on Sunday then I'm done. I won't even wait for this 4th weak-@$$ Chase Championship like many others.
NASCAR's gone to cookie-cutter 1.5 milers, toned down their stars, thrown out competition and debris yellows, moved away from the Stock Car (rename it NACOTAR), and given us a weak system to determine a champion...a 10 race playoff system that never changes.....Jimmie Johnson is not great. He dominates 10 tracks. He can't put together great seasons, just great Chases.......and fans are growing tired of it. NASCAR is in trouble if he wins....

All this talk about the 48. What about the real driver who made the team what it is? Jeff Gordon deserved the teams true attention instead of a lil boy trying to follow in his shadow. They're hanging Jeff out to dry along with Dale Jr.

Dc- i think you make an excellent point there. Jimmy ihas NOT been dominant till the Chase starts. As Denny pointed out Sat. night, the Chase is a system that rewards mediocrity for 26 races, then if you have the last 10 figured out, it's your Championship to loose. It's not a race to the chase, it's a make it, and then watch Jimmy dominate those 1.5 mile tracks. I say mix up those final 10. Through in a road race, more short tracks, pocono. You want to be the best, be the best on ALL the tracks.

For all the JJ haters.....forget his name and look at the stats.....this man has never finished worse than 5th in a full season. How can you say he is not a great driver. He WILL be in the HOF one day. If he wasn't good in the races outside the chase he would not make the chase, like the fan favorite Dale (will never be like his father) Jr.
NASCAR has been one sport that very rarely sees a truly dominant team, however other sports have. What about the Cowboys, the Yankees, the Celtics, the Lakers, the Bulls, etc. The list goes on and on. What makes the 48 team different from the other teams is that they have the smartest crew chief and the calmest driver. JJ doesn't make people mad with his driving style and they don't blame the other teams for mistakes and accidents that happen to be a huge part of the sport.
Either you are or aren't a fan of NASCAR. I could have bailed on my other sports teams many times when the same teams were winning over and over and mine weren't even making the playoffs, but I am a true sports fan and always will be. We are lucky enough to be able to watch history and for that I will be forever grateful.
Ask yourself if Jr. were in the position of JJ would attitudes be different?

If the #48 team can do it why hasn't any other teams? Do you penalize the A student because the rest of the class gets C's? Do you make the obstacle course less challenging for the soldier because some can't make it through? Oh wait...that's what is happening in today's society of whiners. Stop with the complaining and realize the problem is with the ones that can't keep up, not with the one at the front of the pack. This country is "dumbing down" every aspect of life to keep anyone from being last. STOP THE MADNESS.
Like Richard Petty said, If the rules are the same for everyone at the start of the season then it don't matter what system you have.

If Jimmy wins at Martinsville it's all over. At this point the only thing that could make this a relevant chase again, where there are more than two contenders (and remote contenders at that) is for someone to intentionally knock Jimmy out of a race. Whether they do it for the sake of the sport or for the $500,000 NASCAR should throw in their face if they do. His team is too good not to win and what are the chances he has mechanical failures.

Hey you folks saying he never puts dominant seasons together. Why now would he need to? Winning 10 races in the first 26 gets him just about nothing now. Just ask Kyle Busch. I LOVE Stewart, but if the format was different he probably would not have been in front after 26 races. JJ was in the chase after about 15 and then started gambling for wins.... ran out of gas a couple times, etc. He wouldn't have gambled for wins otherwise. Face it. He is the best. Your driver isn't. Someday that will change.

I don't disagree Jimmie Johnson is a great driver and he probably is the best driver on the track today. With that being said by no means do I accept him as a 3-time champion and soon to be 4-time champion. Sports today have sold their integrity for ratings and for the most part it has back fired on them. Do you accept Barry Bonds as the homerun king....NO! 2 players his 60+ homeruns in the history of baseball then in a 5 year span what 4-5 players did it...and we all know how now. I'm not saying Jimmie is cheating but until now only one driver ever won 3 championships in a row...Petty, Earnhardt, Gordon, and countless others couldn't do it....now what was so improbable 5-6 years ago is not only probable but going to be a streak with no end in sight. People get a grip....I didn't watch Bonds and tell myself admire his greatness something was wrong because something that couldn't be done before was being done with such ease. So the same thing with Jimmie I'm not going to sit and accept this guy as a 4....5.....6....time champion. Like I said he is great driver but NASCAR lost on this one and they know it. The beginning of this chase we were being force fed how this will be the tightest chase ever and half way through it's almost over. Before you know it March Madness will let Duke play every tournament game at home and when they win 4-5 championships in a row we should all just stop hating and admire the greatness. What we should admire was a sport that was on such a rise 6-7 years ago is struggling to stay relevant now. The chase worked the first year and every year since the driver in the lead could just cruise around in the last race and win….not what NASCAR envisioned and not what the fans want.

I agree, every on will be setting in front of the tv next season. JJ is the best and until someone shows me better , he has #4 under his belt. I am a Mark Martin fan , but he hasnt won a champ. yet. This was his best chance, just have to get by superman and Chad.
unless you chaNGe your name on chat , and even if you dont you will be back next year. STOP BELLYACHEING

Man oh man! What a bunch of wads! For everyone that is NOT a Johnson fan, you would be lying if you said you would feel the same way about the chase if it was your favorite driver dominating every year. Bottom line is this, Johnson is the master of this domain, and its not like he hasn't given his formula to every other team out there. He does what he has to in order to stay in the top 12, and when the wins are there he takes them, when they're not, he takes whats there. Look at K Busch, he is a moron, he races like every race is his last and more often than not, shoots himself in the foot. If he would just lay back when he knows he has a dominant car, the other guys would not be striving as hard to better their cars. Then he could strike like a snake in the grass and steal the show, but I guess that team just isn't that smart. They are simply not as good as Johnson. If he has a bad race, he does not carry it with him to the next race. If he has a good race, he builds on it. Why can't everyone do this? They just aren't that good. If Nascar was fixed and they wanted someone to win, don't you think they would use the biggest fish in the pond? Dale Jr. would have a few championships by now. Why would they want Jimmie Johnson to be the champion? He doesn't touch every sort of fan out there. He don't bring in the most revenue. His excellence cannot be matched, and if it could, it would have been Gordon just for the simple fact that they are always right next to each other being teammates, sharing notes and what not. Johnson will be the Champ until someone with more desire rips it from his grip.
Oh, and don't say that they need to change the tracks. Thats just an excuse. They have all been to each track once earlier in the year, and if they cannot better prepare for it the next time around, then thats their own problem. I guarantee that if you mix up the chase tracks Johnson would still reign supreme over his peers. I guarantee you the BIG E would have adapted and been a Champion in the Chase format.
Grow up everyone and quit whining about things you have no power to change, life is too short, find something else to do if you don't like something. PRETTY SIMPLE!