Hendrick Brings Winners, Momentum To Coca-Cola 600

 

For Hendrick Motorsports, it appears the floodgates truly have opened during a magical eight days in Darlington, S.C., and at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Beware five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson – and Hendrick’s other three drivers – in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 (FOX live 6 p.m. ET).
Johnson won in Darlington on May 19, giving his team its long-awaited 200th victory. Not satisfied, the No. 48 team went home to Charlotte with a vengeance and virtually swept the board winning the Sprint Pit Crew Challenge and the Sprint All-Star Race.
Johnson, $1 million and his third All-Star victory in hand, hopes to become the third driver in five years to sweep both the Coca-Cola 600 and the all-star event. Teammates Kasey Kahne (2008) and Jeff Gordon (1997) both have won the double.
That has owner Rick Hendrick excited about moving forward.
"To get the pit crew deal done, then coming here tonight and running this well, just excited about the 600, excited about the rest of the year," he said following Johnson’s all-star victory. "Everything has been clicking for us lately."
And historically, everything has clicked for the organization at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where Hendrick cars have won 16 times, although not since the track’s fall race with Johnson in 2009. The Hendrick organization has won the Coca-Cola 600 nine times with Johnson, Gordon, Darrell Waltrip and Casey Mears.
•    Johnson, with six wins, won the Coca-Cola 600 three consecutive years (2003-05). A victory would break a deadlock with NASCAR Hall of Famers Waltrip and Bobby Allison for the most Charlotte victories.
•    Gordon has won five times. His three Coca-Cola 600 wins came in 1994 and 1997-98.
•    Johnson and Kahne both recorded season sweeps at Charlotte. Johnson, in fact, won four consecutive races in 2004-05, while two-time Coca-Cola 600 winner Kahne, who’ll make his 300th career NASCAR Sprint Cup start this weekend, followed in 2006.
 Sunday should see a typical Coca-Cola 600 – at 600 miles and 400 laps, NASCAR’s longest and most challenging race. The event begins in late afternoon heat and sunshine and continues for more than four hours into darkness. Charlotte’s 1.5 miles of asphalt will go through several transitions, challenging both drivers and crew chiefs to keep up with the changes.
What once was simple endurance has become an extra 100 miles of flat-out racing.
Johnson, who solidified his position as contender for a sixth championship at Darlington, hopes the momentum continues. He stands fifth in points as the regular season nears its mid-point.