It's not always as simple as Johnson makes it look

DARLINGTON, S.C. -- Jimmie Johnson climbed out of his race car after his runner-up finish at Darlington Raceway, tossed a pair of unnecessary sunglasses on the roof, and walked over to have a word with fellow competitor Ryan Newman. Then he stood in front of his No. 48 Chevy surrounded by television cameras, a regular part of the routine for a driver who's won 41 races and three consecutive championships on NASCAR's premier level.

Teammates tangle

Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson battle to the end for Southern 500 supremacy at Darlington.

• Watch the final laps
• Post-race reactions
• Press Pass: Johnson
• Race Chatter: Johnson

Ho-hum, just another top-five finish, now 106 and counting for the most businesslike operation on the Sprint Cup tour. Johnson churns them out like an assembly-line factory churns out automobiles, like a fast-food restaurant churns out hamburgers, like Texas churns out football players -- so many, they all seem to run together. No one who's watched NASCAR the past decade was in any way surprised to see that menacing black and blue car in second place on Saturday night.

No one, except for maybe the driver himself. Not after crashing in qualifying, going to a backup car, getting trapped on pit road, falling a lap down, getting spun out, feuding with other drivers, losing his temper, and at the very end worrying about fuel. After it was all over he stood outside his car, cool as always, his bearded visage staring straight into the cameras with the same unblinking professionalism he's always shown. As usual, he made it look easy. There was no sign of the frayed tempers, the curse words, the bare-knuckled climb from the back to the front Johnson was forced to make again and again and again.

"It was just a chaotic night," he said as fireworks exploded and his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin celebrated in Victory Lane. "So I'm very relieved and proud of the race team, because we kept our heads and fought through it all night long, and we got ourselves a good finish."

If only it were that simple. Johnson started from the rear Saturday night because he crashed his primary car in qualifying (watch video), a factor that didn't seem to matter as he zoomed to second place just 45 laps into the race. The hurdles would emerge soon enough, the first a fiery crash by Michael Waltrip that brought out a caution. Johnson was nowhere near it. He was on pit road, and the yellow trapped him a lap down (watch video). He spent the next hour battling not for the lead, but with David Stremme just to be in position to receive the free pass when the next caution came out. (Continued)