Thanksgiving at the Hendricks

What would happen if Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. met for Thanksgiving dinner at the home of Rick Hendrick? What would each bring to the table for dinner?

Gordon would want to make a cranberry dish, but ultimately might decide on something more appealing to his wife, a model.

Martin would bring pies, just not pumpkin pies.

Johnson would bring the biggest bowl of mashed potatoes ever made.

And Dale Jr., he would come empty-handed.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for more on Thanksgiving at the Hendricks, or what I like to call How Dale Jr. Got the Bird.

--Tim Haddock

NASCAR's Rick Hendrick says Earnhardt is Job #1

After three of his four of his four drivers finished 1-2-3 in this year’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, team owner Rick Hendrick says his focus is on the one driver still lagging behind: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet.

"My priority now is the 88 team,” Hendrick told reporters on a conference call today. Earnhardt, NASCAR’s most popular driver, is “my primary focus here starting this week, starting Monday, really,” Hendrick said.

Hendrick's Jimmie Johnson won a record fourth consecutive Cup championship Sunday, and he was followed in the standings by teammates Mark Martin and four-time champion Jeff Gordon.

Johnson  also won seven races, Martin had five wins and Gordon won once.

But Earnhardt struggled all season, finishing 25^th in the standings. Despite getting a new crew chief mid-season, Earnhardt did not win a race, did not earn a pole position and had only five top-10 finishes in 36 races.

"We just got to be better all the way around,” Hendrick said. “I think when we do that, when Dale sees that we’ve stepped up in a lot of areas, it will give him the confidence he needs.”

--Jim Peltz

Photo: Dale Earnhardt Jr. during qualifying for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida. Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images

Where does Jimmie Johnson rank among NASCAR greats?

Jimmie Johnson has done what no other driver in NASCAR has done: win four Cup championships in a row.

That would put him at No. 3 on my list of all-time great NASCAR drivers.

Of course Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt are Nos. 1 and 2.

Here's a look at my top 10:

1. Richard Petty
2. Dale Earnhardt
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Cale Yarborough
5. Jeff Gordon
6. Darrell Waltrip
7. Junior Johnson
8. Bobby Allison
9. Neil Bonnett
10. Harry Gant

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for comments from Johnson on winning four Cup championships in a row and more on my top NASCAR drivers list.

-- Tim Haddock

Photo: Jimmie Johnson hoists the Sprint Cup trophy for the fourth consecutive year at Homestead-Miami Speedway. (Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett / Getty Images for NASCAR)

Jimmie Johnson extends contract with Hendrick

The partnership of Jimmie Johnson and top-flight team Hendrick Motorsports, which is poised to win a record fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title, will stay in place for several years to come.

Hendrick announced today that Johnson signed a five-year contract extension that keeps him with the stock-car racing team through 2015. Hendrick also said Johnson's primary sponsor, the home-improvement chain Lowe's Cos., agreed to a three-year pact that keeps the sponsorship in place through 2013.

"We're just real excited about keeping the whole deal intact," team owner Rick Hendrick told reporters today at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida, where Johnson is expected to win his fourth championship Sunday at the Cup series' final race of the season.

"The key to success I think is keeping people together," Hendrick said. "This has been a fantastic ride with Jimmie. He and I have said we'd like to retire together."

Johnson's closest pursuer in NASCAR's Chase for the Cup playoff is teammate Mark Martin, 50, who is a distant 108 points behind. Martin, a five-time winner this year, said that no matter how the season ends, "I feel really good about things. And I've had the time of my life."

--Jim Peltz

Photo: Team owner Rick Hendrick hugs driver Jimmie Johnson after Johnson won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Ariz. Credit: Jason Smith/Getty Images

Schumacher vs. Johnson: NHRA has the upper hand

Tony Schumacher has won six straight National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel championships and there is little criticism about his dominance.

Jimmie Johnson is on the verge of winning his fourth straight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship and is catching heat for making a mockery out of the Chase.

What's the difference between Schumacher and Johnson's streaks? Schumacher has a legitimate rival, Larry Dixon. Johnson has no one.

Schumacher's latest championship came down to the semifinals of the season finale at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona. If not for an early exit at Texas Motor Speedway two weeks ago, Johnson would have wrapped up his fourth Cup championship in a row with a race to spare.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for comments from the drivers and read why Schumacher and the NHRA are in much better shape than NASCAR.

-- Tim Haddock

Photo: Tony Schumacher won his sixth straight NHRA top fuel championship and has a healthy rivalry with Larry Dixon. Credit: NHRA

Thursday's question: Given the lack of suspense and falling TV ratings, does NASCAR need to fix The Chase and if so, how?

Given the lack of suspense and the falling TV ratings, does NASCAR need to fix The Chase and is so, how? Reporters from around the Tribune family tackle the question of the day, then you get a chance to chime in and tell them why they are wrong.

Barry Stavro, Los Angeles Times

The problem with the Chase is it rewards consistency, not wins. A driver can win the title without winning any of the 10 Chase races.
How to fix this? Easy. Keep the first five races on its current, Byzantine points system, with a certain number of points for winning the race, finishing second, third, etc., plus extra points for the number of laps in the lead, and so on.
Then shake things up in the second half of the Chase. For the final five races make this the equivalent of a poker pot that’s growing, with something like a winner-take-all hand at the end.
In this revamped system, each of the final five Chase races gets a bigger share of points to award, and they are heavily loaded to the driver who wins each race, with dramatically reduced points awarded for finishing second, third, laps led, etc.
Then make the final race the most valuable by having it worth three-to-four times more points than any other Chase race.  Using this graduated scale, five or six drivers out of the dozen in the Chase should still have a chance to win the title in the last race, but only if they cross the finish line first.
Now that’s a true Chase to the finish line.

Rick Hendrick says Jimmie Johnson's dominance doesn't make NASCAR boring

Although the sour U.S. economy might be the main culprit behind a slip in NASCAR's fortunes, some observers also have suggested that Jimmie Johnson's dominance over the last four years has made the racing too boring and partially accounts for a drop in NASCAR's television ratings.

Not so, said his team owner, Rick Hendrick.

"I don't think that's hurt NASCAR at all," Hendrick said today before the start of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway, where Johnson hopes to pad his series point lead and move closer to a record fourth consecutive Cup championship.

"We can look for reasons that things are probably not as good as we'd like them to be" in terms of NASCAR's popularity and financial health, "but I don't think Jimmie Johnson's success has got anything to do with it," Hendrick said. "That's his job, to come out here and do the best he can."

Johnson entered today's race with a 73-point lead over his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin with two races left in NASCAR's late-season Chase for the Cup playoff. The season finale is next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida.

“I look back at when Jeff [Gordon] was winning like he was or [Dale] Earnhardt was winning all the championships in a row," Hendrick said. "People went to the track to see them get beat. So I think people are going to show up to see Jimmie get beat, and these [other NASCAR] teams are going to rally and work hard to do that.”

-- Jim Peltz in Avondale, Ariz.

Photo: Jimmie Johnson's Chevrolet is pushed to the grid before the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race today at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Ariz. Credit: Mark J. Rebilas / US Presswire

Ron Hornaday Jr. closing in on another NASCAR Truck Series title

Ron Hornaday Jr. needs to finish 22nd or better in the final two races of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season to win a record fourth Truck Series championship.

He has a commanding 197-point lead in the driver standings with two races remaining. The real race is in the Truck Series owner standings. Hornaday's team, Kevin Harvick Inc., has a 75-point lead over Billy Ballew Motorsports.

Kyle Busch, winner of a Truck Series-best seven races, including Friday's race at Texas Motor Speedway, drives for Billy Ballew Motorsports. He will be in the truck for the final two races at Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for comments from the drivers and preview of the next Truck Series race at Phoenix International Raceway.

-- Tim Haddock

Photo: A heated battle between Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 51 Miccosukee Resort/Graceway Toyota, and Ron Hornaday Jr., driver of the No. 33 VFW Chevrolet, in the closing laps of Friday's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series WinStar World Casino 350 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Busch went on to win the race while Hornaday Jr. finished third. Credit: Robert Laberge / Getty Images for NASCAR

NASCAR Cup Chase tightens, but adds little intrigue

Jimmie Johnson saw his lead in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings shrink over the weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

He was collected in a crash on the third lap of the race and finished 38th. His lead in the Cup standings dwindled to 73 points over Mark Martin, who finished fourth at Texas.

Even though Johnson's lead was almost cut in half, he is still in a comfortable position and on course to win his fourth Cup championship in a row.

Kurt Busch won the race at Texas, moving up two spots in the Chase standings to fourth place, but he is still 171 points behind Johnson with two races to go.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for comments from the drivers at Texas Motor Speedway.

-- Tim Haddock

Photo: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet, drives down pit road to rejoin Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. After a lap 3 accident, Johnson's crew was joined by members of the No. 5, No. 24 and No. 88 crews to help replace the rear-end housing, hood and nose to get the car back on the track on lap 115. Credit: Tom Pennington / Getty Images for NASCAR

Jeff Gordon is 1 for 33 in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2009

Jeff Gordon has won only one race in 2009. That came at Texas Motor Speedway in April. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers are back in Texas for a race Sunday. Gordon was asked about returning the site of his only win of the year.

He was also asked about chasing Jimmie Johnson and if he has any chance of catching the three-time reigning Cup champion.

Gordon, who won the pole for Sunday's race at Texas, also chimed in about the eminent debut of Danica Patrick to NASCAR. The IndyCar Series star will make the move to NASCAR in 2010 and drive for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Nationwide Series team, reportedly.

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for comments from Gordon and a preview of the NASCAR races at Texas Motor Speedway.

-- Tim Haddock

Photo: Jeff Gordon gets into his car before his qualifying run at Texas Speedway on Friday. Credit: Brandon Wade/Fort Worth Star-Telegram