Jimmie Johnson Wins First Career Race at Michigan

Originally written for CLNS Radio.

Jimmie Johnson won his third race of the season Sunday at Michigan International Speedway.

Photo courtesy NASCAR via Getty Images

The win was Johnson’s first career victory at Michigan, which is surprising considering how many wins the six-time champion has.

“We’ve figured out every way to lose this race and today we got it done,” Johnson said.

Johnson led 39 laps on his way to victory on Sunday.  The race put the cars and engines to the test, with speeds reaching well over 200 mph.

“This was an awesome performance,” Johnson said.  “Great power under the hood. A fantastic racecar.”

Kevin Harvick started on the pole after posting the fastest qualifying speed in NASCAR history.  Coming through Turns 3 and 4, Brian Vickers slid through the corner and spun down the track.  He was drilled by Travis Kvapil in the infield to bring out the first caution.

When the race restarted on lap seven, they only made it through Turn 2 before the caution came back out. Kyle Larson spun in the front of the field, and Kasey Kahne also spun during the incident.

The race restarted on lap 12, and Harvick was able to pull away with the lead.  Jeff Gordon ran him down and passed him for the lead on lap 19.

Green flag stops began on lap 40, and Gordon had cycled back around as the leader by lap 45.  He led until Harvick ran Gordon back down for the lead on lap 57.

The caution came out on lap 73 for debris, and Johnson won the race off pit road following pit stops.

He led the field back to the green flag on lap 79, but Joey Logano quickly took the lead.  Johnson retook the lead on lap 92 after chasing Logano down on the high side.

David Ragan spun on lap 103 to bring out the caution once again.  Kevin Harvick took the lead during pit stops, and he led the field back to the green flag on lap 108.

On lap 110, Alex Bowman got into the wall to bring out another quick caution.  

Harvick led the field back to the green flag on lap 114, but Brett Moffitt spun in Turn 3 to bring out the caution again.

Harvick led on the lap 120 restart, but the caution quickly came out again on lap 122.  Denny Hamlin and Aric Almirola got together in Turn 3 and spun on the track.

On lap 128, Logano got around Harvick when the race restarted and took the lead.  He led until Harvick chased him back down on lap 142.

The final caution of the day came out on lap 148 for debris.

The race restarted on lap 152, and Johnson blew by Jamie McMurray for the lead.  The leaders were then forced to make green-flag pit stops for the final time, with Johnson giving up the lead on lap 166.

When the final set of leaders pitted on lap 192, Johnson inherited the lead and he was able to pull away from Harvick to take the win.

Here are the unofficial results:

1. Jimmie Johnson

2. Kevin Harvick

3. Brad Keselowski

4. Paul Menard

5. Kasey Kahne

6. Jeff Gordon

7. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

8. Kyle Larson

9. Joey Logano

10. Clint Bowyer

11. Tony Stewart

12. Jamie McMurray

13. Kurt Busch

14. Matt Kenseth

15. Ryan Newman

16. Justin Allgaier

17. Danica Patrick

18. Juan Pablo Montoya

19. Trevor Bayne

20. Greg Biffle

21. Michael Annett

22. AJ Allmendinger

23. Carl Edwards

24. Casey Mears

25. Marcos Ambrose

26. David Gilliland

27. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

28. Cole Whitt

29. Denny Hamlin

30. Austin Dillon

31. Aric Almirola

32. Reed Sorenson

33. Josh Wise

34. Brett Moffitt

35. Landon Cassill

36. J.J. Yeley

37. Martin Truex Jr.

38. David Ragan

39. David Stremme

40. Alex Bowman

41. Kyle Busch

42. Brian Vickers

43. Travis Kvapil

Next Sunday, the Sprint Cup Series heads to Sonoma Raceway for the Toyota-Save Mart 350.

Photo courtesy Jason Miller/Getty Images