It's Johnson's time again as Chase hits halfway mark

CONCORD, N.C. -- The Chase reaches the halfway mark this weekend with Saturday night's NASCAR Banking 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. And right on cue, Jimmie Johnson is on top of the points standings.

Johnson and his team are doing exactly what they've done the last three seasons, all of which resulted in championships after peaking at exactly the right time.

• Charlotte: Johnson on pole | Lineup

His win last week in California caused some in the garage area to seemingly wave the white flag. Johnson's teammate Jeff Gordon, after finishing second, literally threw up his hands, trying to figure out how in the world to close the gap between the No. 24 and No. 48 teams.

"I really don't know what else we could do," an exasperated Gordon said after Sunday's Pepsi 500.

Gordon and his crew chief haven't given up by any means, but realize toppling Johnson will be a difficult task.

They're not alone.

"It's all about us trying to knock Jimmie Johnson off the top," said Kurt Busch, who comes into the Charlotte race sixth in the standings, 121 points out of the lead. "Those guys have the perfect combination, it seems like, for all the race tracks. They've done it the last three years. It's amazing."

Like Gordon, Busch isn't completely sure what the secret formula is for Johnson's success -- but he has a pretty good idea.

"Just the combination of Hendrick Motorsports, [crew chief] Chad Knaus, Jimmie Johnson and Chevrolet -- you name it," he said. "The depth that they have. ... It's like having a basketball team with four or five guys on the bench that could be starters for other teams. It seems like they just have all the weapons."

But Busch also believes he isn't out of the race for a second title, despite the odds seemingly being stacked against him. The Penske Racing driver realizes there are other forces at work in the NASCAR world that could be an asset to Johnson's 11 other challengers for the title.

"For the rest of us, it's going to take some luck," Busch said. "It's going to take some hard work. There might be something that we can do to outsmart a Chad Knaus or to outdrive a Jimmie Johnson. But there's no way that we can rally 11 versus one. That would be the ideal situation. We'd want 11 versus one."

Busch is in a unique situation of trying to win a championship with a team that already knows it will be different next season. Crew chief Pat Tryson will leave the No. 2 squad at the end of the year to take a role at Michael Waltrip Racing.

Some felt that would be too much of a distraction for Busch to overcome in his quest for this year's title. But so far the driver-crew chief relationship seems to be working. Busch is confident that over the course of the next six races, his team can make up some ground in the standings.

"We're hoping at Penske Racing that we find something good out of this weekend, which is a mile-and-a-half track, which will help us benefit at a Texas and Homestead, which are a couple of mile-and-a-half tracks," Busch said. "That's the focus this weekend; get the best out of our car this weekend and see what we need to do at the other mile-and-a-halves for the Chase."

Busch knows what it's like to be on a dominant team: He was part of the powerhouse Roush organization earlier this decade. He won the 2004 championship.

With changes set for the Penske operation, including the addition of Brad Keselowski to the driver stable in 2010 as well as a new crew chief for the No. 2 ride, Busch is hoping his current team can rise to the level of what rival team owner Rick Hendrick enjoys today.

"It's definitely Hendrick's time in the sunshine right now," Busch said. "Those guys obviously have won the last three championships and so far in this year's Chase, if you're not a Hendrick car or affiliated with Hendrick, you haven't won yet. Each and every week, they have more bullets in the gun it seems like than any other team. It's more dominant now with what Hendrick is doing versus what we did in 2005 at Roush Racing.

"We were strong at Roush Racing. I was fifth going into the Chase. It was a big feather in the cap. I remember being part of a group like that. Half the cars in the Chase were our cars at Roush. It was something special. I didn't get to finish off that season like I wanted to; sometimes business gets involved in racing and it hurts the effort. Right now, I don't see any weak spots at Hendrick Motorsports. It's amazing."

Who's hot

Kyle Busch: Boasting an average finish of 4.0 in his last four starts at Lowe's, Busch has finishes of third, fourth and sixth with Joe Gibbs Racing. He won the pole in 2008 and has led 248 laps with JGR. He has led 250 laps on 1.5-mile tracks in 2009.

Jimmie Johnson: A five-time Charlotte winner, Johnson's last victory at this event came in 2005. He has a 12.3 average finish in last seven starts and leads all full-time drivers with 1,242 laps led at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Jeff Gordon: Another five-time Charlotte winner; his last of five wins came in this event in 2007. Gordon leads all drivers with a 5.0 average finish on 1.5-mile tracks in 2009.

Who's not

Denny Hamlin: Has posted a 17.8 average finish in his last four starts at LMS. His last of three top 10s came in the 2007 May race.

Marcos Ambrose: Started 23rd and finished 26th in first track start in May. Has a 24.7 average finish on 1.5-mile tracks in 2009.

A.J. Allmendinger: Has a 28.2 average finish in five starts. His best finish -- 15th -- came in this event in 2007.

Make a note

• Juan Pablo Montoya is the only title-eligible driver with top-five finishes in each of the four Chase races this season.

• The last time a pole starter won the Charlotte-area track's fall race was in 1982, when Harry Gant accomplished the feat.

• Greg Biffle has a 9.7 average finish with the COT at Lowe's.

• Brian Vickers has led 158 laps with the COT at Lowe's.

• Lowe's is the site of Ryan Newman's best start and best finish in 2009.