chad knaus Tag

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer Sunday’s championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway marks the first time Jimmie Johnson has made it to the Championship 4 in this the third season of the current version of the Chase format. The past two seasons have seen Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch win the final race of the season to earn the championship. Despite 79 career victories, the 1.5-mile track in Florida is one of just four on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule where Johnson has yet to win. However, it’s important toRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor FORT WORTH, Texas — If overcoming adversity is what judges if a team is championship material, then go ahead and award Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus their seventh Sprint Cup after their effort in Saturday night’s Duck Commander 500. Johnson started 11th and finished fourth, but its everything that happened in between that made the night really special. On a pit stop during the competition caution at lap 31, Johnson made contact with the rear of eventual race winner Kyle Busch’s car. This caused severe damageRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor This past weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson busted down the door to yet another career milestone — 76-career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins. That number is of course relevant in the world of NASCAR, because it now ties Johnson with the late Dale Earnhardt for seventh on the all-time win list. As you would expect, this win immediately spawned the question, is Johnson a better driver than Earnhardt was? Johnson fans will say yes, obviously. While Earnhardt fans will say no, just asRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service HAMPTON, Ga. – With wrecks erupting behind him, Jimmie Johnson took the checkered flag in overtime under caution in Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway—and then he remembered. Almost lost in the euphoria of Johnson’s second straight victory at the 1.54-mile track was the realization that, with his 76th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory, he had tied the late Dale Earnhardt for seventh on the all-time wins list. But as the No. 48 Chevrolet rolled around the track on itsRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – It was a noon practice on the day of the Can-Am Duels at Daytona International Speedway, and there was six-time champion Jimmie Johnson, doing his thing. The regular routine for Johnson and No. 48 crew chief Chad Knaus is a succession of single-car runs at Daytona, staying out of the draft and out of trouble, looking for speed. Based on Thursday’s practice, Johnson may be poised to add a third Daytona 500 title to his resume. The six-time NASCAR SprintRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Saturday’s Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway ended with a mere handful of cars undamaged—and race winner Denny Hamlin’s Toyota wasn’t one of them. But Hamlin got his wreck out of the way early in a two-car incident with Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s Ford on Lap 13 and won the race in overtime with a large swatch of silver tape on the right side of his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Camry. Hamlin triumphed in the season-opening non-points event for theRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Sometimes crew chiefs don’t get their full due in the sport of NASCAR. That wasnt the case Friday at Daytona International Speedway as crew chiefs were at the forefront of how the grid for Saturday night’s Sprint Unlimited was decided. The exhibition event’s starting lineup was decided by a random draw from the crew chiefs of the teams eligible to compete. Chad Knaus, Jimmie Johnson’s crew chief, nabbed the pole position for the race. Johnson has won at Daytona three times in his NASCAR SprintRead More