Hendrick Motorsports drivers finish in top 14 in season finale

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – In a race that crowned a champion -- a driver using a Hendrick Motorsports engine -- all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers finished in the top 14.

Jimmie Johnson led the teammates to the checkered flag at Homestead-Miami Speedway, taking home a ninth-place finish. Jeff Gordon, who led a race-high 161 laps, was right behind him in 10th. Kasey Kahne was next in 12th and Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the foursome in 14th.

Below is an in-depth look at how all four drivers fared in the season finale.

KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 GREAT CLIPS CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 12th
Standings: 15th
Recap: After starting 23rd, Kahne quickly got to work moving up the pack. By Lap 8 he was already in the top 15, and on Lap 35 he moved in to the top 10. At that point, all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers were running in the top 10. He jumped as high as seventh on Lap 57, and though he fell out of the top 10 briefly on a restart following a caution on Lap 86, by Lap 110 he was already back in ninth. He continued running near 10th position, and for a restart on Lap 160, he was back in 13th. When a caution flag waved shortly thereafter, he headed back to pit road and then took the restart on Lap 165 in 15th. But with 92 laps to go he was already back in the top 10. He gained a spot on pit road during a caution at Lap 194 and returned to the track in ninth. For a restart with 42 to go, Kahne was in 12th, and fell back to 14th for a  restart with 15 to go, but managed to pick up two more spots by the checkered flag through two more restarts to finish 12th.

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 10th
Standings: 6th
Recap: Leading the field to the green flag, Gordon held on to the race lead for the first 12 laps, but lost it on pit road during the first caution when a competitor elected to take just two tires. On Lap 27, however, he retook the lead, and that’s where he continued to run until he lost it to a championship contender after he had led 107 laps. He continued to run in second place  until he regained the lead on pit road in time for a restart on Lap 160. A quick caution just after that restart saw Gordon retain the lead, but he lost it on the ensuing restart at Lap 165. He fell as far back as fourth with 87 laps to go, but moved all the way back to second just 10 laps later. He headed to pit road during a caution at Lap 194 and regained the lead thanks to a speedy pit stop by the No. 24 crew. “You guys are doing a great job,” Gordon said over the radio. On a restart with 55 to go, Gordon lost the lead and fell to second, but won the race off pit road during the next caution to lead the field to green for a restart with 42 to go. When another caution flag waved with less than 20 laps to go, Gordon stayed off pit road to remain in first, but lost the lead on the restart with 15 laps to go. When another caution flag waved, he headed to pit road from second and restarted 26th. He managed to fight his way all the way back on fresh tires to finish 10th.

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 9th
Standings: 11th
Recap: Johnson began the race with a quick dash into the top 10, finding his way to 10th by Lap 6. That’s where he continued to run until Lap 25, when he raced into eighth. Johnson made it all the way to fifth by the second caution flag of the race, and at Lap 81 he was running as high as third. At Lap 105, running fourth, Johnson reported that he scraped the wall. The No. 48 team evaluated the damage on the next pit stop, and Johnson continued to run in the top 10. At Lap 124 he was still in fourth, though he took a restart on Lap 160 in eighth. The next restart on Lap 165 saw Johnson take the green flag outside the top 10, but he didn’t stay there for long. With 87 to go, he was back in eighth. He stayed around the top 10 or just outside of it for the final stretch of the race, and found his way all the way up to fifth with 25 laps to go. He restarted in 10th with 15 laps to go and was still in 10th for the final restart with three to go, picking up one more position to finish ninth.

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 14th
Standings: 8th
Recap: Though he began the race just outside the top 10, Earnhardt found himself running seventh after the first caution of the event. He raced into the top five by Lap 42, and continued to run in the top 10 until a cut in a right-rear tire forced him to head to pit road unexpectedly. He fell as low as 35th and was a lap behind the leaders, but his No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet SS was too fast for him to stay there for long. By Lap 102 he had moved back inside the top 30, and by the fourth caution of the race, Earnhardt had battled back to be the first car a lap down. For that reason, he was the beneficiary during that caution and at Lap 124 he was running 23rd back on the lead lap. One lap later he was all the way up to 20th, and in less than 20 laps he passed 10 more cars to move in to the top 10. With 98 laps to go in the race, he had fought all the way back in to the top five, and 11 laps later he was still in fifth with teammate Gordon just ahead of him in fourth. He fell back over the next few laps but quickly jumped back up to seventh on a restart with 42 to go. After two more cautions, Earnhardt lined up 16th for a restart with 15 laps to go and continued to fight for positions during a frantic finish, ultimately taking home a 14th-place result.