Johnson in top five, Earnhardt in top 10 at New Hampshire

LOUDON, N.H. – Hendrick Motorsports left Chicagoland Speedway last week with two drivers in the top 11.

Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the organization made it two weeks in a row – though this time both drivers were in the top 10, and one cracked the top five.

This time it was Jimmie Johnson leading the way, as the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS took the checkered flag in fifth position. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was just behind him in ninth.

Jeff Gordon, who was running in the top 10 with less than 10 laps to go, suffered a tire issue that caused him to finish 26th. Kasey Kahne, who was also involved in an incident late in the race, finished just ahead of him in 23rd.

Below is a closer look at how all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers fared at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in the second race of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 TIME WARNER CABLE CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 23rd
Chase Standings: 11th
Recap: Kahne rolled off the grid in 17th position Sunday before moving up to 16th 25 laps in. On the other side of a competition caution at Lap 35, Kahne fell outside the top 20, all the way back to 22nd at Lap 50. But he methodically worked his way back up the pack. By Lap 65 he was in 21st, and then from Lap 85 to Lap 97 he jumped from 20th to 18th. When the next caution flag waved at Lap 105 for debris on the track, Kahne was in 17th. At Lap 135, he had made his way all the way up to 13th. When another caution flag waved at Lap 170, Kahne was in 12th, and he moved into the top 10 just 10 laps later. At Lap 188, however, as he was battling for eighth position, he was involved in an incident that took him to pit road for repairs. He managed to stay on the lead lap, however, and at Lap 198 was running 24th. With 50 laps to go, Kahne restarted 23rd, and made it up to 21st for a restart with 27 laps to go. When teammate Gordon was involved in an incident with nine laps to go, Kahne headed to pit road for four tires. After a green-white-checkered attempt, he finished the race in 23rd.

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 26th
Chase Standings: 7th
Recap: Gordon started the race in 13th, but that didn’t keep him out of the top 10 for long. Four laps in, he was up to 12th, and he found his way to 10th position at Lap 11. By Lap 20, he was up to seventh, and that’s where he stayed when a competition caution flag waved at Lap 35. At Lap 65, he gained one more position to sixth, and by Lap 77 he cracked the top five. Just two laps later he moved up to fourth, and when the next caution flag waved at Lap 105, he was up to third. That’s where he remained for the majority of the next 100 laps. With 75 laps to go, Gordon took a restart in sixth, but quickly moved back in to the top five. After a caution for debris at Lap 245, Gordon headed to pit road while a number of cars stayed out. So with 50 laps to go, he restarted 13th, but when another caution flag flew shortly thereafter, he headed back to pit road for four tires and fuel and restarted 20th with 40 laps to go. By the time the 12th caution flag of the race waved, Gordon stayed out of pit road and restarted 13th with 32 laps to go. When the next caution flag waved just two laps later, he had moved back in to the top 10. With 24 laps to go, he passed teammate Earnhardt for seventh position. He made it to sixth and was trying to catch teammate Johnson when he suffered a tire issue and hit the wall with nine laps to go. He stayed on the lead lap and finished the race in 26th.

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 5th
Chase Standings: 4th
Recap: Starting in sixth position, Johnson quickly picked up two spots, moving to fourth by Lap 2. He remained in the top five as the yellow flag for a competition caution at Lap 35. He took two tires on pit road and restarted fifth once again. He remained in the top 10 until a restart following a Lap-105 caution for debris, when he restarted ninth and fell back to 11th. By Lap 135, however, he was back up to ninth. He continued racing in the top 10 until Lap 188, when he was just outside in 11th position. After avoiding multiple incidents in a short span, Johnson found himself in seventh position with less than 100 laps to go. That’s where he would restart with 50 laps to go thanks to a decision to stay off pit road following a caution for debris at Lap 245. During the next caution, crew chief Chad Knaus said to Johnson over the radio: “There's 40 laps to go. We need 40 laps of your brilliance." Johnson restarted eighth with 40 laps to go and quickly moved into the top five before the 12th caution flag of the race flew. “Really good job, Jimmie,” Knaus said. “Really good job.” He lined up fifth for a restart with 32 laps to go, where he remained when the next caution waved just two laps later. He remained in fifth until a caution waved at Lap 297, and he had just lost a position from the previous restart just one lap earlier. He lined up sixth for the green-white-checkered attempt, and made it back into the top five to finish fifth.

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 DIET MOUNTAIN DEW CHEVROLET SS
Finished: 9th
Chase Standings: 6th
Recap: An 11th-place start for Earnhardt turned into 15th position three laps in, and when a competition caution was called at Lap 35, the driver of the No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet SS had made his way up to 14th. A quick, two-tire pit stop allowed Earnhardt to restart 12th, and by Lap 43 he moved into the top 10 in ninth place. By Lap 100, Earnhardt was in seventh, and 15 laps later he was running sixth. At Lap 118, however, Earnhardt reported a loose wheel and headed to pit road during green-flag racing. He took four tires but it cost him a lap. When he returned to the track, he had one car to pass to be the lucky dog, which he accomplished on Lap 124. He found himself in 24th position, and moved up to 23rd before he was granted a free pass for a restart at Lap 192 following a caution. He moved into the top 20 – 18th position – by Lap 210. On a restart with 50 laps to go, Earnhardt ran in 15th position. He stayed out of pit road on each of the next two cautions, and therefore was able to line up in 10th for a restart with 32 laps remaining. "You're putting up a great battle, buddy,” crew chief Steve Letarte told Earnhardt over the radio. “Great job, great job.” By the time the next caution flag waved just two laps later, he had moved up to eighth. With 25 laps to go, he moved to seventh position, but was passed by teammate Gordon to move back to eighth. When Gordon was involved in an incident, Earnhardt restarted in seventh with four laps to go. Caution waved once again at Lap 297, which meant the race would finish with a green-white-checkered attempt. He took the checkered flag ninth.