“It’s such a special day for Rick. (It’s his) 25th year in the sport and to come back to the same track on the same weekend and win again. Just proud to be in his (cars).”
Jimmie Johnson
Editor’s note: This is the 29th in a 40-part series highlighting 40 of the greatest wins in the history of Hendrick Motorsports to finish its 40th anniversary season. A new installment will be released each day from Nov. 22, 2024 through New Year’s Eve. Votes were taken from Hendrick Motorsports employees as well as representatives of the NASCAR Hall of Fame and Racing Insights with all unanimous selections being ushered in automatically. The remaining wins were deliberated and decided upon by a small panel.
CONCORD, N.C. - The 2009 season was a very special one for Hendrick Motorsports, as NASCAR’s most successful organization celebrated its 25th anniversary.
“I never dreamed we’d make it 25 years,” owner and CEO Rick Hendrick told the gathered media during a preseason press conference at Daytona International Speedway. “I feel honored and blessed that I can do anything in life that I enjoy as much as racing and stay with it this long and be surrounded by a lot of great folks.”
However, even with everything happening that year, one event still stood out - Martinsville Speedway in March. On that same weekend 25 years earlier, driver Geoff Bodine captured the first victory for Hendrick’s fledgling All-Star Racing team. To this day, it remains one of the organization’s most pivotal results.
“I don’t know who you’d be driving for, but it probably wouldn’t be me if Geoff Bodine hadn’t won that race in Martinsville,” Hendrick told driver Jeff Gordon that weekend.
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| RACE FACTS | |
|---|---|
| Date: | March 29, 2009 |
| Venue: | Martinsville Speedway |
| Winner: | Jimmie Johnson |
| Hendrick Motorsports win: | No. 176 |
| Laps led by winner: | 42 |
| Starting position of winner: | 9th |
| Top 10: | 1. Jimmie Johnson; 2. Denny Hamlin; 3. Tony Stewart; 4. Jeff Gordon; 5. Clint Bowyer; 6. Ryan Newman; 7. Mark Martin; 8. Dale Earnhardt Jr.; 9. AJ Allmendinger; 10. Jamie McMurray |
| Did you know? |
To be sure, Gordon was one of the favorites to capture the coveted 25th anniversary race for Hendrick. With seven wins at Martinsville already and early season momentum on his side, he was in a good position to bring home an eighth trophy.
However, Gordon wasn’t considered “the” favorite. That honor went to the driver he nicknamed “Mr. Martinsville” just two years earlier. Buoyed by three consecutive Cup Series titles (2006, 2007 & 2008), Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 Lowe’s team had established themselves as the prohibitive favorites heading into the 2009 spring race at the historic 0.526-mile facility.
Race weekend arrived and so did the rain, hampering qualifying efforts prior to Sunday and positioning Gordon on the pole via championship points. Johnson would begin the race ninth.
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Gordon jumped out to a solid, early lead. Meanwhile, it took only 15 laps for the 48 car to enter the top five, climbing as high as third by lap 18. All remained steady until the 90-lap mark, when Johnson and the 48 crew began to experience handling issues, dropping outside the top 20.
Steve Byrnes, the late pit reporter for FOX, noted on lap 125, “They just have not been able to get the handle the way Jimmie Johnson wants it to. The car has been tight since the start of the race. (Crew chief) Chad Knaus has been asking him for patience.”
It turned out to be virtuous advice. After numerous adjustments, Johnson once again found himself driving one of the quickest cars on track, working his way up to the 12th by lap 225. Byrnes followed up with Knaus after Johnson cracked the top 10 around 18 laps later.
“They are starting to make some progress,” Byrnes said to the television audience. “Jimmie is saying (on the radio) the car is still a little bit tight, but they are making progress.”
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By the time a caution flew on lap 351, Johnson had moved into the top five and was mixing it up with leaders Denny Hamlin, Gordon and Clint Bowyer in a four-way battle for the top spot.
Entering the stretch run, Hamlin and Gordon had been dominant, leading a majority of the race with 296 laps and 147 laps led, respectively.
Caution flew for an Aric Almirola incident on lap 448. Johnson had a terrific pit stop during the ensuing caution, capturing the lead for the first time. A strong closing performance was planned.
“Jimmie just told Chad that the front end of this race car has really come to life,” Byrnes relayed to the audience. “Chad then said over the radio, ‘We’re going to fix you up, give you a great adjustment and you’re doing a fantastic job.’”
With 45 remaining, those plans took a bit of detour when Hamlin re-took the lead from Johnson and held it for nearly 30 laps, which included three caution periods. It looked as if Hamlin still had the best car of the afternoon.
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That changed again with 16 to go, when Johnson ran Hamlin down on the backstretch. Hamlin tried a few blocking maneuvers at the end of the straight, yet Johnson nudged inside entering turn three and had the momentum. The two bumped, both washed up the corner, but the 48 Lowe’s entry recovered quickly to take the lead. The eventual seven-time Cup Series champ cruised to victory from there.
“Mr. Martinsville” had struck again.
Johnson led 42 laps on that day, and had won five of six events at the facility. The California driver would eventually tie Gordon’s mark of nine victories at Martinsville and the hall of fame duo is tied for third on the short track’s all-time win list, behind only Hendrick Motorsports alum Darrell Waltrip (11) and Richard Petty (15).
Immediately after the race, Johnson spoke with FOX pit reporter Dr. Dick Berggren about the momentous victory.
“It was a fun day,” Johnson said. “We didn’t have the best car (but) as the day went on, we opted to lose track position and work on the car.
“The first couple of things we did was put spring rubbers in the right rear, but we lost track position, and it really didn’t help. As the day want on, Chad kept playing with tire pressure and wedge and we got the car right.”
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Johnson was thankful he could deliver on such a meaningful occasion.
“It’s such a special day for Rick,” Johnson went on to say. “(It’s his) 25th year in the sport and to come back to the same track on the same weekend and win again. Just proud to be in his (cars).”
The El Cajon, California driver had grabbed a victory that was 25 years in the making, fulfilling a dream that was first realized in the 1984 Daytona 500 - a race Hendrick had watched atop a motor home just two years prior.
“When I saw Junior Johnson and others in the garage area, I wondered why I was there,” said Hendrick in a RacingNation.com article. “We started out with five people, and I almost pulled the plug after a half dozen races. When I think back, I was very fortunate to have the talent I was able to assemble and am blessed with what has happened. The key to our success is our people and being able to keep them together.”
Now, as Hendrick wraps up his 40th year in the sport – he sits atop them all.