Johnson Seals History with Fourth Consecutive Title

The "Jimmie Johnson Dynasty" has officially begun.

Johnson has put himself among the ranks of legendary sports heroes such as Tiger Woods, Pete Sampras and Lance Armstrong.

He can now compare himself to the former greats of his sport, Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt and teammate Jeff Gordon -- none of whom have accomplished the incredible feat that he has.

He can also be held in the same high esteem as some of professional sports most legendary teams in history such as the New York Yankees and the Boston Celtics.

After clenching his fourth consecutive Sprint Cup Title with a fifth-place finish on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the soon-to-be legendary Hendrick Motorsports driver finally gave credit where credit was due: to himself.

Appearing to have finally recognized the magnitude of what he had just accomplished, Johnson called the success of his team “unbelievable."

Johnson: "The truth of it is, to do something that's never been done in this sport ... To win four championships in eight years, what this team has done ... I don't know where to start.”

Johnson finished 141 points ahead of teammate and another heavy fan-favorite Mark Martin who referred to Johnson as "Superman" after Johnson sealed his fourth consecutive Sprint Cup Title.

Don’t expect this to be Johnson’s last victory, however, as he and crew chief Chad Knaus just signed a contract extension that will allow the dynamic duo to work together through 2015 and are showing now signs of slowing down in the near future.

Johnson: "I'm a racer. That's what I do at all times—I race. And I know I have at least another 10 years in me of racing, so while I'm racing, I want to be successful."

Not knowing what the future will hold, for now at least, Johnson stands atop the NASCAR world as a one-man dynasty.

Early Johnson Crash Allows Martin, Gordon to Narrow Gap in Sprint Cup Chase at Texas

Just three laps into what was likely to be another solid finish on the way to an unprecedented fourth consecutive championship for Jimmie Johnson, one nudge put an unexpected obstacle in the path of his Lowe’s team. Slight contact from the No. 77 car driven by Sam Hornish, Jr. caused Johnson’s No. 48 car to slam into the wall on the backstretch in the Dickies 500, sending shockwaves through Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday

The crash caused a frantic scene in the pit as over a dozen Hendrick Motorsports crew members worked vigorously to reassemble Johnson’s mangled car, barely after the race had begun. After over an hour of repairs to the No. 48 car, Johnson re-entered the race 129 laps behind and was able to salvage a 38th place finish, picking up critical points to keep a lead in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Heading into Sunday’s race, Johnson held a 184-point lead over Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin, but now sits just 73 points ahead heading into Phoenix next week. Martin, who with 40 career wins but no Sprint Cup titles, is slowly making a case for himself as the best Cup driver never to win a Championship.

But with Johnson’s crash, a Martin Championship this year is not far-fetched.

Neither Martin nor teammate Jeff Gordon – who now sits just 112 points behind Johnson in Chase standings -- were able to capitalize on Johnson’s misfortune and come out on top this weekend, but both have certainly made the Chase more interesting.

In order to secure a fourth consecutive Sprint Cup Title, Johnson needs to average a fourth-place finish in the final two races of the season at Arizona and Homestead-Miami.

Meanwhile, Martin heads into Phoenix next week with a shot at his first ever Sprint Cup Title.

Press Pass to release Professional Bull Riding trading cards

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