Full Throttle

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP)

A victory in Saturday night’s Budweiser Shootout revived the season-ending momentum that came so close to giving Jimmie Johnson a NASCAR Nextel Cup title in 2004 and has made him the favorite going into this season.

“This is a great shot in the arm for Hendrick Motorsports,” Johnson said after leading the final 16 laps of the non-points event at Daytona International Speedway. “A lot of work goes into this over the winter and this win will put a smile on everybody’s face and make all those hours they put in worthwhile.”

The driver who finished second to Kurt Busch by just eight points last year — the closest margin in stock car history — took the lead 16 laps from the end of the 70-lap Shootout and held off a pack of charging challengers to the end.

In the words of “Mayor Jimmy”, fan and fellow racing blogger.

BUD SHOOTOUT TIME!!!!!!!!!!!

WOO!!!!!!!

YEAH!!!!!!

NASCAR BABY NASCAR!!!!!!!

in the words of the immortal peter griffin…..freakin sweet……

post race thoughts: those first 20 laps were a freakin buzzkill weren’t they? but they got it all dialed in and fixed and it’s clear if they can find that little extra something to fix they’ll be doing fine for the 500. i mean, he was running up towards the front with a car he called “junk”. if he can do that with junk then a good car will blow everyone away. Biffle is going to be a contender, he was running good.

1. (17) Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 70 $212,945
2. (7) Ryan Newman Dodge 70 $112,445
3. (11) Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 70 $62,445
4. (8) Tony Stewart Chevrolet 70 $52,445
5. (2) Greg Biffle Ford 70 $50,445
6. (6) Kurt Busch Ford 70 $48,445
7. (12) Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 70 $46,445
8. (14) Mark Martin Ford 70 $45,445
9. (13) Kasey Kahne Dodge 70 $44,445
10. (19) Bobby Labonte Chevrolet 70 $43,445
11. (16) Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 70 $41,445
12. (9) Ricky Rudd Ford 70 $40,445
13. (18) Casey Mears Dodge 70 $39,445
14. (15) Rusty Wallace Dodge 70 $38,445
15. (1) Dale Jarrett Ford 70 $37,445
16. (5) Ken Schrader Dodge 70 $36,445
17. (3) Bill Elliott Dodge 70 $35,445
18. (10) Jeremy Mayfield Dodge 70 $34,445
19. (4) Brian Vickers Chevrolet 46 (rear end) $33,445
20. (20) Geoffrey Bodine Chevrolet 9 (too slow) $31,345

Race Statistics
Average Speed of Race Winner: 181.399 mph.
Time of Race: 57 minutes, 53 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.199 seconds.
Caution Flags: None.
Lead Changes: 5 among 6 drivers.
Lap Leaders: D.Jarrett 1; G.Biffle 2-45; B.Labonte 46-48; C.Mears 49-50; R.Newman 51-54; J.Johnson 55-70.