NASCAR Cup Series

Fans are mad at the wrong guy

Published Nov. 30, 2009 12:00 a.m. ET

Darrell Waltrip

You know after Peyton Manning threw that interception late in the game Sunday night, I turned the TV off because I said it was over and the Patriots won. Well I woke up Monday only to learn that the Colts came back and won 35-34.

Just like Peyton shook off the interception and helped lead his team to victory, Jimmie Johnson shook off the wreck at Texas two weeks ago and came back to win at Phoenix. He didn't just win, he put an absolute spanking on the field.

The No. 48 team unloaded fast at Phoenix. They qualified third and then the race was all Jimmie all the time. There are folks out there complaining that Johnson is stinking up the show. Some call him bland and boring or try to blame him for all that is wrong with NASCAR right now.

It also seemed last week after Texas that everyone was thinking the pressure had finally gotten to the No. 48 team and that they were cracking underneath all of it.

Guess what? They aren't.

Team 48 came back at Phoenix and sent a very clear message that Texas was simply a very small bump in the road to championship number four.

But you shouldn't be mad at Jimmie Johnson because he is better than everyone else. Don't be mad at Chad Knaus because he is smarter than everyone else or at the team because they are better than everyone else.

So who should you be mad at? The answer is pretty simple. You should be mad at your driver and team. Do you know why? They still haven't figured out a way to beat that No. 48 car. When you have a dominant team, well it is the benchmark. It's what everybody shoots at. Until you can get there, well simply expect the No. 48 team to kick your butt.

Simply put, no one, and I mean no one, has been able to accomplish what that No. 48 team has been able to do.

You may not like it. Again, maybe you think Johnson is bland and boring but perfection sometimes is boring. It's boring because you can't find anything wrong with it. That No. 48 team has been on a roll for a long time now. It's not like they are lucky. If you are lucky, you might win a championship. These guys have won three in a row and are going to set a NASCAR record by winning four in a row Sunday at Homestead-Miami.

These guys aren't just lucky or good. These guys are great. They work extremely hard and are extremely focused. Do you know how easy it would have been after the Lap 3 wreck at Texas to simply load it on the hauler and head back to North Carolina? Folks that car was totaled, but they didn't care. They all came together and thrashed on that car and one hour later they rolled back out onto the track. It wouldn't have mattered if they didn't pick up any spots or gain any points because it was the effort that counted. You win championships by never saying never.

Texas showed the heart and character of that team. It also sent a very loud statement that if you want the championship, well, by golly, you are going to have to go through the No. 48 to get it because they aren't going to roll over simply because of adversity.

All weekend long it seemed as if every sports program you turned on was showing the wreck at Texas about once an hour. The folks on TV were making so much noise about the fact Jimmie lost 111 points. What everyone seems to forget is that Jimmie had a 184-point lead. Yes he lost 111 points, but he still rolled into Phoenix with a 73-point lead. I mentioned this last week, but folks, 73 points is still the second largest lead in Chase history going into the last two races.

Did folks really expect lightning to strike twice? Did they really expect Jimmie to stumble at Phoenix? Not this time. It just wasn't meant to be. That driver is too focused. That crew chief is too smart. That team is at the top of its game right now and won't let anything like that happen.

Like I said, if you want to be mad, be mad at someone other than Jimmie Johnson. If you want to be jealous, well I can understand that. If you want to be envious, well I can understand that too. Don't be mad at Jimmie. Give him the credit that he is due.

He and Chad are like Batman and Robin. Chad knows how to run the team and Jimmie obviously knows how to run that car. Any given Sunday they can simply whoop your butt. I am going to keep saying this, but nothing is going to change until something changes. Either the schedule has to change, or the point system has to change or the No. 48 will have to implode but if they stay joined at the hip as they are right now, well it's clear that everyone else is racing for second place.

Oh by the way

I loved what Carl Edwards did Saturday after winning the Nationwide Series race. Although he has recovered from his broken foot, he can't be hopping off the side of the car like he used to. But he still did a variation of a backflip after his win.

What people may not have realized was he laid down on his back and he flipped over. Yes, a real back flip. Let's face it, what he has been doing is a somersault.

Now this is the same guy that almost went into the grandstands at Talladega yet he gets out of his car and runs across the finish line like Ricky Bobby. What he did Saturday showed me he gave it a lot of thought. I had a big belly laugh when I saw what he did on Saturday ...

... but then I had a big belly ache when I saw what he did on Sunday.

Oh by the way II

I want to make something perfectly clear. What I wrote about Danica last week was purely meant to point out the obstacles she is facing should she decide to give NASCAR a try.

Let me also make it perfectly clear that if she should come to NASCAR, I Darrell Waltrip will wish her well. I would also like to make it perfectly clear that I, Darrell Waltrip, do not think it is a good idea. I just don't believe she can handle our kind of racing. There is too much to learn in a short period of time. She is too big of a star to gamble on something like coming to NASCAR and tarnishing her reputation.

I am thinking right about now that she is having second thoughts about the very same thing.