Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus never slowed down enough to consider what a record-tying third consecutive championship would mean to their legacy. Don’t count on them doing it now. After tying Cale Yarborough’s 30-year mark as the only driver with three straight championships, Johnson and his crew chief were already thinking about going after No. 4.

Carl Edwards threw haymakers at Jimmie Johnson throughout most of Sunday’s Dickies 500, trying to pulverize Johnson’s lead in the Chase. But NASCAR’s playoff system has an unfixable flaw, and that helped soften the blow of Edwards’ second straight win and eighth of the season. He had to settle for a TKO on a fuel-mileage gamble, and a decent but not devastating cut into Johnson’s lead after Johnson nursed a fitfully handling car home 15th, one lap down.

Carl Edwards did his seventh celebratory backflip and headed to Victory Lane confident he’d closed in on Jimmie Johnson’s bumper in the race for the Sprint Cup title. As the champagne flowed, his spirits were dashed. Even with his win Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Edwards didn’t dent Johnson’s lead in the championship standings. With a masterful final drive to the checkered flag, the two-time defending champion rallied from a rare penalty to finish second and stretch his points lead to a commanding 183 points over Edwards with three races remaining in the Chase for the championship.

When the victim is Kyle Busch, driving rough to win can make a hero of a guy in a hurry. Carl Edwards brought the loudest cheer on Saturday night from the 160,000-plus at Bristol Motor Speedway when he took out Busch during the cooldown lap after winning the Sharpie 500. Busch drove alongside Edwards and whacked him door-to-door a few times after the race was over. Then Edwards slowed down even more, let Busch pass until his right-rear quarter panel was exposed, then whacked him and sent him spinning. The crowd then rose to its feet in thunderous cheers. Busch dominated the race for 415 straight laps, but with 30 laps to go Edwards drove up on Busch’s bumper in the first turn, unabashedly knocked him up the track, and drove under, into the lead for good.

Carl Edwards took the lead in the pits, then drove away Saturday for his first NASCAR Nationwide Series victory at Michigan International Speedway and 16th overall series win. The reigning series champion was trailing fellow Sprint Cup star Tony Stewart when the leaders drove onto pit road under a caution flag on lap 93. Edwards, driving a Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, came out in front and easily led to the end of the 125-lap race on the 2-mile oval.

The 2008 Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 was decided by pit strategy. Pocono Raceway is the “superspeedway that drives like a road course” and the winning strategy today was a road course one. Edwards’ crew brought him in as soon as they were inside their pit window. The race stayed green all the way and he made it to the checkered flag on fumes to claim the win. Mark Martin had the best car during the first half of the race but an error in the pits shuffled him back in the pack. NASCAR Sprint Cup racing is so competitive that any small error can ruin your shot at the win. Mark was never a serious threat to claim the win after that.

Confetti was falling and liquids were spraying as Carl Edwards celebrated Sunday’s Sprint Cup victory at Texas Motor Speedway.

But two of the most important people outside of the driver were missing from Victory Lane. Robbie Reiser and Bob Osborne.

Reiser, Roush Fenway Racing’s general manager and Edwards’ interim assistant crew chief, was headed for the airport. Osborne was at his North Carolina home.

Reiser, better known as Matt Kenseth’s crew chief before this season, chose to skip the celebration much to the surprise of team owner Jack Roush and Edwards. Osborne had no choice, serving the fourth race of his six-race suspension by NASCAR.

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Making his second visit in six days to Victory Lane, Carl Edwards triumphantly raised the glittering gold belt he earned at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

In a town known for title fights, Edwards emerged as a heavyweight contender Sunday. Just three races into this new season, it’s far too early to call Edwards the favorite to win the Sprint Cup title.

And this win may not be controversy free: NASCAR discovered the lid was off of his oil tank box during postrace inspection and is taking the parts back to North Carolina for further inspection.

For recap the first 87 laps in 24/02/2008 CLICK HERE.

The 24 Hours of Fontana, officially known as the Auto Club 500, was well worth the wait for Carl Edwards.

It took two days to get it done, but the skies cleared Monday and Edwards was the class of the field in his No. 99 Ford Fusion.

Edwards was almost four seconds ahead of second-place Jimmie Johnson when a caution flag froze the field on the final lap at the newly named Auto Club Speedway.

The race continued Monday in front of a sparse crowd estimated at 20,000. After spending five hours trying to dry the track Sunday night, NASCAR pulled the plug at 2 a.m. ET (11 p.m. at Fontana). The show resumed on Lap 88 of the 250-lap event.

Edwards was ninth when the race restarted Monday, but it didn’t take long to see his car was the best one on the track. Edwards had a three-second lead when a caution brought the leaders to the pits for the last time with 29 laps to go.

Johnson’s pit crew got him out first on the final stop while Edwards fell to fourth on the restart with 26 laps to go. But it was only a matter of time.

Edwards passed Jeff Gordon for second with 18 laps left and set his sights on Johnson. He caught Johnson with 15 laps remaining.