On Stun: Johnson wins pole for season ending Ford 400

So much for playing it safe--The newly resigned Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus teamed up to put the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet Impala (Lowe's also re-upped as the sponsor) on the pole for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup season ending Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Johnson was among the last of the 35 locked in cars to take a qualifying lap, and was timed at 31.049 seconds (173.919 miles an hour). Scott Speed lines up second, Marcos Ambrose, 3rd.

Other musings: NASCAR CEO Brian France got his meeting with the media out of the way early. Auto racing is not a leading economic indicator, and France lowered expectations for the 2010 economic picture, saying that the sanctioning body would try to help with cost cutting, because "we (NASCAR) don't believe that 2010 looks, from just a pure economy standpoint, an awful lot better." That said, France says there is encouraging movement among sponsors, but not what was anticipated, and hope for in the future.

On the declining TV ratings: "on any given weekend, we still remain the second or third, depending on which weekend it is, most popular sport." He also said that NASCAR had no policy that demands that its media partners do one thing or another thing (in its broadcasts). As to whether the sanctioning body has a policy of retribution against media criticism from its broadcast partners, "There isn't a policy". On that, sir, we shall see.

Dario Franchitti--2009 IndyCar Series Champion

Saving fuel at 201.420 miles an hour? That (and a little bit of pit road strategy from the Ganassi Racing braintrust) won the 2009 IndyCar title and the Firestone Indy 300 season ending race at Homestead-Miami Speedway for Dario Franchitti of Target Ganassi Racing--his second IndyCar title in three years.. Franchitti started the race from the pole...and got into a battle with Penske Racing teammate Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe. Those three cars were the class of the 201 mile an hour field--the first in the 14 year history of the IndyCar series to complete an event without a caution period, covering 300 miles in 1 hour and 28 minutes. At the checkers...Franchitti bested Briscoe by 4.788 seconds. Franchitti stopped earlier than Dixon and Briscoe--that made the difference.

Franchitti was emotional when he thought of his friend Greg Moore (who died 10 years ago this month in a racing accident at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California), and was also thoughtful when asked about winning the championship. He said that the team's disappointing finish at the Indianapolis 500 was a wakeup call and rallying point, and that those resu.lts galvanized the team to work harder. I guess five wins says a lot about the results.

In the Grand-Am Rolex Series Championship, Hurley Haywood and Joao Barbosa won the race...but by finishing 4th, Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney, won the Daytona Prototype title. Of the 100 laps of racing...a full 25 of them...to include the last 8...under caution. Haywood was a last minute substitution for Barbosa's usual co-driver, the now suspended JC France, suspended for an off track incident in Daytona Beach, FL, where police charged hiom with possession of crack cocaine, DUI and street racing. If his last name sounds familiar, it should. JC is the son of Jim France of NASCAR and International Speedway Corporation. There was no official mention of the incident by Grand-Am.

The race was sparsely attended--unseasonably hot (90 degrees vs 80 degrees) weather and humidity held down the crowds. The tweets at MSRnet explain a bit more.

We'll get back to our headquarters to regroup and get ready to return to Homestead-Miami Speedway to cover the Sprint Cup Championship next month.

Championship Trio Sweeps Top 3 Spots at Homestead-Miami Speedway

The championship contenders from left to right: Scott Dixon, the point leader who'll start 2nd, polesitter Dario Franchitti, who took a point from Dixon and has a 4 point gap, and Ryan Briscoe from Team Penske starting 3rd and 7 points back from Dixon.

Below the contenders, the Indy Racing League Championship Trophy.

Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney are the Grand-AM Rolex Series point leaders and pole sitters. Brian Frisselle and Max Angelelli start 2nd, Memo Rojas and Scott Pruett are 3rd and the defending champions.

Homestead-Miami Speedway boss Curtis Gray thinks "there's something sexy about South Florida." That quote in the context of describing how South Florida is accustomed to having championships decided in the major sports, and for the last few years, in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series. South Beach, and some of the other beaches in the area may bolster Mr. Gray's assertion. We'd suspect a good crowd--and an even better Saturday race--where ticket holders will get to see two closely contested auto racing series decide their champions in the last event, in the last few laps--will raise the sex appeal in this part of Dade County, Florida.

We'll join you tomorrow with double championship blogging.