Jimmie Johnson's sixth win of the season has secured the defending series champion a 20-point advantage over his nearest rival going into the Chase for the Championship as Dale Earnhardt Jr's valiant bid to break into the ten race playoff goes up in a cloud of smoke at the Richmond International Raceway.
After a relatively slow start to the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 that saw him lose the lead on the opening lap Bud Pole winner Johnson moved to the front of the field in his #48 Lowe's Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet after 300 of the 400 laps and managed to keep his nose ahead of the furious battling behind him to take the chequered flag first for the second time in less than a week.
Behind Johnson the main focus of attention in the 26th race of the 36 race season was on Dale Earnhardt Jr, who went into the race having to perform a minor miracle to elevate himself ahead of either Kevin Harvick or Kurt Busch in the standings to claim the 12th and final Chase berth.
As it turned out though, despite a near disaster for both Busch and Harvick on lap 240 when Busch's Penske Racing teammate Ryan Newman spun and was collected by Juan Montoya, Dave Blaney and Busch himself with Harvick driving through the grass and overheating his engine, Earnhardt Jr's fifth engine failure of the season just five laps from home dropped the driver of the #8 DEI Chevrolet to 30th in the final standings.
It had all become academic by that point with a high rate of attrition meaning that by lap 380 Harvick could finish no lower than 33rd, a position that would guarantee him a place in the Chase no matter what Earnhardt Jr did.
From 21st on the grid Earnhardt Jr waged a heroic battle against not only his rivals but also his own car that, at times, was less than co-operative. Although he never led a lap Earnhardt Jr repeatedly fought his way into the top five and was enjoying a fantastic tussle with polesitter Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart over second place when his engine went bang.
![Jimmie Johnson (#48) races Kurt Busch (#2) in the NASCAR's ever Car of Tomorrow event [pic credit: image.net]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/303479.jpg)
