The nature of the points’ structure since the advent of the 10-race playoff meant that drivers only had to run well in certain races. Once a driver won, the pressure was off for the remainder of the regular season and if he could win pivotal races during the playoffs, he did not need to record consecutive top-10s. That was good news for Johnson fans, because he earned three or more consecutive top-10s only twice during the year with his best effort being four straight in September/October.
Johnson won the second race of the year at Atlanta Motor Speedway, added one more three weeks later at Auto Club Speedway, and then three during the playoffs. One win came in round two. One win came in round three—or else he might not have had an opportunity to win the Cup at Homestead.
Johnson has shown an ability to adjust to the new rules, however, and that is why he has been so solid during the past decade. He will have to race differently in 2017 because everyone will need to do so and the persistent bonus points that go along with segment wins and victories will insure no one gets to take it easy during any stage of any race. Johnson might already have a good feel for that, in fact. No one knows how driver and team strategies might have differed in 2016 with this set of rules, but Johnson would have earned the fifth-most points if they had been awarded at the quarter and half-race mark last year. He would have scored seven segment wins—which was fourth-best—and those bonus points would likely have gotten him to the finale.
Johnson is great on every track type, but he is at his best on unrestricted, intermediate speedways that traditionally have held playoff races. It is too early to suggest he will win an eighth championship, but he is likely to be an even better and more consistent choice next year based on the overall strength of Hendrick Motorsports.
Victories: Atlanta, Auto Club, Charlotte (fall), Martinsville (fall), and Homestead
Top-fives: 11 (.305)
Top-10s: 16 (.444)
Top-15s: 22 (.611)
|
Track
|
3-Yr
Avg. Fin |
Career
Avg. Fin |
Best
Fin |
Career
Attempts |
Career
Top-10s |
Race 1
|
Race 2
|
|
Atlanta Motor Speedway |
2.00
|
10.68
|
1
|
25
|
16
|
1
|
|
|
Homestead - Miami Speedway |
7.00
|
12.79
|
1
|
14
|
10
|
1
|
|
|
Texas Motor Speedway |
7.17
|
8.37
|
1
|
27
|
20
|
4
|
11
|
|
Sonoma Raceway |
8.67
|
12.47
|
1
|
15
|
9
|
13
|
|
|
Bristol Motor Speedway |
9.83
|
14.17
|
1
|
30
|
17
|
23
|
7
|
|
Indianapolis Motor Speedway |
10.67
|
14.60
|
1
|
15
|
7
|
3
|
|
|
Richmond International Raceway |
11.00
|
16.03
|
1
|
30
|
12
|
3
|
11
|
|
Auto Club Speedway |
11.33
|
6.50
|
1
|
22
|
16
|
1
|
|
|
Chicagoland Speedway |
11.67
|
9.47
|
2
|
15
|
10
|
12
|
|
|
Kansas Speedway |
12.33
|
8.86
|
1
|
21
|
17
|
17
|
4
|
|
Dover Downs International |
13.00
|
9.53
|
1
|
30
|
21
|
25
|
7
|
|
Michigan International Speedway |
15.00
|
16.43
|
1
|
30
|
12
|
16
|
6
|
|
Martinsville Speedway * |
15.17
|
7.30
|
1
|
30
|
24
|
9
|
1
|
|
New Hampshire Motor Speedway |
15.83
|
10.50
|
1
|
30
|
20
|
12
|
8
|
|
Phoenix International Raceway |
16.14
|
8.96
|
1
|
27
|
19
|
11
|
38
|
|
Las Vegas Motor Speedway |
16.67
|
10.93
|
1
|
15
|
9
|
3
|
|
|
Charlotte Motor Speedway + |
16.83
|
12.58
|
1
|
31
|
19
|
3
|
1
|
|
Kentucky Speedway |
17.00
|
11.50
|
3
|
6
|
5
|
32
|
|
|
Pocono Raceway |
17.50
|
10.57
|
1
|
30
|
19
|
35
|
15
|
|
Daytona International Speedway |
17.50
|
17.50
|
1
|
30
|
14
|
16
|
35
|
|
Darlington Raceway |
18.33
|
10.39
|
1
|
18
|
12
|
33
|
|
|
Talladega Superspeedway |
18.67
|
17.30
|
1
|
30
|
11
|
22
|
23
|
|
Watkins Glen International |
26.00
|
15.40
|
3
|
15
|
8
|
40
|
|
|
Inactive Tracks
|
|||||||
|
Homestead - Miami Speedway - old |
|
16.50
|
8
|
2
|
1
|
|
|
|
North Carolina Speedway |
|
23.20
|
2
|
5
|
2
|
|
|
+ Top-five sweeps
* Top-10 sweeps
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