Once it got to the final 10 laps – it wasn’t much of a race at all. Jimmy Johnson started in the front, stretched his lead and nobody else had a chance and he became a three-time winner of the Sprint Cup All-Star race.

The format of the race allowed the winners of each of the first four 20-lap segments to move to the front of the pack entering the pits before the final segment. Johnson won the first segment and with his spot up front already assured his strategy was to stay well to the back, to protect his car and it worked. The only thing he had to do was beat everybody out onto the track after the mandatory final pit stop and he did.

Johnson wins the $1-million dollar first place prize and joins Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon as the only 3-time winners of the All-Star race.

Brad Keselowski came in second followed by Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch and Dale Junior.

Junior earned a spot in the field by winning the Sprint Showdown and won the fourth 20-lap segment. So that’s two checkered flags in one night. Too bad they don’t count in the standings, so his long winless streak in Cup racing continues.

Last year’s winner – Carl Edwards was the first one out when his engine blew. He ended joining the commentators for the rest of the telecast.

The season’s longest race – the Coca Cola 600 is next Sunday.

 

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