Even the best of the best go through tough times. Jimmie Johnson is a seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion with Hendrick Motorsports and a NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee. However, the driver with 83 career wins was going through a bad streak in 2011, coming off his fifth consecutive title.

So, this year, on the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports, Jimmie Johnson’s victory is highlighted in the 14th part of a 40-part series – 40 of the greatest wins in the history of Hendrick Motorsports. Why did they choose this race of so many others they have on their wall?

What’s the big deal about the race?

It’s worth noting here that Jimmie Johnson shares a record with Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Richard Petty for the most championships and is the only driver to win five in a row from 2006 to 2010. In his career, Johnson had only experienced two previous stretches of 16 or more races without a victory. The first was a 20-race dry spell that occurred in 2002 and 2003, while the second was a 21-race winless period in the middle of 2011.

However, the good news for Hendrick was that the streak ended for Johnson, that too at a crown jewel race, the Southern 500 at Darlington in 2012. But it was not just a personal streak that ended. Along with Johnson being dry of wins, HMS as a team was stuck at 199 race wins for seven months! Johnson’s crew chief Chad Knaus opened up on how difficult the winless period was, saying, “We couldn’t seem to break that 199. It was so tough, and we were clamoring to get there. Then we get that and we go for one of our longest losing streaks at the time with the 48. It was really challenging. Those are hard.”

Jimmie Johnson understood the importance of the occasion and realized that the stage was set for him to break the tumultuous streak. “I know at Hendrick Motorsports, there’s something weird in the water over there where these monumental moments just happen, especially on anniversary dates and in big races and things,” Johnson said in a phone interview with Hendrick Motorsports this week. “We had been chasing that 200th for a while. That win took us way longer than it should have. But I’d watched a lot of others win in these kinds of moments for the company, and I wanted one of those.”

But, it wasn’t easy for Jimmie Johnson by any measure, and as per Hendrick Motorsports, the pressure was mounting as a crucial moment was waiting in the wings. Each unsuccessful trip to the racetrack added to his stress. Plus, he had a mixed record at Darlington. In 2004, he won two races at the 1.366-mile oval track but only finished in the top 10 once in the four races before 2012, which was a second-place finish in May 2009. So how did Johnson manage a win against the odds?

The action leading to the win

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Jimmie Johnson showed strong potential to win early in the weekend, starting alongside pole-sitter Greg Biffle. He led the most laps, a total of 134, but the Southern 500 took a chaotic turn as the race progressed. After a late caution brought out by Bobby Labonte’s spin, Johnson was in second when another caution occurred due to a crash involving Regan Smith.

Crew chief Chad Knaus took a gamble, keeping Johnson on track despite being three laps short on fuel, allowing him to take the lead when Martin Truex Jr. pitted. Johnson managed to conserve fuel during the cautions, switching the engine on and off, which proved crucial.

Kyle Busch briefly took the lead from Johnson after a subsequent caution, but Johnson regained it following another yellow flag with 52 laps to go. The race culminated in a green-white-checkered finish after a crash involving Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch. Johnson pulled ahead again, highlighting his determination and the team’s chase for its 200th win. This moment signified a pivotal shift for Johnson, who went on to secure four additional victories that season, along with a championship the following year.

The victory came with a huge sigh of relief for Knaus, Hendrick, Johnson, and the entire HMS team. Knaus reflected on his thoughts before and during the race, praising Johnson’s qualities as a driver, saying, “We had a mixed bag of performance at that race track; we were good sometimes and not so good other times but the one thing the 48 was always good at was being a good closer, being there at the end of the races. We were able to get ourselves in position at the end of the race and Jimmie was very comfortable.”

Hendrick Motorsports has many crown jewel wins, with multiple credited to Johnson. They hold the record for the most wins in the Southern 500, the most victories in the Brickyard 400 (11) and Coca-Cola 600 (12), and are tied for the most DAYTONA 500 wins (nine). Johnson won 12 times in these races, with at least two wins in each.

What do you like the most about Jimmie Johnson’s Southern 500 race of 2012?