Still, Johnson is racing like someone intent on winning an unprecedented fourth consecutive Sprint Cup Series title.

Last year after Dover, Johnson went to Kansas and won. He edged 10 points ahead of Carl Edwards, slid into first place in points and never relinquished his lead. It could be happening again.

Johnson has been successful on the remaining tracks in the Chase. Crew chief Chad Knaus is at the top of his game. What's not to like about Johnson's chances of four-peating?

One of Johnson's many strengths is that he doesn't get rattled, on or off the track.

During news conferences at Dover, Johnson was asked about his competitors, specifically Greg Biffle, complaining that Johnson had an advantage at the Delaware speedway because he tire-tested there. In his diplomatic way, Johnson said, "Let them skid in my tire tracks."

"I hope people are talking about the fact that we tire-tested," he said. "All these people can get wound up about stuff that really doesn't matter."

As Johnson's crew chief for all three championships, Knaus has had a ringside seat for watching the emergence of a great racer.

"Jimmie does a very, very good job of watching what he does, paying attention to details," Knaus said. " ... Training, eating right, doing things like that that other people just aren't willing to give that commitment to or that sacrifice.

"A lot of people that get to the top, football and baseball players, racers for that matter, they [think] 'Oh, I made it. I've got a big house, a cool plane; let's party on Monday.'

"Jimmie does the opposite. He wakes up Monday morning, gets on the treadmill. If I need to talk to him on the telephone, he answers the call. He doesn't get back to me 2 days later. If you want to win races in this industry [today], you have to give that type of commitment. If you don't, you're not going to win."

Interesting that Knaus used the word "industry" instead of sport. We know NASCAR has been an industry/business for years.

Gordon looking up

Gordon isn't a big fan of the Chase format.

"This format doesn't suit my style quite as well as the old one," he said on a Tuesday conference call.

Before the Chase, drivers won a championship based on a seasonlong points total; now, the top 12 drivers are reseeded based on wins and compete for the title.

"But," he added, "I'm as hungry and as eager as ever to get the championship."

Asked what the difference was among Johnson, Martin (second at Dover) and Gordon (sixth), Gordon replied, "It [was] nothing huge. I feel like we were very close to them, but there were some slight differences, and that might have been the difference in the speed."

To those Gordon fans who think crew chief Steve Letarte should be replaced, Gordon says back off.