AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP Csi) — Jimmie Johnson has taken control of the championship battle following a disastrous performance by Matt Kenseth at Phoenix International Raceway.
Johnson widened his lead in the Sprint Cup standings to 28 points over Kenseth heading into next Sunday’s season finale at Homestead by finishing third in a workmanlike performance for the five-time champion.
Kenseth had a horrific race Sunday as his title hopes were derailed by an ill-handing Toyota. He was struggling early, complained to crew chief Jason Ratcliff he didn’t even know what to tell him to fix, and wound up 23rd.
Kevin Harvick won the race for the second year in a row after Carl Edwards ran out of gas headed to the white flag. Harvick sailed by on the last lap for his fourth win of the year.
Unofficial Results…
1 Kevin Harvick (29) Chevrolet 48/5 312 70 $0 Chart
2 Kasey Kahne (5) Chevrolet 43/1 312 41 $0 Chart
3 Jimmie Johnson (48) Chevrolet 42/1 312 1 $0 Chart
4 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88) Chevrolet 41/1 312 2 $0 Chart
5 Kurt Busch (78) Chevrolet 39/0 312 0 $0 Chart
6 Juan Pablo Montoya (42) Chevrolet 38/0 312 0 $0 Chart
7 Kyle Busch (18) Toyota 37/0 312 0 $0 Chart
8 Martin Truex Jr. (56) Toyota 36/0 312 0 $0 Chart
9 Joey Logano (22) Ford 36/1 312 33 $0 Chart
10 Ryan Newman (39) Chevrolet 35/1 312 31 $0 Chart
11 Brad Keselowski (2) Ford 34/1 312 27 $0 Chart
12 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (17) Ford 32/0 312 0 $0 Chart
13 Greg Biffle (16) Ford 32/1 312 1 $0 Chart
14 Jeff Gordon (24) Chevrolet 31/1 312 49 $0 Chart
15 Mark Martin (14) Chevrolet 29/0 312 0 $0 Chart
16 Paul Menard (27) Chevrolet 28/0 312 0 $0 Chart
17 Jeff Burton (31) Chevrolet 27/0 312 0 $0 Chart
18 Jamie McMurray (1) Chevrolet 27/1 312 1 $0 Chart
19 Aric Almirola (43) Ford 25/0 312 0 $0 Chart
20 Clint Bowyer (15) Toyota 24/0 312 0 $0 Chart
21 Carl Edwards (99) Ford 24/1 312 36 $0 Chart
22 Bobby Labonte (47) Toyota 22/0 311 0 $0 Chart
23 Matt Kenseth (20) Toyota 21/0 311 0 $0 Chart
24 David Gilliland (38) Ford 21/1 311 2 $0 Chart
25 Elliott Sadler (55) Toyota 19/0 311 0 $0 Chart
26 Marcos Ambrose (9) Ford 18/0 311 0 $0 Chart
27 Casey Mears (13) Ford 17/0 311 0 $0 Chart
28 Denny Hamlin (11) Toyota 17/1 311 18 $0 Chart
29 J.J. Yeley (36) Chevrolet 15/0 311 0 $0 Chart
30 Dave Blaney (7) Chevrolet 14/0 310 0 $0 Chart
31 Justin Allgaier (51) Chevrolet 13/0 309 0 $0 Chart
32 Michael McDowell (98) Ford 12/0 308 0 $0 Chart
33 Danica Patrick (10) Chevrolet 11/0 302 0 $0 Chart
34 Timmy Hill (32) Ford 10/0 285 0 $0 Chart
35 David Ragan (34) Ford 9/0 282 0 $0 Chart
36 Josh Wise (35) Ford 8/0 280 0 $0 Chart
37 Reed Sorenson (95) Ford 7/0 266 0 $0 Chart
38 Joe Nemechek (87) Toyota 6/0 193 0 $0 Chart
39 David Reutimann (83) Toyota 5/0 187 0 $0 Chart
40 Cole Whitt (30) Toyota 4/0 142 0 $0 Chart
41 Travis Kvapil (93) Toyota 3/0 129 0 $0 Chart
42 Landon Cassill (140) Chevrolet 2/0 63 0 $0 Chart
43 Tony Raines (33) Chevrolet 1/0 29 0 $0 Chart
Standings…
1 Hendrick MotorsportsJimmie Johnson 48 2384 Leader 35 6 16 23 1 0
2 Joe Gibbs RacingMatt Kenseth 20 2356 -28 35 7 11 19 3 0
3 Richard Childress RacingKevin Harvick 29 2350 -34 35 4 9 20 2 0
4 Joe Gibbs RacingKyle Busch 18 2327 -57 35 4 16 21 4 0
5 Hendrick MotorsportsDale Earnhardt Jr 88 2321 -63 35 0 9 21 3 0
6 Hendrick MotorsportsJeff Gordon 24 2304 -80 35 1 8 17 5 0
7 Roush Fenway RacingGreg Biffle 16 2301 -83 35 1 4 13 0 1
8 Michael Waltrip RacingClint Bowyer 15 2297 -87 35 0 9 18 2 -1
9 Penske RacingJoey Logano 22 2287 -97 35 1 11 18 3 0
10 Furniture Row RacingKurt Busch 78 2285 -99 35 0 11 16 2 0
11 Stewart-Haas RacingRyan Newman 39 2259 -125 35 1 6 18 5 1
12 Hendrick MotorsportsKasey Kahne 5 2252 -132 35 2 11 14 3 1
13 Roush Fenway RacingCarl Edwards 99 2250 -134 35 2 9 16 2 -2
