NASCAR: Johnson addresses Talladega conspiracy theory

Did Johnson let Earnhardt win to keep sponsors happy? Probably.

After the unusual conclusion to last Sunday's GEICO 500 at Talladega – in which Dale Earnhardt Jr. led most of the final stint while the field remained in a long train behind him with no one willing to risk fanning out and making a move in case they lost the draft – social media has been rife with suggestions among fans that Earnhardt's Hendrick teammate Jimmie Johnson made no attempt at a pass for the lead as payback for a previous occasion in which Earnhardt had pushed him to the win.

The conspiracy theories were further stoked by the fact Johnson already had two wins and so had qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup, while Earnhardt had been winless.

Appearing at a media event at Charlotte Motor Speedway to promote the upcoming Sprint All Star race and Coca-Cola 600 at the track, Johnson called the idea of a gift win for Earnhardt "ridiculous."

"Absolutely not. That's the most ridiculous thing ever," Johnson said. "I was doing everything within my power to set up a pass for the win. We had such a small group of guys in line there just wasn't any energy. I dragged the brake a few times and backed up to the cars behind me; I just got this small run off of their push. Junior was easily able to defend that."

Johnson said that Earnhardt's position in the top line helped his cause, given the situation.

"He did a great job, too, of controlling the race and taking to the top like that. If enough cars went to the bottom, the bottom is a lot faster. But everybody’s afraid to pull out of line because their spot would get filled. I have pulled out in second going down the back straightaway and I've finished 15th. Or worse…"

He also noted that the nature of restrictor-plate racing also played a role in the finish.

"Inside the car at Daytona and Talladega, there’s so much frustration created by the restrictor plate," Johnson said. "I’ve really put the uneventful finish in the hands of restrictor plate racing. It’s a necessary evil – we need it on the cars but it promotes a certain style of racing.

"If the leader decides to go up top and there isn’t a long-enough line that’s willing to go to the bottom and find their way to the front and be committed to it, it’s going to finish like that. There’s no way around it; we’ve seen it a couple of times now. I blame it on plate racing." racer.com