By STEPHEN HAWKINS

Associated Press

FORT WORTH, Texas — Jimmie Johnson arrived at Texas last fall with a huge lead and a bunch of different favorable scenarios for winning another Sprint Cup title. Not even a third-lap crash derailed his championship effort.

Johnson is back at the 1½-mile high-banked track again in the lead with three races left.

Except this time he can’t afford any more Texas trouble. Johnson is barely in front in the closest three-way Chase for the Sprint Cup championship to date, with only 38 points separating him, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick.

While there is no margin for error — or big wrecks — like in the past, Johnson insists he feels no extra pressure.

“It is really easy what I need to do. I need to win the race, I need to finish ahead of the 11 (Hamlin) and the 29 (Harvick), and I think that’s going to mean winning the race,” Johnson said Friday.

“Other weeks coming into Texas concerned the mind in more of a defensive mode trying to protect and worrying about things,” he said. “It’s all offense right now. So I feel really good about things and feel less pressure for this Texas race than I did last year.”

Johnson qualified 17th for the 501-mile race Sunday, ahead of both Harvick (26th) and Hamlin (30th).

So confident that the Chase was already over at this point last fall, Texas Motor Speedway president and showman Eddie Gossage had a fat lady ready to sing at the end of the race.

And she did, even after Johnson spent more than 100 laps in the garage for repairs for the early crash and finished 38th. His points lead was slashed from 184 to 73 with two races left, though he went on to handily claim his fourth consecutive championship.

“Previous Chases when I had a big points lead and (Texas) has a fat lady singing over on the balcony, and nobody wants to believe me to say, ‘Hey this thing isn’t over.’ You have got to run the race, got to play the game,” Johnson said. “It may seem predictable, the stats may show something. But until you go out there and take the checkered flag, nothing’s guaranteed.”

Nobody is arguing with Johnson this season.

Hamlin has won a Cup-high seven races this season, including at Texas in April, when he held off Johnson at the end. That was when Hamlin was still hampered after surgery to repair the torn ACL in his left knee.

“It’s fun, trust me,” Hamlin said. “For the race fan in me, I’m excited to see what happens the next three weeks between three drivers.”

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

AAA Texas 500 Lineup

After Friday qualifying; race Sunday

At Texas Motor Speedway

Fort Worth, Texas

Lap length: 1.5 miles

(Car number in parentheses)

1. (19) Elliott Sadler, Ford, 195.397.

2. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford, 193.653.

3. (99) Carl Edwards, Ford, 193.646.

4. (42) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 193.479.

5. (6) David Ragan, Ford, 193.424.

6. (2) Kurt Busch, Dodge, 193.375.

7. (33) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 193.32.

8. (78) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 193.216.

9. (5) Mark Martin, Chevrolet, 193.175.

10. (43) A J Allmendinger, Ford, 193.092.

11. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 193.078.

12. (98) Paul Menard, Ford, 192.775.

13. (9) Aric Almirola, Ford, 192.603.

14. (39) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 192.369.

15. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 191.993.

16. (31) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 191.986.

17. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 191.939.

18. (00) David Reutimann, Toyota, 191.891.

19. (17) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 191.884.

20. (20) Joey Logano, Toyota, 191.768.

21. (56) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 191.748.

22. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 191.741.

23. (82) Scott Speed, Toyota, 191.673.

24. (83) Kasey Kahne, Toyota, 191.598.

25. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 191.564.

26. (29) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 191.557.

27. (77) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 191.53.

28. (21) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 191.09.

29. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 191.056.

30. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 190.968.

31. (10) Bobby Labonte, Chevrolet, 190.846.

32. (47) Marcos Ambrose, Toyota, 190.833.

33. (38) David Gilliland, Ford, 190.201.

34. (87) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 190.121.

35. (13) Casey Mears, Toyota, 189.72.

36. (12) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 189.633.

37. (26) Patrick Carpentier, Ford, 189.255.

38. (66) Mike Bliss, Toyota, 189.201.

39. (7) Robby Gordon, Toyota, 188.851.

40. (71) Andy Lally, Chevrolet, Owner Points.

41. (34) Travis Kvapil, Ford, Owner Points.

42. (37) Dave Blaney, Ford, Owner Points.

43. (09) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 188.996.

Failed to Qualify

44. (36) J.J. Yeley, Chevrolet, 188.673.

45. (81) Scott Riggs, Chevrolet, 188.653.

46. (46) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 187.852.

47. (64) Jeff Green, Toyota, 187.169.

48. (23) Josh Wise, Toyota, 185.944.

49. (92) Brian Keselowski, Dodge, 182.076.