Boring driver. Boring track. Boring race. Exciting Chase. Sorry for the lack of verbs. But verbs are too active a word choice to describe what transpired at the Pepsi 500 at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday. The good news is that, with his victory, Jimmie Johnson passed Mark Martin for the lead in what is suddenly a very exciting playoff. Johnson leads Martin (-12), Juan Pablo Montoya (-58), Tony Stewart (-84), Jeff Gordon (-105), Kurt Busch (-121) and the rest of the field (-itdoesn'tmatter) with six races to go.

Johnson won the race by pulling away from Gordon on a restart with three laps to go. The win was Johnson's fourth at the Southern California track. He was won more races there than any other driver.

Johnson rolls to victory in California (AP)