Johnson's Team Captures Tissot Pit Road Award at Watkins Glen

Watkins Glen, August 12, 2009: Jimmie Johnson’s pit crew won the Tissot Pit Road Precision Award in Monday’s rain-delayed NASCAR Sprint Cup road race at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.

It was the third Tissot win of the season for the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports pit crew, which moved into a tie for second place with Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 crew, also from the Hendrick Motorsports stable. Greg Biffle’s No. 16 crew leads the Tissot standings with four victories.

Johnson’s Lowe’s Impala SS spent the least amount of time on pit road – 86.746 seconds -- during the 90-lap race at the 2.45-mile road circuit.

“The guys did a great job on pit road and really stepped up when it counted,” said Johnson, the three-time Sprint Cup champion. “Watkins Glen is a pretty unique track when it comes to pitting. It feels good to know the 48 guys are some of the best out there.”

Johnson’s over-the-wall crew consists of: Mike Lingerfelt (front-tire changer), Art Simmons (front-tire carrier), Jeremy West (rear-tire changer), Andy Brown (rear-tire carrier), Kenneth Purcell (jackman), Rich Gutierrez (gasman), Mike Knauer (catch can) and Ron Malec (eighth man). The team’s crew chief is Chad Knaus and the pit crew coach is Greg Morin.

Johnson’s crew will collect $5,000 for the pit road win. The team with the most Tissot Pit Road Precision Award wins at the completion of the 36-race Sprint Cup schedule will receive a $100,000 bonus plus Tissot watches for the crew and driver.

Tissot has been the official watch and timekeeper of NASCAR since 2006. The company is also the official timekeeper for a number of other sports, including the MotoGP World Championship, the Ice Hockey World Championship and the Cycling World Championship.