"I have been out on numerous days where he has driven Cup cars," the two-time Cup champion said. "Normally, Rick (Hendrick) has a play day and puts a restrictor plate on the car and lets guys go out and drive around with half the horsepower. Numerous times, Paul has gone out on sticker tires, the plate off and run really quick laps. I was always so impressed with his driving ability and who he was as a person."
Newman, who died of cancer Friday at 83, did one of the voices for the 2006 film "CARS." Johnson had the opportunity to interview him as part of a TV project he was working on. Johnson also took part in a day at a race track as part of the festivities leading to the premier of the animated feature.
He said they put the body of a Hudson Hornet -- the car that Newman portrayed as "Doc Hudson" in the movie -- on a stock car frame and let him and others make laps in it.
"The only man on pit road with a stopwatch was Paul Newman," Johnson said. "He was timing the laps I was running, other guys were running. Then he got in that car that had no business, with that body especially, going around that track at speed, and he was trying to break the lap times that we were running out there with the school cars and stuff.
"You could see that spark in his eye. He had a true passion for motorsports in general. I would say more IndyCar and road racing, because that is what he came from. He was a great friend of Rick's and knew a lot more than people probably realize about NASCAR racing."
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CREW CHIEF BLUES: The disappointment on crew chief Brian Pattie's face was clear nearly 24 hours later. Juan Pablo Montoya was removed from the pole position for Sunday's race at Kansas Speedway because of a technical violation.
"It was just being complacent and thinking it was right from the shop," Pattie said Saturday, standing in the shadow of the Chip Ganassi Racing team's hauler.
"It wasn't huge, it wasn't a benefit, it was just barely over. But, you know, over is over. It's like when you get pulled over for speeding. 'How fast was I going?' It doesn't matter, you're over the speed limit."
"NASCAR made the call," he added. "I'm sure it was the right call because I don't want somebody else getting away with something."
The penalty, which will undoubtedly result in at least a stiff fine for Pattie, cost former open-wheel star Montoya what would have been his first Sprint Cup pole. But Pattie said it also took some steam out of the No. 42 team.
"It's hard to build momentum in this garage and we have done so in the last four to six weeks, with really good cars and good runs," said Pattie, whose team has struggled through most of the season. "We were running inside the top 10 at Loudon, we were running inside the top 10 at Dover, we were running inside the top 10 at California. That's where we need to be."
Instead of starting first Sunday, Montoya will begin the race 42nd in the 43-car lineup. But Pattie hopes the team can salvage a good race and regain the lost momentum.
"We've got a good team," he said. "They work really hard together. We've got really good cars and got a good plan for the rest of the year."
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STILL STRUGGLING: Kyle Busch has fallen from first to last after the first two races of the Chase. But the youngster still regards this as a great season, no matter where he finishes.
"We weren't supposed to be in the position we've been in to win the championship," said Busch, who has won eight Cup races, eight Nationwide events, heading into Saturday's race, and three truck races this season. "This was supposed to be a building year, the learning year."
Asked what he will look back on in 2008, Busch said: "The eight wins and the places that they came at -- being all ... different racetracks. The overall success of the year -- being able to win 19 races overall."
Busch's struggles continued in the first two days on the Kansas track, where he finished 41st last year with Hendrick Motorsports. He qualified 27th on Friday and fell to 31st in the second of two practices Saturday.
