Johnson's Sprint Cup come-from-behind win something special

After winning a historic fifth-consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship on Sunday Jimmie Johnson took in the scene at Homestead-Miami Speedway and a fan caught his eye. A man in the front row wearing an 'I hate the 48' T-shirt was on a mission to not only display his feelings about Johnson for all to see but to verbally express them to Johnson himself.

"He went out of his way to get my attention, screaming my name, and I made eye contact with him and he's holding his shirt and he goes 'I hate you,'" Johnson recalls, mimicking the fan pointing at him. "He gives me a big thumbs up and says 'great job.' I was highly confused."

It is usually opposing drivers who are confused by Johnson, whose five championships trail only Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Richard Petty who each won seven. At this point in his career Johnson, 35, is ahead of the pace of both "The Intimidator" and "The King." Johnson has taken 327 races to win his five championships compared to Earnhardt's 390 races and Petty's 654.

Unlike the previous four years, Johnson had to come from behind this year to win, trailing Denny Hamlin by 15 points entering Sunday's season finale. Johnson said overcoming challenges and coming from behind to win made this championship different.

"I think at times this year we lacked speed that we were accustomed to in the past," he said. "There were a lot moments where we had to fight back, fight through a ton of adversity. We had a challenging year this year and to work as a team through some really tough times was really satisfying."

Johnson's historic championship run puts him in the company of elite sports franchises including the Boston Celtics, New York Yankees and Montreal Canadiens. Yet opposing drivers and critics in the media have said Johnson's dominance is bad for the sport, a notion he rejects.

"I understand where they as competitors don't like it and if I was in their shoes I would probably say the same stuff because I wouldn't want to experience that," Johnson said. "To have NASCAR with the spotlight on it and in the same breath as Lakers, Celtics, Lance Armstrong with his seven in a row, it's great for our sport."

Johnson could end up being the best driver of all time, if he's not already, but says he does not know what his goals are for the future.

Even for those who 'Hate the 48' there's no questioning Johnson's place in auto racing history.

"In time I think everyone will look back and say 'what that 48 team did was awfully special,'" Johnson said.