Southern 500 2012 Results: Reaction, Leaders and Post Race Analysis

Jimmie Johnson is back.

One of NASCAR's best drivers, Johnson escaped Darlington Raceway with a victory in the Bojangles' Southern 500. The win snapped a personal 16-race drought and earned Hendricks Motorsports their 200th victory all-time.

It wasn't easy, but Johnson was ultimately able to fend off Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart to claim his first win of 2012. Kyle Busch finished fourth, while Martin Truex Jr., Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne, Marcos Ambros and Joey Logano rounded out the top 10.

Although it was an excellent race for Johnson, it wasn't all sunshine and puppies for Team Hendrick.

Jeff Gordon's disastrous year continued, as he had to pit twice because of flat tires. He finished 35th in the race, adding another disappointing result to a season that's already seen him blow out his engine at Daytona and finish 35th because of tire issues at Bristol.

Gordon is currently 23rd in the points standings. Unless he pulls off a near-miracle, he'll likely miss out on the Chase.

For the full Bojangles' Southern 500 results, click here.

UPDATED Saturday, May 12 at 11:39 p.m. ET by Austin Green

Where: Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C.

When: Saturday, May 12 at 6:30 p.m. ET

Watch: FOX

Live Stream: TrackPass

Listen: Motor Racing Network

Starting Order

1. Greg Biffle

2. Jimmie Johnson

3. Kasey Kahne

4. Ryan Newman

5. Kyle Busch

6. Martin Truex, Jr.

7. Carl Edwards

8. Denny Hamlin

9. Regan Smith

10. Jeff Burton

11. Jamie McMurray

12. Jeff Gordon

13. Aric Almirola

14. Paul Menard

15. Brad Keselowski

16. AJ Allmendinger

17. Tony Stewart

18. Mark Martin

19. Matt Kenseth

20. Landon Cassill

21. Joey Logano

22. Bobby Labonte

23. Kevin Harvick

24. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

25. Kurt Busch

26. Clint Bowyer

27. Juan Pablo Montoya

28. Marcos Ambrose

29. Scott Speed

30. Josh Wise

31. Casey Mears

32. David Stremme

33. Travis Kvapil

34. Dave Blaney

35. Mike Skinner

36. David Gilliland

37. David Ragan

38. Danica Patrick

39. Cole Whitt

40. Joe Nemechek

41. David Reutimann

42. Reed Sorenson

43. J.J. Yeley

Drivers To Watch

Greg Biffle

While most of the focus heading into the season was on the likes of Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson, it is Greg Biffle who currently enjoys the lead in the standings thanks to consistently great performances all season long.

The Biff will start on the pole on Saturday night and has a great chance to chalk up his second win of the year.

Biffle has had success at Darlington in the past, as he was a back-to-back winner in 2005 and 2006. While Biffle hasn't won a ton of races in recent years, he is almost always in the mix, so you have to believe that he'll be within striking distance in the race's closing stages at the very least.

Regan Smith

Regan Smith is as anonymous as they come in the Sprint Cup Series. He currently sits 27th in the standings and drives the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing machine, but it would be unfair to count him out this week.

Smith will start ninth this week at what very well may be his best track, as he won his first and only career race at Darlington last season.

He may not be blessed with top-flight equipment like many of his counterparts, but he is an extremely talented driver who knows what it takes to conquer Darlington. If you're looking for a potential dark-horse candidate to win this race, look no further than Smith.

Danica Patrick

She may only be starting 38th and isn't much of a threat to win, but Danica Patrick will be making her second career Sprint Cup start, and, inevitably, all eyes will be on her.

She ran 38th in the Daytona 500, which obviously wasn't what she had planned. Now that she has a race under her belt as well as some good Nationwide experience, I expect a better effort from Patrick this time around.

As far as Patrick is concerned, as long as she keeps the car clean and finishes the race, she can consider it a success. That is certainly easier said than done at Darlington, but this should be a great litmus test to see how far Danica has come.