Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus: The History of NASCAR's "Grayest" Pairing

It happens in every sport on every team and the outcome is usually the same. Your branded with the name "cheaters" until someone else comes along and does something worse.

When cheating in NASCAR occurs, it usually results in fines exceeding as much as $100,000 and championship points are taken away, which in the end could cost you a championship shot or the championship period.

Just ask Mark Martin, who lost a championship once because of a post race inspection that resulted in a penalty.

Your competitiors wonder whether you should be trusted and the skeptics follow you every time you run well. But maybe the biggest thing you may lose is respect, dignity and pride.

Eventually it will all fade away, however, the damage and lingering questions may haunt the rest of your career.

Everyone in NASCAR cheats; as the saying goes "If you aren't cheating, you aren't trying."

All the crews and crew chiefs in the garage are always looking for the one thing that will help them, but not anyone else. They all want the same thing: a little more speed or a better handling race car.

So, if that's the case, what's your excuse when you get caught with the answer sheet during a test? It just magically appeared on your desk? Like an illegal part magically appeared in the car?

No! They were put there with the same thing in mind: to have an advantage. Richard Petty once said that winning doesn't cure all of a man's problems.

For Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus, winning has made their problems worse.

Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus first entered the Sprint Cup Series in February of 2002. Then a few months later, on July 11, Chad was fined $25,000 for improperly installed mounting bolts. Jimmie Johnson was fined 25 championship points and team owner Rick Hendrick was fined 25 owner points.

That would be strike one against Jimmie and Chad with many more to come.

Of course Rick Hendrick is not new to cheating. In 2000, Jeff Gordon lost one hundred championship points and crew chief Robbie Loomis was fined $25,000 for an unapproved intake manifold.

Then in 2001, Robbie Loomis was fined $25,000 again, this time for the car being too low. However, no championship points were taken away that time.

It doesn't end there. The No. 25 crew chief, Tony Furr, was fined $25,000 for the car being too low. Then, add in the No. 5 crew chief, Jim Long, being fined $20,000 for fuel cell modifications.

Like they say in life, it isn't cheating unless you get caught, and they got caught.

You would think that after one penalty it would smarten you up. But, just short while later in September, Chad was fined once again for cursing during a live television interview. That cost him $5,000. For those of you who are keeping track, so far the man is short $30,000 from his pocket.

In the case of the first penaly (the second had nothing to do with the car), Johnson had not won. But, then a new trend started to emerge. 

Starting in May of 2003, after winning a million dollars in NASCAR's All-Star race, his crew chief was fined $1,000 for using an unapproved air directional device.

It may have been the first time, but it certainly wasn't the last. Just days after winning the Coca-Cola 600, Chad was fined $2,500 for using an approved refrigerant.

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