Johnson powered his Mopar/J&J Racing Dodge Stratus R/T to the top spot after the afternoon qualifying session on the strength of a 7.038/195.70 run. Dark clouds soon rolled in over Bandimere, bringing rain and an hours-long delay. After qualifying resumed, Johnson calmly pulled up to the line and reclaimed the top spot from Greg Anderson with a track record ET of 6.964 matched with a speed of 197.10 mph.

"You know, we thought we could run a [6].95 or [6].96, and we got the 6.964. We feel fortunate to do it here where the Mopar folks are watching," said Johnson. "To do it in front of them and show off a little bit in front of them and give them something to hold their chest out for, that's what we're all about."

Test sessions last week at Bandimere helped determine the best set up for making Mopar HEMIR-power in the tricky, high-altitude atmosphere, according to Johnson.

"We have to change everything on the car to get that optimum set up. We have to change our chassis to free it up a lot more, because you don't have that power to torque it up," said Johnson. "Everything is different. And what pays dividends is coming up here and just making runs and changing lots of things. It's a big challenge and we take it very seriously."

Johnson has a successful track record at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals. He grabbed the No. 1 Qualifier Award at the Mopar Mile-Highs in 2007 and went on to claim the event win. Johnson also posted a runner-up finish in 2008. The Greeneville, Tenn., native scored his sixth career NHRA Pro Stock victory at Topeka in May, and is gunning for his second win in three years at the Mopar Mile-Highs.

"We really want to come here and not just win the race, we want to qualify No. 1 and dominate," said Johnson. "I just love Denver, hanging out with the folks from Mopar. To come here and perform well in front of them is really fulfilling because that's what we work for."

Courtesy of Darren Jacobs