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Jimmie Johnson ends the 2008 Sprint Cup season right where he started it, atop the list of teams in That's Racin's ranking of NASCAR's teams.

Johnson was our preseason pick for No. 1, and that didn't jinx him from winning a third straight championship.

Ten of the teams we had ranked in our preseason top 12 made the Chase for the Sprint Cup. We missed on Casey Mears, who we had as our surprise team of the year, and Ryan Newman. We didn't have Richard Childress Racing's Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton in our preseason top 12, a fact that Childress liked to remind us of often late this year.

Regular followers of these weekly rankings will note a significant shuffle from the last week. The weekly rankings depend more on which teams have momentum as the season goes along, while these final rankings are more about how the teams fared all season.

1 Jimmie Johnson

(car No. 48): In addition to 22 victories, this team has 70 top 10s in 108 races during its run of three-straight championships. It's also had 22 top 10s in its past 26 Chase races. Preseason ranking: 1.

2 Carl Edwards

(car No. 99): A nine-win season and he leads Sprint Cup racing in top fives (19) and top 10s (27). Those are remarkable numbers, and the best could still be in this team's future. Preseason ranking: 3.

3 Greg Biffle

(car No. 16): Started the Chase with a bang but Biffle couldn't quite keep that going long enough. Preseason ranking: 16.

4 Kyle Busch

(car No. 18): This team had two-thirds of a sensational season. Chase stumble shouldn't erase that. Preseason ranking: 7.

5 Kevin Harvick

(car No. 29): This team seems like it's almost there, but "almost" is racing's most frustrating word. Preseason ranking: 10.

6 Jeff Burton

(car No. 31): Only one top 10 in the final five races in the Chase cost this team spots and money. Preseason ranking: 14.

7 Clint Bowyer

(car No. 07): Casey Mears inherits this team for '09 as Bowyer moves to the new No. 33 team at RCR. Preseason ranking: 1.

8 Denny Hamlin

(car No. 11): One of several teams in Cup that can locate the mountain but can't find a way up it. Preseason ranking: 9.

9 Tony Stewart

(car No. 20): Who does better in '09? This team with Joey Logano driving or Stewart's own team? Preseason ranking: 5.

10 Dale Earnhardt Jr.

(car No. 88): The clock is beginning to tick on Earnhardt Jr.'s chances to become a championship factor. Preseason ranking: 6.

11 Jeff Gordon

(car No. 24): The biggest surprise of '08 has to be that Gordon was winless for first time since '93. Preseason ranking: 2.

12 Matt Kenseth

(car No. 17): Each year it seems a driver leaves a team he's been with forever. Is this the 2009 guy? Preseason ranking: 4.

13 David Ragan

(car No. 6): Clearly the year's most improved driver and team. Ragan's stock couldn't be hotter. Preseason ranking: 23.

14 Kasey Kahne

(car No. 9): This team's two points wins and its all-star race victory can't be totally overlooked. Preseason ranking: 18.

15 Jamie McMurray

(car No. 26): Came alive late in '08. McMurray gets back with former crew chief Donnie Wingo. Preseason ranking: 20.

16 Kurt Busch

(car No. 2): Won at Loudon in July. Penske Racing mantel falls to him with Newman's departure. Preseason ranking: 8.

17 Ryan Newman

(car No. 12): Won the Daytona 500 and then things went haywire. David Stremme takes over here. Preseason ranking: 12.

18 Mark Martin/Aric Almirola

(car No. 8): Martin will try another full season at Hendrick Motorsports while Almirola hopes the DEI-Ganassi merger takes. Preseason ranking: 19.

19 Martin Truex Jr.

(car No. 1): Until things settle down around this driver and team, success may be hard to come by. Preseason ranking: 15.

20 Brian Vickers

(car No. 83): Team took a giant step forward in 2008 and could be one of the most improved in '09. Preseason ranking: 28.[[In-content Ad]]

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