HOMESTEAD, Fla. Antawn Jamison Jersey . -- Jimmie Johnson has a sixth NASCAR championship in hand and two legends within reach. Johnson staked his claim as one of the most dominant competitors Sunday by winning his sixth Sprint Cup title in eight years. He needs one more championship -- hes sure to be the early favourite in 2014 -- to tie the NASCAR record held by Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt. Johnson barely got to complete his celebratory burnouts before the debate began: Where does he rank among NASCAR greats? This much is certain: At 38 years and 61 days old, Johnson is the youngest driver to win six NASCAR championships. Petty was 38 years and 144 days old when he won No. 6 in 1975. Earnhardt was 42 when he won his sixth in 1993. "Well see if I can get seven," Johnson said. "Lets wait until I hang up the helmet until we really start thinking about this." Thats not really how it works, so here are a few more worthy comparisons for Johnsons remarkable run. Tennis star Roger Federer won 16 Grand Slam titles from 2003-10. American swimmer Michael Phelps won 18 gold medals over three Olympics, including eight golds in eight events in Beijing in 2008. Professional golfer Tiger Woods won seven majors from 1999-2002, including four straight in 2000 and 2001. And race-car driver Michael Schumacher won five consecutive Formula 1 championships from 2000-04, winning 56 per cent of his races in that span. The only other organizations to pull off six titles in eight years: --The New York Yankees did it twice, winning six of eight World Series titles between 1936 and 1943 and six of seven between 1947 and 1953. --The Montreal Canadiens hoisted the Stanley Cup six times in eight seasons between 1953 and 1960. --The Boston Celtics won eight consecutive NBA championships between 1959 and 1966. --UCLA won seven consecutive NCAA championships between 1967 and 1973. --The Chicago Bulls won six of eight NBA titles between 1991 and 1998. And now Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 team, led by Johnson and relentless crew chief Chad Knaus. "Every one of them is special," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "It makes you hungry to continue to try to win more. ... They got this championship mentality. "Well just keep digging and see if we can come back and be competitive. (If) luck will be on our side next year, well be able to win another one." Aside from Johnsons on-track dominance, here are five things to know about NASCARs 2013 season: KENSETH CLOSE: Matt Kenseths first season at Joe Gibbs Racing was his best in seven years, a title-contending run that fell 19 points short of a championship. The 2003 Sprint Cup champion finished with a career-best seven victories this season and led the majority of the 10-race Chase. Maybe its his experience. Maybe its his comfort level in the redesigned cars. Or maybe its the move from Roush Fenway Racing to Gibbs. "I dont know if I feel like Im the best driver Ive ever been in my career, but I really dont feel like Ive deteriorated," Kenseth said. "Its probably the best Ive felt physically and mentally and emotionally in as many years as I can remember. Its probably as confident as Ive ever felt." SEAT SHUFFLE: NASCARs annual seat shuffle has more moves than usual. Kevin Harvick, who finished third in points, is leaving Richard Childress Racing for Stewart-Haas Racing. Hell be joined there by Kurt Busch, who is leaving Furniture Row Racing after one season. With Ryan Newman out at SHR, hes moving to RCR. Martin Truex Jr. is moving from Michael Waltrip Racing to Furniture Row. Confused yet? Well, Jeff Burton also is done at Richard Childress, and although nothing has been officially announced, he appears headed to MWR for a part-time ride. Then theres Mark Martin, Bobby Labonte and Juan Pablo Montoya -- all of whom might be done behind a NASCAR wheel. Martin is stepping away. Labontes future is uncertain. And Montoya is returning to IndyCar, where he will drive for legendary owner Roger Penske. KEY INJURIES: Between Tony Stewarts broken leg and Denny Hamlins broken vertebra, the season had two significant injuries. But those were just a glimpse of what happened across auto racing. Former NASCAR driver Jason Leffler, a two-time winner in the Nationwide Series, died in June after crashing in a sprint car event. Justin Wilson fractured his pelvis and bruised a lung in the IndyCar finale, and four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti abruptly retired Thursday because of injuries sustained in a crash in Houston early last month. Franchitti fractured his spine, broke his right ankle and suffered a concussion. "The one other thing weve learned again and are reminded of in 2013 is that its a dangerous sport," NASCAR President Mike Helton said Friday. "Our drivers are human." CONFLICT, CHAOS & CHANGE: Those bickering disputes between Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart and Logano were minor compared to what happened during and after the Richmond race. It might go down as the most memorable moment of 2013. Clint Bowyer intentionally spun and triggered the biggest credibility crisis in NASCAR history. Bowyer was trying to help a teammate earn a valuable spot in NASCARs version of the playoffs, but the situation snowballed and led to a full-blown scandal. When the dust settled, chairman Brian France gathered all the competitors and tersely ordered them to give 100 per cent at all times going forward. DANICAS DUD: The year began with former IndyCar star Danica Patrick on the Daytona 500 pole and making history by leading laps at the Great American Race. Oh yeah, she also announced she was dating fellow rookie of the year candidate Ricky Stenhouse Jr. He bested her in the race for the award as she mostly struggled in her first full Sprint Cup season. Patrick finished eighth at Daytona, but failed to crack the top 10 in the next 35 starts. She finished 28th in points. But shes never been happier, personally and professionally, despite her below-average results. Don Ohl Jersey . Villar connected off Joe Saunders (11-14), sending a drive well over the left-field fence for his first career homer. The Astros scored six times in the first three innings to chase Saunders. Rasheed Wallace Jersey . - Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte sees the commitment to the handoff and cant help but come away impressed. https://www.cheapwizardsonline.com/ .Heres Ralph the Dog with the crew here at TSN jumping into the James Duthie TradeCentre selfie: Happy to drop by! RT @TSN_Sports: @tsnjamesduthie: Take this Ellen.TORONTO – The debate over chemistry, whether it exists in baseball and, if so, to what degree it matters, will likely never be completely settled. The question gets asked often these days, whether these Blue Jays get along better this year than they did in 2013. The assumption seems to be that they do because theyre winning more than theyre losing. J.A. Happ, who along with Mark Buehrle are the only two current Jays to take part in an on-field world championship celebration, summed it up. “You just feed off each other,” he said. “The musics better. The jokes are better. Everythings better when youre winning. Thats kind of the way it goes. People start getting louder. You feed off that. You feed off peoples personalities.” Its a chicken and egg deal. Winning is the egg, which begets the chicken that is chemistry. More to the point, manager John Gibbons has settled into a number of roster combinations that are producing results. Helping him in this endeavour is a cadre of players who began the season at Triple-A Buffalo. “Weve got a handful of them,” said manager John Gibbons. “We brought [Steve] Tolleson up to be the second baseman against left-handers. Hes doing a great job with that. Of course Gose and Pillar, filling in for Colby, have been a pretty good combo there. Kratzys been up and down a couple of times, but hes fit in. Theyre all contributing.” Juan Francisco, signed off the scrap heap when the Milwaukee Brewers decided late in spring they didnt want to pay him despite an 18-home run season last year, is hitting .280/.370/.602 (.973 OPS) with eight home runs. Anthony Gose entered Mondays action with a slash line of .296/.457/.407. Three of his eight hits are doubles. Hes walked seven times against eight strikeouts, a small sample size, but a great ratio nonetheless. Gose has two stolen bases, but anyone whos watched him play knows hes created runs with his speed and prevented runs with his defence. After a slow start, Kevin Pillar looks up and sees a .304 batting average. Erik Kratz has three home runs in just 45 at-bats. Tolleson, in a small sample size, is hitting better than .300 and has posted a .946 OPS. Gibbons has also established batteries for all three of his catchers. Kratz has become J.A. Happs personal catcher. Josh Thole serves the same role for R.A. Dickey. Dioner Navarro is behind the plate for every Mark Buehrle start. “Hes able to give Navarro a little bit of a breather,” said Gibbons of Kratz. “Against left-handed pitchinng you can DH (Navarro). Bob Dandridge Jersey. Thats where we feel were strongest.” Against right-handed starting pitching, Francisco plays third base and Lawrie second base. Lawrie heads over to third base, where hes most comfortable, when the opposition starts a left-hander. Tolleson plays second. The Jays have a fearsome late-game bench when the opponent starts a lefty. Adam Lind and Francisco are lingering, waiting for their names to be called. “As the game goes on, the only place youre vulnerable, you get to a certain point of the game theyre always going to have that lefty ready,” said Gibbons. “Teams that have enough lefties (in the bullpen), youre waiting on Lind or Francisco. But I think it makes us stronger.” The bullpen has settled down since the return of Casey Janssen, whos converted all seven save opportunities since his return from a strained oblique muscle. Gibbons is most pleased with the progress hes seeing from the rotation. “It all revolves around starting pitching, you know,” said Gibbons. “If starting pitchings good, youve got a chance. If its not, its tough. I dont care what kind of offence youve got, what kind of defence youve got - thats the key to any team in baseball. Check the May ERA of the four rotation mainstays to see the improvement. Drew Hutchison (including Monday night): 5 starts, 3.94Mark Buehrle: 2.16R.A. Dickey: 2.73J.A. Happ: 3.20 RASMUS PROGRESSING On the disabled list since May 13 with tightness in his right hamstring, Colby Rasmus is sprinting his way toward a rehab assignment. “He was out there running and shagging during early BP,” said Gibbons. “Well see in the next few days what happens.” Rasmus sprinted the infield cutout on Saturday and the warning track on Sunday. While hes eligible to return from the disabled list on Wednesday, Rasmus will be sent out on a minor-league rehabilitation assignment before rejoining the Blue Jays. SANTOS PLAYING CATCH Sergio Santos played catch for the third-straight day on Monday afternoon. Hes recovering from a strained right forearm. “He feels pretty good,” said Gibbons. “No soreness at all. So like Colby, we dont know how long its going to be for him. Hes got to build up a little bit, of course.” Santos can be activated off the disabled list at any time - hes been out since May 10 - but hell throw at least two bullpen sessions before heading out on a minor-league rehabilitation assignment. Theres no timetable for Santoss return to the Blue Jays. ' ' '