Texts help define Chase race between Johnson, Kenseth

• Johnson has the points lead by four on Kenseth
• They tease each other after qualifying%2C before media sessions via text
• Their run to the title defined differently than furious feuds from years past

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Having lost his championship lead for the first time during the Chase for the Sprint Cup, Matt Kenseth sent Jimmie Johnson a biting text message this week.

Was it a defiant and intimidating salvo that he wasn't conceding the title? A veiled threat of retribution Sunday in the tight confines of Martinsville Speedway? A gratuitous taunt that Kenseth's two young daughters are cuter than Johnson's pair?

Nope.

Just a sardonic quip between two friends who also happen to be separated by four points with four races left in a Chase that is unfolding as a furiously tight duel between the two winningest drivers in NASCAR's premier series this season.

Their mutual admiration society has put an unusual spin on a NASCAR rivalry that isn't nearly as contentious as the feuds that have been the essence of stock-car racing for more than six decades.

"Matt basically said he would appreciate me refraining from asking too much advice or pointers this weekend at Martinsville," Johnson, whose eight Martinsville victories rank first among active drivers, said with a chuckle while gleefully sharing Kenseth's texts with reporters. "He hopes that I would understand, and I'm not offended."

Johnson laughed again while looking at his smartphone. "He just texted again, 'Be ready for the media center,' " he said.

Only 10 minutes earlier Kenseth had made several references to Johnson during his weekly interview session, from effusive praise of the No. 48 Chevrolet driver's talent ("People always say, 'Man, it's a great track for Jimmie.' Is there a bad one?") to typically self-deprecating wit when learning that Johnson had run 20 miles Wednesday.

"I'm not weird enough to do a 20-mile run," Kenseth said. "It'd take me a week to run 20 miles, even if somebody was chasing me."

Said Johnson: "For a guy that can come across dry at times, he is awfully funny. Certainly (I'm) having fun with Matt. He's a great guy and one awesome race car driver."

The easygoing relationship might be indicative of societal shifts in the age of social media – would Cale Yarborough and the Allison brothers have traded unpleasantries in 140-character bursts instead of delivering them via their fists as they did in the 1979 Daytona 500? – but there also seems a genuine undercurrent of kinship between Johnson and Kenseth, who have combined to win 12 of 32 Sprint Cup races in 2013.

"There's just a huge mutual respect between the guys," said Denny Hamlin, who won the pole for the Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500. "I don't know the extent of their relationship, but I'm sure through the texts that I've shared with both, it's light-hearted head games more than it is anything."

It's certainly not reminiscent of the mental gamesmanship and vitriolic jousting favored by stars such as Dale Earnhardt and Darrell Waltrip to intimidate chief title contenders.

After Kenseth qualified fourth – only his third top-five starting position in 28 starts here – the first person to greet his No. 20 Toyota in the pits was Johnson, who leaned through the window for a congratulatory slap on the shoulder.

That theirs is unlike past championship battles might seem surprising because they are unlike each other in many ways.

Johnson, 38, is the laid-back native of El Cajon, Calif., whose style often seems adaptable to whatever the track requires – whether it's controlled aggression or methodical patience.

Kenseth, 41, is the laconic Midwesterner from Cambridge, Wis., who drives with the workmanlike consistency of a metronome.

But there are similarities: Neither is flashy, and they both eschew controversy (which has caused some fans to complain that the stars have "vanilla" personalities). They also are at familiar stations in life as the fathers of young children, and they have matured into elder statesmen after spending more than a decade in NASCAR's premier series (Kenseth is in his 14th season, Johnson his 12th).

And with Kenseth's move to Joe Gibbs Racing sparking a career renaissance, the 2003 champion has the cars to compete with Johnson as they did during the 2006 season (Kenseth finished runner-up when Johnson won the first of his five consecutive championships).

"We have all grown and changed a lot over the years," Johnson said. "Matt understands the big picture, how to race (and) when to race. I think joining up at Gibbs, it's filled in some weak spots that you would normally think that Matt would have. This track is a perfect example.

"I'm not going to put my guard down here even though it is one of our better tracks."

Kenseth has only three top fives at Martinsville, but it seemed to click for him in the April race. Leaning on advice from JGR teammates Hamlin (a four-time winner here) and Kyle Busch, Kenseth led 96 laps – 23 more than he had in his first 26 races at the 0.526-mile oval.

It was a typical breakthrough performance this season for Kenseth, who opened the Chase with inaugural wins at Chicagoland Speedway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway (where he often has struggled).

"It's been a few years since I felt like honestly with everything being equal that we could go head-to-head with anybody and I really feel like this year if we hit everything right we could win at any given weekend," Kenseth said. "I feel that confident about my team and my equipment. Hopefully we can have a good day and still be in (the title race) when we leave (Martinsville). I really feel like the next three weeks, if we do everything right, I feel like we can race with anybody."

Johnson is a believer. With unpredictable Talladega Superspeedway in his rear-view, the Hendrick Motorsports driver admittedly has shifted his focus solely to Kenseth – which is somewhat of a revelation given that Johnson rarely tips his hand about the competition or his strategies.

He's been candid this weekend, noting that his running trainer had set the distance of Wednesday's 20-mile run based on Kenseth's car number.

The most visibly frustrated Johnson has been during the Chase was after the race two weeks ago at Charlotte Motor Speedway when he climbed from his SS and realized he'd finished a spot behind Kenseth after leading a race-high 130 laps.

Though he has five wins, mistakes by driver and crew have kept Johnson from having a shot at winning perhaps a half-dozen more (the first races at Dover International Speedway and Michigan International Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and both events at Pocono Raceway).

Kenseth likely would capitalize if such lapses occur over the remainder of the season at Martinsville, Texas Motor Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.

"The first car I worry about right now is the No. 20," Johnson said. "He is a great driver, great team, and there is no quit in those guys. It just means we need to be buttoned up until the end. There have been a handful that have gotten away. I can't let that happen anymore.

"I look forward to a battle all the way to the last lap at Homestead with him."

Follow Ryan on Twitter @nateryan