Recap
Jimmie Johnson pulled away on the final restart to win the 200th NASCAR Cup series race for Hendrick Motorsports. Johnson's triumph in the Southern 500 was his 56th career win, which moved him into 8th place on the all-time list. Johnson and Jeff Gordon have combined for 141 of the 200 wins (70 percent) for the organization.

As for Gordon's night at Darlington, it was another race to forget. Gordon started 12th and moved into the top-10 within the first 3 laps. He took 9th from Regan Smith on lap 23 and moved around Ryan Newman for 8th by lap 35. Gordon brushed the wall on lap 42, but held the 8th position. Gordon ran 9th following a round of green flag pit stops at the 50-lap mark. He regained the 8th spot by lap 60, but was battling a tight handling condition. Gordon pitted under green at the 100-lap mark and returned to the race in 8th. The next round of stops came on lap 147. Gordon passed Denny Hamlin for 7th on lap 160. A debris caution on lap 172 slowed the field and brought pit stops. Gordon dropped to 9th on lap 190 and then came to pit road with a flat left rear tire. Gordon fell off the lead lap due to the pit stop, before a caution for debris. Gordon restarted in 25th place and gained a spot within two laps. Gordon dropped off the pace on lap 205 with another cut in the left rear tire. He came to pit road for tires and pulled into the garage for extensive repairs. He returned to the race 28 laps down in 35th place and dropped to 24th in the series standings.

Turning point
A cut tire on lap 191 was the beginning of the end for Gordon and the #24 team at Darlington.

Recap
Not even a pole position could change Jeff Gordon's bad luck in 2012. Gordon was caught up in a wreck with 45 laps to go at Talladega Superspeedway and finished 33rd. It was his seventh finish of 21st or worse in the last 12 races. He lost six spots in the series points standings and is now 23rd -- the lowest after 10 races in his NASCAR career.

Gordon started on the pole and dropped to 6th on the opening lap before his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne picked him up in the draft. On lap 6, Gordon moved to the high line and dropped back to 28th place in an effort to cool the engine. By lap 10, he was running 30th and seemed content to stay out of the lead pack. The first caution waved on lap 16 for Regan Smith's blown engine. Gordon restarted 19th and locked into a draft with Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. The trio moved into the top-10 by lap 25, but separated within 5 laps. Gordon dropped to 15th before regrouping on the outside line. He worked with Marcos Ambrose and moved to 2nd place on lap 53. He came to pit road for a green flag pit stop on lap 59 and opted for left side tires. Following stops, Gordon ran in 3rd place behind Earnhardt Jr and Matt Kenseth.

On lap 75, he opted not to give Earnhardt Jr a drafting push and radioed to his crew about evening the tally with his "teammate" -- a reference to getting hung out in the draft earlier in the race. On lap 85, Gordon dropped back after his water temperature began spiking. He ran in 28th before green flag pit stops on lap 101. Gordon took right side tires and returned to the race in 8th place.

With 45 laps to go, a melee in turn three collected Gordon when he went low to miss it. Martin Truex came down the track and hit the side of the #24 team. Gordon drilled the outside wall with the right front of the car and drove to the garage area with his second DNF of the season.

Turning point
A melee in turn three with 45 laps to go ended Gordon's day at Talladega.