The win was Hamlin’s fourth of the year, the most he’s won to date in a single Cup season. Johnson, on the other hand, made history on Sunday by becoming the first driver in the 61-year history of NASCAR to win four titles consecutively.

“(I’m) Just amazed,” he said. “I mean, I’ve been trying to chase this out of my head and what this might mean to me after the disappointment at Texas. So it is going to take a little while for those things to jump start in my mind and get going again. (I’m) just so proud of the effort.

“I think of how much I love this sport, how much I respect this sport. The greats before, how they have carried this sport on their backs and made it what it is and then to do something none of them have done, it is unbelievable, man. I grew up on two wheels in the dirt. I had no clue I was going to end up here racing stock cars and doing something that had never been done before."

By winning a fourth title, Johnson joins his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon, who also has four championships, as well as Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, who share seven.

Johnson claimed the honors by notching seven race wins this season, 16 top-5 and 24 top-10 finishes. With the wins, he moved into 13th on the all-time wins list with a career total of 47 — in only eight full seasons.

“It is unbelievable,” he continued. “Four championships in eight years — 47 wins. Everything this team has done is truly amazing. I know that the fans and everybody respects what this race team has done. I can't wait where this race team ends up. We've got a lot of racing ahead of us. I know that we are solidly in the record books, but I know we have a lot more to accomplish.”

Johnson’s other Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Mark Martin, was his closest competitor in the Chase and still had a viable shot at his first title entering the event. Martin’s car, however, had other ideas, as the handling on his No. 5 Chevrolet never seemed to hit its mark, leaving him 12th at the finish.

Martin finished second in the standings with Gordon third. The sweep of the top three positions in the point standings was another record-setter. Car owner Rick Hendrick is now the only owner to accomplish that feat. Hendrick however, was not in attendance on Sunday, due to a family health matter.

"We made history in multiple ways tonight at Hendrick Motorsports, and for me it's just incredible to have had a chance at it,” Martin, who ended the season 141-points behind Johnson, said. “We were the only team in the garage that had earned a chance in the last race at it, and that's quite an accomplishment.”

The race itself was a competitive one, as 10 different drivers took a turn out front. Hamlin led the most laps with 71. He took the lead for the final time on lap 223 of the 267-lap race.

“It's been a great year.” Hamlin said. “To get four wins and to win on a track that people don't necessarily expect us to win on is a great deal. Starting this car in back and coming to the front was a show. We hope to be where Jimmie is at in a couple of years and we're showing that we do have a little bit of strength.”

Before Hamlin was able to celebrate, the race took a turn in the second half. While racing for position, Juan Pablo Montoya got into the rear of Tony Stewart on the frontstretch. As the two battled side-by-side, Stewart, who dominated the point standings throughout the regular season, drifted into Montoya as they battled on the backstraightaway, cutting the Columbia-born racer’s tire. Montoya’s No. 42 Chevy drifted into the Turn 3 wall and was taken to the garage where his crew worked to repair it for 28 laps.

Under caution, the lead lap cars took the opportunity to pit. Erik Darnell, however, was looking to pull his No. 96 machine into the garage. Missing the turn-in, Darnell stopped on pit road, causing an accordion-style pileup. The cars of Robby Gordon, Reed Sorenson, Elliott Sadler and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were involved.

NASCAR had radioed to both Montoya and Stewart to end the skirmish, but once the former made it back on track he retaliated, running into the latter coming out of Turn 4 and sending the No. 14 spinning down track into the inside wall. Montoya was then penalized two laps for rough driving.

Jeff Burton continued his late-season renaissance, finishing second for the second consecutive week and notching fourth straight top 10. Burton’s Richard Childress Racing teammate, Kevin Harvick, earned his second top 5 in three races, coming home third.

Kurt Busch finished his season in style as well, running fourth, recording his third straight finish of sixth or better — a streak which was highlighted by a win at Texas two weeks ago. Johnson ran conservatively, never pushing the issue, to bring the car home fifth.

Gordon was sixth with Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and A.J. Allmendinger rounding out the top 10.

Joey Logano, who earned his first career win at New Hampshire in June, earned the Raybestos Rookie of the Year honors over former open-wheeler Scott Speed.