Enlarge By Doug Pensinger, Getty Images Jimmie Johnson is looking for his first sweep at Dover International Speedway since his 2002 rookie season with a victory Sunday.  NASCAR FAST FACTS What: AAA 400, 28th of 36 races for NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series. Where: Dover (Del.) International Speedway, 1-mile oval. When: Sunday, Sept. 27, 2:15 p.m. ET TV: ABC, 1 p.m. ET  Distance: 400 laps/400 miles Weather: Conditions, forecast 2008 winner: Greg Biffle Quick hits: Among active drivers, there are four four-time winners atop the Dover victory list: semi-retired Bill Elliott, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin. ... Gordon is the leader among active drivers in laps led with 2,231 -- 569 behind Bobby Allison's all-time mark. ... Sunday's race will be the 80th for NASCAR's top series at the Monster Mile.  NASCAR CHASE FOR THE CUP Photo galleries: Highlights from the 10-race postseason | Meet the Chase field Essentials: Points standings | Motor sports schedules

The defending three-time champion enters Sunday's AAA 400 seeking his first sweep of the one-mile concrete oval since his 2002 rookie season, where he led a combined 358 laps. Five Chase starts there have brought Johnson a 2005 win and two other top-10s, including fifth last September.

Johnson was dominant in late May, leading 298 laps after starting eighth for his fourth win in 15 starts. Despite the evidence, Johnson won't yet proclaim himself the favorite in the Chase's second stop of 10, waiting first to see how a different track from four months ago meshes with Goodyear's new tire compound.

"I am really excited going back although we're on a different tire," said Johnson, who was part of the August tire test. "The tire that's coming back from technology from the (Indianapolis) tire test has been put into this tire and it lays rubber fast. The more rubber that goes down, there's a lot of oil in the tire, it's black so as the sunlight sits on it, it's going to get slick and slimy and stuff."

"With all that in mind I think you'll see a track that's changing a lot from run to run and the balance of the car is going to change a lot from the start to the end of a run, which really should put on better racing."

Johnson couldn't be blamed for being a bit superstitious. None of Dover's fall winners since the Chase began in 2004 have gone on to the championship —Greg Biffle was the latest example a year ago — and Johnson's run last September merely matched Kurt Busch (2004) as the best by the eventual champion.

But Johnson has already made his own history in the Chase and comes in with reason to feel confident of breaking the "curse." Sunday's fourth-place run at New Hampshire Motor Speedway left him tied for second in points with Denny Hamlin, both 35 behind Mark Martin, with 102 separating the top 10.

While schedule tweaks have deferred so-called "wild card" Chase races at Martinsville and Talladega until later on the calendar, Johnson views Dover as a place to potentially shuffle the top 12.

Another good finish positions him to break through at 1.5-mile Kansas and Lowe's Motor Speedway, and half-mile Martinsville, tracks where he has won.

So while Johnson would like to have another Monster Mile sweep, he won't necessarily need it.

"The first couple tracks are good for some guys in the Chase and it's about minimizing mistakes," Johnson said.

"For myself, (it's about) getting to tracks that historically we've been able to separate ourselves at. I'm not surprised to see us all lumped together. Looking back, especially over last year's Chase, it was really similar where you had a lot of the Chase guys right there. I think it's just business as usual for right now."