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Sporting a new beard, three-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson was sixth-fastest in time trials.

Judged by offseason souvenir sales, Johnson will likely have a strong fan following this weekend. His championship merchandise sold at a 20 percent improvement over gear for his second title, and at a time when the economic crisis was in full effect.

The boost helped Johnson jump from fifth to second in merchandise sales, trailing only teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR's most popular driver.

To Johnson, that proves his on-track work is appreciated.

"I think in general, it's tough to appreciate things that are taking place now and it usually takes awhile to get ahead of it and reflect back on it," Johnson said. "But I feel great about everything. I don't know where that whole idea came from of being underappreciated, but it's going well and one big indicator of that is if you look at souvenir sales."

Still, Hendrick sees the slight toward his driver. He knows Johnson is respected by his peers, and has heard rival competitors tracking Johnson during a race.

But there's still something holding Johnson back from breaking through to the highest levels of popularity.

"I think he's overlooked," Hendrick said. "I don't think from the people - the crew chiefs, the car owners, the competitors and drivers - they know. But he's so silent. He doesn't make a lot of noise. He just kind of goes along. He doesn't have an entourage of buddies, he's not on all the side shows and that stuff.

"It's kind of like he just shows up, so I think that has a lot to do with it."

Johnson doesn't seem to mind.

"I've been overwhelmed by a variety of situations," said Johnson, who was flattered by offseason congratulatory messages from Mike Ditka and Cris Carter. "So from my standpoint, I think it's running a great course."