INDIANAPOLIS -- Jimmie Johnson's gaze mirrored that of an awestruck child. Crew chief Chad Knaus' smile brightened his well-tanned face.

Relief, excitement and disbelief mixed in this emotional cocktail after they won Sunday's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

"I want to go sit down and ... think about this,'' Johnson said about an hour after his 22nd career series win. "I can't believe we overcame all the things we have at this racetrack.''

Johnson's comeback victory fulfilled a quest for him, Knaus and the team, a journey that tormented them, taught them and rewarded them.

Johnson persevered despite problems before the race and during it. The series points leader later had to thread his blue Chevrolet through a maze of cars to take the lead 10 laps from the finish. Once free, he cruised to his fourth victory of the season.

Runner-up Matt Kenseth joined more than 200,000 fans in watching Johnson cross the finish line first. Kevin Harvick, rookie Clint Bowyer and Mark Martin completed the top five. Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished sixth. He climbed into the top 10 in points and replaced Kasey Kahne, who crashed on the final lap.

Johnson's victory was surprising. Few considered him a threat to win. That included Johnson, who admits the speedway has humbled his team.

"We really feared coming here,'' said Johnson, whose team entered the weekend with lower-than-usual expectations but left with a paycheck for $452,861.

He arrived here as the points leader in 2004, but Johnson fought the car's handling and spun before a blown engine ended his race.

A qualifying problem relegated Johnson to a 42nd starting spot last year. He spun in the race before a right front tire blew and sent him into the wall and out of the points lead. Groggy, he was transported to a local hospital for observation.

"This track has been an emotional disaster for us,'' Johnson said.

Sunday, it was just emotional.

Johnson admitted he had a hard time showing it. He didn't cry. He didn't scream.

He exited his car near the finish line and waved the checkered flag and hugged his crew. Later, he kissed the bricks. His first pucker was as awkward as two teens kissing. Johnson agonized about burnt rubber on the track dirtying his face. He relaxed and the second kiss felt more natural.

Relaxed did not describe his team before the race. Both batteries in his radio failed and he had no communication with his crew. NASCAR held the cars longer before beginning the pace laps as a member of Johnson' crew ran down pit road with a new radio.

The switch made, Johnson joined the field.

"That was the only excitement we need today,'' Knaus radioed the team as he tried to soothe nerves.

It wasn't.

Johnson blew a left front tire on lap 39 of the 160-lap event as he ran in the top five. The problem happened after he passed the pit entrance. He babied the car around the 2.5-mile oval, hoping the tire's inner line wouldn't explode and shred the left front fender.

"In the back of my mind, I thought we're in trouble,'' Johnson said.

A Goodyear official said the team's "very aggressive'' setup contributed to the tire failing. Johnson's car also suffered a flat left front tire in Saturday's practice.

Johnson's crew gave him new tires and he restarted 39th. His left front tire smoked as it rubbed against the fender when he ran through the corners. A caution on lap 58 when Jeremy Mayfield hit the wall gave Johnson's team another chance to fix the problem. They did. He restarted 17th and reached the top 10 by lap 80. Johnson was fifth less than 10 laps later. He chased Jeff Burton, whose car had been an orange blur, leading 87 of the first 109 laps.

Burton's handling soured and Kenseth took the lead on lap 110. Johnson sped by seven laps later.

Johnson led when a caution for debris slowed the race 18 laps from the finish. All but four cars pitted. Two cars took only two tires; the rest four tires. Johnson restarted eighth, behind Kenseth, the only other driver in front of Johnson to take four tires.

The fresh tires made their cars faster than those in front. The trick was getting by. Kenseth went low to make a move by one car but lost his momentum and slowed. Traffic forced Johnson high. He tucked in behind Bowyer and bump-drafted his way down the backstretch, pushing both past some of the cars.

"He made some moves that I've never seen at this track,'' said car owner Rick Hendrick, who celebrated his fifth track win.

Johnson emerged fourth after that lap and needed three more laps before he took the lead.

No one could catch Johnson. Not even the track's ghosts.