As a dominant car owner for much of the past two decades, Rick Hendrick knows it's just as difficult to stay on top as to get there.

He also knows it's a lesson Joe Gibbs will learn.

The success of Gibbs' four-car teams has come at the expense of the rest of the Sprint Cup Series - particularly Hendrick Motorsports. In the past five races, Gibbs cars have combined for 12 top-nine finishes, and Hendrick, which also fields four cars, has had just two top-nines.

"It seems like when it rains, it pours," Hendrick said. "I've been doing this long enough that you can't stay on top forever," Hendrick said. "You have to work hard to get back. And I think we've made a lot of improvements."

Jimmie Johnson's third-place finish last Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was the first top-nine finish in a month for Hendrick. At the same time, Gibbs has two wins, including Kyle Busch at Indianapolis, and four second-place finishes.

"For me, we've got a great race team," Matt Kenseth said. "We've got great race cars and great people. I've got great teammates that drive those things every week, and there's great crew chiefs over there, and they've been able to get those things where they need to be each and every week, which obviously makes our job a lot easier."

Gibbs drivers Kenseth, Busch, Denny Hamlin and Carl Edwards combined to lead 176 of 301 laps July 17 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Those four then combined to lead 149 of 170 laps at Indianapolis.

"Once you get those guys up front, they're hard to get out of there," Kenseth said. "They're going to be out there leading races, and you're going to have to be just right to beat them."

The Hendrick cars haven't led a lap since June 12 at Michigan International Speedway - a dry spell of 1,017 laps.

"We all want to dominate," Jimmie Johnson said. "And we're working real hard on all fronts - from our engine shop, chassis shop, aero, teams, pit stops, and all of it. But we're all highly inspired to get back on top of the mountain, as is where we feel we should be at Hendrick Motorsports."

Johnson has six of Hendrick's 11 championships.

Jeff Gordon, who drove to four championships before retiring last year, believes the organization created the blueprint - and motivation - for everyone else's success.

"If I may just add that to me, when Hendrick Motorsports is dominating this series, that highly motivates your competition. And they go to work," Gordon said. "And sometimes, you get torn down while you're getting your butt kicked. But you start to find a way to get yourself better than you were before and hopefully get yourself in position.

The resources and the type of people that Hendrick Motorsports has is sort of what's happening to us right now."

Gordon said Gibbs' domination, which includes nine wins in 20 races, now serves as incentive for the rest of the sport.

"We're being highly motivated by other organizations and teams that are out there and are getting great results," Gordon said. "But, we're too good of an organization not to find a way to only make ourselves better and stronger and our cars faster to get back to that place."

"We're determined to work in every area from the engine to the chassis and aero and everything," Hendrick said. "And the teams are excited. It's kind of our 'refuse to lose' belief."

Success for any team starts at the top and trickles throughout the organization.

"You know, at this level of motorsports and the competition level across the field, you can't hit on one thing and beat people," Busch's crew chief, Adam Stevens, said. "You have to hit on everything. There's 550 employees at JGR to make sure we are working on everything that makes a race car go fast."

But as Rick Hendrick knows, enjoy the ride while it lasts.