Tag Archives: Jimmie Johnson

Jimmie Johnson Shows Speed in Strong Fifth-Place Run at Vegas

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Jimmie Johnson at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with first Top-Five finish since 2019 July race at Daytona.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 21: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Ally Chevrolet, drives during practice for the NASCAR Cup Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on February 21, 2020, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images

Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway provided Jimmie Johnson with just the sort of consistent strong he needed after two winless seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Driving the new sleeker Camaro introduced into NASCAR’s top series this year, Johnson finished ninth in Stage 1, seventh in Stage 2 and fifth in the race after surviving a chaotic restart with two laps left.

The seven-time champion was upbeat after posting his first top-five result since last year’s July race at Daytona International Speedway.

“It was a strong day,” Johnson acknowledged. “With about 15 to go or so, I got into the outside wall and lost some spots. But we didn’t have a strong enough tire rub to cause any problems. We put rights (right-side tires) on before that final restart. Chaos was happening in front of me and I was able to sneak through to get a top-five finish…

“We’re trying to just understand this new Camaro body and the setup that needs to go with it. We’re close, but there’s still a little bit more work for us to do on our car to get the balance between the clean air and the traffic closer. But for the first try on a downforce track, the guys did a really nice job.”

Jimmie Johnson’s Final Daytona 500 Ends Early

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Jimmie Johnson at Driver Introductions for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 16: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Ally Chevrolet, is introduced prior to the NASCAR Cup Series 62nd Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2020,in Daytona Beach, Florida. Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – In the hours before his final Daytona 500 start, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson was riding bikes with his wife and two young daughters in the infield, enjoying the sunny Florida day and the good vibes before NASCAR’s highest-profile green flag flew.

On the grid before the race, Johnson’s daughters took turns sitting in the driver’s seat of their dad’s famed No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. And then moments later, their father rolled off and into the last Daytona 500 he’s scheduled to run before retiring at the end of the season.

For most of the day, Johnson kept the car upfront and looked absolutely ready to contend for his third Daytona 500 trophy… only to be collected in a late-race wreck while running in the top five. Johnson was caught in a 19-car accident with 16 laps remaining in the 200-lap race – a race won for the second consecutive time by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin.

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Jimmie Johnson Runs Half-Marathon before Daytona 500 Qualifying

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DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 09: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Ally Chevrolet, climbs into his car during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series 62nd Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 09, 2020, in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Jimmie Johnson ran three times on Sunday, but only two of the occasions involved his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro.

Before Daytona 500 time trials, which started at 12:30 p.m., Johnson ran the Daytona Beach Half-Marathon, which starts on the tri-oval at Daytona International Speedway and ends 13.1 miles later after a run to the sands of Daytona Beach.

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Hendrick Motorsports Drivers Flex their Muscle at Monster Mile

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DOVER, DELAWARE – OCTOBER 06: William Byron, driver of the #24 Axalta Chevrolet, leads Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Ally Chevrolet, during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Drydene 400 at Dover International Speedway on October 06, 2019 in Dover, Delaware. Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

While Chase Elliott exited the race before he could break a sweat, his teammates at Hendrick Motorsports proved there was speed in their engines.

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Hendrick Threesome

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For the first time in 16 years Hendrick Motorsports driver Jimmie Johnson won’t be a part of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series’ championship Playoff run, however, his three young teammates will. Chase Elliott, 23, paced the championship organization with two wins – at Talladega and Watkins Glen – this season and heads into Sunday’s Playoff opener ranked seventh.

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