Jimmie Johnson may be the greatest stock car racer of all time - well, at least he would stand on the medals podium, if there were one in NASCAR. Johnson won a mind-boggling seven NASCAR Cup Championships from 2006-2016 - five consecutively - which ties him with the great Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, Sr., for most ever. He’s also won the Daytona 500 twice, the Brickyard 400 four times and the Coca-Cola 600 four times. You name it, he’s pretty much done it. So why, in his mid-40s, did Johnson decide to chuck NASCAR in favor of IndyCar? So far, it’s been a hard road in the Indy cars. Since Johnson entered the open-wheel series in 2021, after initially retiring from racing altogether, he has only finished in the top 10 twice - this March at the Grand Prix of Texas (6th), and at Iowa last month (5th).
We caught up with the affable father of two girls this week by phone while he was preparing for this coming weekend’s Nashville IndyCar race. What’s the transition been like to IndyCar? Will Johnson return to NASCAR part-time, as are the rumors? When might he retire for good? Following are edited excerpts from a longer, fascinating conversation. This is Part 1 of a multi-part series.
Jim Clash: This past week I’ve seen rumors that you might go back to NASCAR on a limited schedule.
Jimmie Johnson: These rumors keep flying around [laughs]. I’m not against it for say, a limited schedule or a one-off race, if the right opportunity were to come along. My days of a full-time Cup schedule are behind me. I’m sitting here [in IndyCar] with a 21-race schedule as it is, and that’s already feeling like too much work.
Clash: With some distance now, has it finally sunk in that you have won seven NASCAR Cup Championships?
Johnson: I couldn't believe I won seven while I was experiencing it firsthand. As I’m able to reflect, it seems even more crazy that we were able to pull it off. The sport is so competitive. There are generations of cars I had to adapt to to win championships. Even the way points were totaled, the way the champion was crowned, changed, so I was able to win in a couple of varieties of formats. I shake my head now, so thankful I was able to experience that. Also, looking back, I realize how important all of the people were. Without the team, Mr. Hendrick and the sponsors it wouldn’t have happened.
Clash: You’re teammates with Scott Dixon now. He’s looking for his seventh championship, too, but in IndyCar.
Johnson: Watching Scott and being inside of Chip Ganassi Racing, I see his leadership, talent and the way the team functions. I can see many parallels in the world I lived winning championships and the world Scott’s in right now.
Clash: When Scott got that pit-lane violation at this year’s Indy 500, essentially eliminating him from winning after he was on pole and led so many laps, what did you think as his teammate?
Johnson: I was so occupied in what I had going on, I wasn’t able to really connect with him until later that evening. He was certainly disappointed, but in that pit stop at the end of a race, it’s all on the line. You’ve got to hit your marks, but push the limits at the same time. He felt like he was at speed. He was judged barely over, and got the infraction, the drive-through penalty. What he let on to me about is just how tough the sport is, how hard it is to be perfect every weekend [laughs], let alone in the biggest race of the year.
Clash: You were pretty aggressive the other week on the small Iowa oval. Where did that come from?
Johnson: It really felt like an environment that I was used to. The way the Indy car drove at Iowa reminded me of how the Cup cars drive at Bristol, the aggression you need, the line selection, even the way you use the throttle, brake and steering wheel. It just felt very familiar, and allowed for me to trust the car, to push, to make aggressive passes.
Clash: When you’re in an Indy car, do you feel any heightened sense of danger versus when you’re in a stock car?
Johnson: Prior to the new aero-screens, I felt the Indy cars were much more dangerous. Where they sit now, though, I’d put the two in a pretty comparable spot, even with the speed differences in the corners. The Gen-7 stock car that they’re driving today is a much more rigid vehicle. I just saw that Kurt Busch is going to be out for a third [NASCAR] race from a concussion he got back at Pocono. Having now crashed an Indy car at 220 mph, and a NASCAR vehicle at 200 mph, I can tell you the amount of fear and pain is very equal [laughs].
Clash: You’re 46. Will we see you in a race car when you’re 50?
Johnson: Gosh, I hope so. It might not be at the IndyCar or NASCAR Cup level, but I have no plans of slowing down anytime soon.
Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn.Editor’s Note: In Part 2 of this interview series with Jimmie Johnson, we’ll discuss what he’s afraid of, differences between racing an Indy car and a stock car, whether he wants to stay in IndyCar, what he thinks of Dale Earnhardt, Sr. and Richard Petty, plus gives advice for youngsters wanting to become racers.