DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The imaginative and prescient of his true NASCAR future crystalized for Jimmie Johnson eventually 12 months’s season finale. He climbed into his Toyota at Phoenix for his ninth, nondescript race of the season when he noticed them on pit highway, the company bigwigs on their technique to a collection the place Johnson ought to have been schmoozing in his position as group proprietor, quite than take the wheel for a meaningless race.
The pull of driver vs. proprietor duty Johnson wrestled with for 2 years eventually had a decisive winner.
“I nonetheless need to be behind the wheel,” Johnson mentioned, “nevertheless it’s actually … I want to return right here with a distinct agenda.”
Johnson stayed true to tightening his dedication at Legacy Motor Membership, and is now the bulk proprietor beneath an offseason restructuring during which a non-public fairness agency purchased into the Cup Collection group. He’s Legacy’s ultimate boss, and yeah, the 49-year-old seven-time NASCAR champion nonetheless is aware of the way to flip a quick lap, locking himself this week into Sunday’s Daytona 500 within the first spherical of qualifying.
“It’s a giant weight lifted off, to say the least,” Johnson mentioned.
Don’t fear, there’s nonetheless fairly a load for Johnson the Businessman to deal with within the boardroom.
The overhaul on the prime, that included bringing Knighthead Capital Administration aboard, is all a part of Legacy’s plan to make the leap this season into respectability. It’s been an arduous grind into relevancy since Johnson got here aboard forward of the 2023 season. Legacy has no wins, simply two top-fives and 13 top-10s in two seasons. Whereas nobody anticipated Johnson to drive like a champion in his few spot begins every season, his 9 begins in 2024 the place he failed to complete higher than twenty sixth certainly aided in his push to kick himself upstairs full-time.
Johnson scaled again to 2 races this season, with solely the Coca-Cola 600 in Might left on his plate.
As for a way a lot time Johnson the proprietor will spend on the observe, he mentioned it trusted “demand and want.”
“What’s been attention-grabbing on this journey to this point is, I’ve been rather more centered on enterprise (operations), on income, on sponsorship, that I ever did on, or thought on, the competitors aspect,” Johnson mentioned. “We’re actually catching our breath right here on the income aspect, rather more beneath management. I do know that I need to get deeper into the competitors aspect, and I imagine that’ll have me on the observe.”
Legacy this season will subject two full-time vehicles, the No. 43 Toyota for Erik Jones — two top-fives in two seasons with the group and a end of twenty eighth within the Cup Collection standings — and the No. 42 Toyota for John Hunter Nemechek. Neither driver made the playoffs.
“Erik is that regular, calm factor for us,” Johnson mentioned. “Erik has been so affected person with the group, going by way of completely different possession adjustments and guarantees about making issues higher. We really feel a deep obligation in direction of him to get it proper.”
Nemechek completed thirty sixth within the standings final season.
“So far as he’s involved, in his first 12 months with us final 12 months, we didn’t have our act collectively in our obligation to John Hunter,” Johnson mentioned.
Johnson did his half for the third straight Daytona 500 to land a big-time — like, actually, actually huge — companion for one of many Legacy vehicles. After working with rock bands Creed and Weapons N’ Roses every of the final two seasons, Johnson’s paint scheme within the No. 84 Toyota for the Daytona 500 was impressed by retired NBA nice Shaquille O’Neal’s profession.
Johnson, a member of the 2024 class, skipped NASCAR’s Corridor of Fame ceremony final Friday to shoot hoops and promote his automotive and the Daytona 500 at a carnival-themed Tremendous Bowl social gathering thrown by O’Neal. Johnson and O’Neal ripped the quilt off the automotive with cameras on them — good luck getting “ Leisure Tonight ” to Daytona — and engaged in a free-throw capturing contest.
Hey, even the nice occasions include their very own trials, like making an attempt to get Shaq into the automotive.
“We couldn’t get his shoulders by way of the automotive, he’s so broad,” Johnson mentioned, laughing. “He truly discovered a means in, however I needed to pull him out. I used to be hanging onto his foot making an attempt to tear him out of there.”
Regardless of the journey, Johnson could have a shorter work commute this 12 months. Johnson, who has been residing in Britain for greater than a 12 months, will return to Charlotte to be hands-on in his bigger position with Legacy. His spouse and two daughters will comply with on the finish of the varsity 12 months.
After a number of false begins, together with strolling away from NASCAR for a short dalliance in IndyCar, the ultimate curtain appears poised to lastly drop on Johnson’s racing profession.
“With my new place, it’s turning into a lot tougher,” he mentioned. “So, staying centered on the expansion of the group, our companions, prospects, OEM, administration, drivers. It’s actually robust to present the driving piece an opportunity proper now.”
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AP Auto Racing Author Jenna Fryer contributed to this report.
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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
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