KANSAS CITY, Kan: In a rare occurrence, Jimmie Johnson is set to compete in consecutive races for the first time since the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. This significant event will unfold when he takes the green flag in Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway.
Johnson ran the final two Cup races of the year during the coronavirus pandemic at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway and Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway before embarking on a journey to the IndyCar Series before returning to the Cup Series on a limited schedule last season.
Despite his illustrious career as a seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, Johnson has faced challenges in finding a good pace aboard his No. 84 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Toyota Camry. However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Johnson is not one to shy away from a challenge and is determined to turn his fortunes around.
The spirit of the NASCAR Cup Series garage has changed. From vehicles to teams to manufacturers and heck, even the race tracks are different for Johnson in his return to NASCAR, but for old times sakes’ Johnson is hoping running back-to-back races will pay dividends for 267 laps on Sunday.
”Yeah, it’s really helped me inside the car and I look forward to expanding on that this weekend,” Johnson said Saturday afternoon at Kansas Speedway when asked about running Dover and Kansas back-to-back.
“And then coming back for the (Coke) 600 and a lot more mile-and-a-half tracks that I’ll run this year. I know it doesn’t show it now, but being in the car is going to help our competition department as well.”
For Johnson, jumping back aboard the No. 84 car hasn’t been as simple as 2023.
LEGACY M.C. went through a manufacturer change during the offseason, the Statesville, N.C.-based team has been grinding away to find speed on the race track on top of the Toyota Camry embracing a new car that rolled out in February at Daytona International Speedway.
Sure, the season hasn’t rolled out over the first three months, but Johnson believes his team, which includes mainstay drivers John Hunter Nemechek and Erik Jones, is close to getting its consistency on track.
“This year has been more challenging for us in a lot more ways that we anticipated,” added Johnson. “But I do think we’re getting closer to a consistent pace that we hope to have week in and week out. There’s a real evolution taking place right now and I’m hopeful that we can show that on track this weekend as a group.”
Johnson elaborated on why his second season as co-owner of LEGACY M.C. with entrepreneur Maury Gallagher is more difficult this year.
”Yeah, I mean, it’s tough to change manufacturers,” added Johnson. “We have amazing support from Toyota and an amazing collaboration and partnership working with them. But the offseason is short, and we’re a small team.
“Our resources and people have had a lot more work items on the list than work hours in the day or week. We’re systematically working through it all and growing as a company. It’s tough to just compete with Gibbs (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Hendrick (Hendrick Motorsports) and all these big teams. But we’re making steps forward and I’m excited about the future.”
Entering Sunday’s Cup race at Kansas, Johnson hasn’t had much to speak about as far as results. In three races at Daytona, Texas Motor Speedway, and Dover Motor Speedway last weekend, have only delivered a season-best of 28th, twice at Daytona and Dover, but the 83-time Cup winner is confident that he and crew chief Jason Burdett are making headway.
“Jason and I started together on the 48 car and was my car chief back in 2002,” recalled Johnson. “I’ve always kept a close eye on him, and we’ve always had a good friendship. This is his first attempt at Next Gen racing, so there are a lot of new things he’s dealing with as am I.
“But his leadership certainly helps within our walls with the race team, and I think I’m at nine Cup races, so at the other events and his weekly duties, helping the other two teams is quite helpful.
“It’s been a great fit, and you know we’re more focused on today and the competition aspect that we have.
Dover was more challenging than we would have hoped, but there were a few bright spots, but more challenging than we hoped. But, excited for this weekend.”
Switching hats from driver to owner, Johnson also weighed in on the decision to keep Jones sidelined for another weekend. Jones was injured in the recent Cup race at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April.
Jones was approved and cleared to race this weekend; however, the team has kept the Byron, Mich. native on the sidelines for a second consecutive weekend out of abundance. The team insisted on Saturday that Jones will likely return to the No. 43 Toyota Camry next weekend at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.
“I don’t envy his position, but I really do appreciate his willingness to hear us out,” explained Johnson. “It’s not a fun process, and as far as he’s concerned, he should have never missed a race. He’s just eager to do it. I’ve played hurt before, so I get it and have seen both sides of it.
“My concern is that we’re at a fast track and an impact like that could happen again, and is his body really ready for that? And that’s kind of the question he came to his own answer on and realized that it’s probably early.
“There’s a lot of other bits and pieces to that, but ultimately, he feels great and is moving around really well. He was able to get in the gym and exercise, but you know to really take a shot like you can at this place, it’s just early. Hopefully next week’s the week.”
Whenever Jones returns to the seat, Darlington would be an ideal race track, given his overall success at the historic 1.366-egg-shaped oval. Johnson believes the No. 43 could reach Victory Lane before the Playoffs fire off in September at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.
”Missing a race truly takes us out of an opportunity to make the Playoffs on points,” added Johnson. “So if it’s one race, and this was part of our conversation with Erik, if it’s one race, two races or three races, that window unfortunately closes and it becomes about winning a race.
“So, when he’s back in the seat, it’s not that we never wanted to win, but it really gives us that one lane of making the Playoffs. We really feel like Erik on points would have been able to make it in the top 16.
“I hate that opportunity has closed on him, for our team, our partners, but it’s not over and our team is very capable of winning races. We just need everything under him and hopefully we can as the summer gets here and hopefully, we can get him in under a waiver.”
As for his fourth start on the season, Johnson qualified a season-high 19th Saturday afternoon.
Follow Chris Knight on X (Twitter) @Knighter01 or email at [email protected].
