BROOKLYN, Mich. – Seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson enters Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway looking for his first win aboard his iconic No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in nearly two years.
Johnson’s last win came at Dover (Del.) International Speedway in the spring race in 2017, but Johnson eyes a return to Victory Lane to end a long drought – but also his second triumph in the famed Irish Hills.
In 34 starts at the 2.0-mile oval, Johnson has 1 win, five top-fives and 13 top-10 finishes.
Not only has Johnson had to battle the new aerodynamic rules package this season in Cup competition, but Johnson has also adapted to a key player in his No. 48 regime, new crew chief Kevin Meendering.
While the Ally Financial team is still looking for constant consistency, Johnson seems content with the way his No. 48 team is progressing heading into the tough summer stretch.
“Things are going well,” offered Johnson. We want more, we need to be doing better than we are but he is a great guy….a hardworking guy. We just need some more speed in our Ally Chevy.”
With some reason encouragement and speed with the Hendrick Motorsports organization, including with Johnson, the El Cajon, Calif. knows more work is to be done, but he is remaining optimistic.
“I think we are going in the right direction,” he added. “We look at Kansas and Charlotte; we’ve been progressing and being more competitive”.
After back-to-back top-10 finishes at Kansas Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway, there was a reason to have some confidence within the No. 48 stables, but after a sour 19th-place finish last weekend at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Johnson quickly realized they aren’t there yet.
“Pocono was really frustrating for me and to get home and realize that we had something go wrong with the car eased the pain and the result that we had,” he explained. “We know that we need to be running top-five consistently and we need to get there soon.”
Then, there’s Michigan – a track where Johnson hasn’t finished inside the top-10 since claiming 10th in the June race two years ago.
“I love coming to this track,” offered Johnson. “The one thing this year is that with this rules package, the track drives way different than what we have experienced before.”
New rules packages or not, Johnson and Meendering look for just their second top-five of 2019 and will have to fight from midpack after qualifying 19th on Saturday afternoon.
