The 47-year-old Jimmie Johnson said he began the season expecting he would want to race on beyond 2022. Check out his Indycar stats.
Jimmie johnson : Indycar stats | Wife | Lowes car
Johnson was born in El Cajon, California, and began racing motorcycles at the age of four. After graduating from Granite Hills High School he competed in off-road series.
He raced in Mickey Thompson Entertainment Group (MTEG), Short-course Off-road Drivers Association (SODA), and SCORE International, winning rookie of the year in each series. In 1998, Johnson and his team, Herzog Motorsports, began stock car racing.
He moved to the national American Speed Association (ASA) series for late model touring cars, and won another rookie of the year title. In 2000, he switched to the NASCAR Busch Series (now Xfinity Series).
His talent was noticed by Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon, who convinced owner Rick Hendrick to sign Johnson in the Winston Cup Series full-time for 2002, with Gordon as a part-owner of his car.
Indycar stats
In 2020, Johnson participated in a test with IndyCar Series team Chip Ganassi Racing. He initially had a test scheduled in March with Arrow McLaren SP at Barber Motorsports Park before it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a second attempt with Chip Ganassi Racing on the Indianapolis road course in July was postponed when he tested positive for the virus.
| IndyCar Series career | |
|---|---|
| 25 races run over 2 years | |
| Team(s) | No. 48 (Chip Ganassi Racing) |
| First race | 2021 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama (Birmingham) |
| Last race | 2022 Honda Indy 200 (Mid-Ohio) |
The CGR test finally took place on July 28, 2020, it was overseen by CGR owner Chip Ganassi and five-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon (who is, along with Johnson, considered to be one of the best in their respective series) to discuss the car. Johnson said that driving an IndyCar was a “childhood dream” of his.
On September 9, 2020, Johnson announced that he would join Chip Ganassi Racing on a part-time basis in 2021 and 2022 to drive the road and street courses on the IndyCar circuit.
But The deal left open the possibility of running select NASCAR Cup Series events in conjunction, as Ganassi fielded two cars in NASCAR and could’ve added a part-time car for Johnson, staying under the four-car maximum for Cup teams.
However, in 2021, Ganassi’s NASCAR operations were sold to Justin Marks and absorbed into the Trackhouse Racing Team the following year.
Johnson refused to run the ovals due to safety concerns of racing open-wheel cars on them but after both driving the cars and watching teammate Tony Kanaan run on ovals, he ultimately agreed to run an oval test at Texas to prep himself for the Indianapolis 500.
Jimmie johnson wife
The longtime NASCAR star is married to Chandra Janway. They’ve been together for nearly 20 years. Jimmie and Chandra have two children together.
Jimmie and Chandra were married in 2004. They were reportedly introduced by fellow NASCAR star Jeff Gordon.
Chandra was friends wife Gordon’s then-girlfriend (now wife) in Ingrid Vandebosch. They were both modeling in New York City together.
Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, Chandra Janway attended the University of Oklahoma, earning a degree in business communication in 2000.
Shortly after her graduation, she made the big move over to New York City where she joined Wilhelmina Models.
So It was here that she first met Jeff Gordon and his wife Ingrid Vandebosch. On top of being a huge racing fan, Chandra is also a big supporter of the Oklahoma Sooners.
It’s not uncommon for her to bring Jimmie and the kids out to catch a couple of the games when they have some spare time.
Lowes car
The news cannot be deemed shocking. In fact, Lowe’s announcing it would cease sponsoring Jimmie Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports past this season was a move many within the NASCAR industry foresaw coming for some time.
But while anticipated, it doesn’t blunt the significance any. Instead, it offers another dire reminder about the state of NASCAR in 2018 amidst continually slumping television ratings, flat attendance, and an economic climate where teams are saddled with exorbitant costs but have fewer dollars coming in.
But if there was a Fortune 500 company seemingly committed to NASCAR as it battles against regression in the sports landscape, Lowe’s was the ideal partner. It has been Johnson’s sponsor for the entirety of his Cup Series career.
Since putting its name and colors on the No. 48 Chevrolet in 2001, Lowe’s and Johnson have evolved into one of the most successful and synonymous sponsor-driver pairings in NASCAR history, deserving of a spot in the same realm as Richard Petty and STP, Dale Earnhardt and GM Goodwrench, and Jeff Gordon and DuPont.
The North Carolina-based company once had such a strong ties to NASCAR it previously held the naming rights to Charlotte Motor Speedway (1999-2010).
And when Johnson dominated on the track in his sponsor’s backyard winning five of six races during one stretch, CMS appropriately was dubbed “The House that Jimmie Built.”
But Lowe’s long association with Johnson and 20-plus years involvement overall with NASCAR is now in its waning months.