Jimmie Johnson is retiring. Again. Sort of. Not really, though.
The seven-time NASCAR champion turned IndyCar Series driver is stepping back from full-time racing, the Associated Press first reported Monday, after his first full season in IndyCar, which included his Indianapolis 500 debut in May. He’s looking toward new racing opportunities while also hoping to spend more time with his family without a demanding full-time racing schedule.
So when he saw headlines this week about his “retirement,” he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Just kind of chuckled, mainly because, I’ve tried to retire once already, and it didn’t work out,” Johnson told reporters during a virtual press conference Tuesday.
“To see it up there a second time, it’s kind of like The Boy [Who] Cried Wolf. And I really don’t feel like this is the end of driving for me. I feel like it’s a chance to pivot and again to run marquee events and look for these amazing experiences that you know any driver would want to have.”
I couldn’t have asked for a better experience in the @Indycar series. Looking ahead, I will not return to INDYCAR full time in 2023 but will continue to look for new ways to challenge myself and participate in bucket list events. Hear more: https://t.co/H3e7X6PTLG pic.twitter.com/0kujpWdCaw
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) September 26, 2022
The 47-year-old driver has plenty of aspirations, though nothing appears to be set yet. But he could run some IndyCar races, like the Indy 500, he could return to NASCAR for a couple events — he retired from full-time NASCAR after the 2020 season —and he could go abroad to knock off some bucket list items.
“My options are open,” Johnson said. That’s especially true since sponsor Carvana told him it’ll support his racing ventures in 2023.
Here are five takeaways from Johnson’s press conference about moving away from full-time racing to pursue other opportunities in 2023.
1
Jimmie Johnson's bucket list items
In addition to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Rolex 24 at Daytona (also known as the 24 Hours of Daytona), Johnson said he’s open to doing the Memorial Day Double — racing in the Indy 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600, both of which are held on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend.
“When I look at bucket list opportunities, Le Mans, a shot at winning the Rolex 24, the Double — those three are really kind of at the top of the list,” Johnson said. “It is just really early in this process, and I’m not sure where it will all lead. But it is, again, just really high on my list of things that I still [want to] do. And we’ll start working on that now.”
But he’s also open to returning only to the Indy 500 after an impressive 2022 rookie race that ended in an unfortunate crash with just six laps left in the race.
“I’m open to just the Double or the [Indy] 500 alone,” he added. “I really do have a clean sheet of paper in front of myself right now, and eager to see what meaningful opportunities develop and make sense.”
2
In NASCAR, the Memorial Day Double, The Clash at the Coliseum and the All-Star Race are possibilities
Should Johnson attempt the Double — the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day for a combined 1,100-mile day — he wouldn’t be the first. Other drivers who have done it include Tony Stewart, John Andretti, Robby Gordon and, most recently, Kurt Busch in 2014.
“When drivers did it in the past, we had, I think, a lot more on-track activity for both series, certainly on the NASCAR side,” Johnson said when asked about how he’d juggle the demands of both events. “Not very familiar with the IndyCar side and how the month of May work for Kurt and Tony back then.
“But I think the way the NASCAR format works now, there’s less of an ask in time. So I do feel like, in my rough look at it, that the potential to apply myself and to have physically enough time to pull it off, I believe it’s there. And I do think with the reduced schedule and not running the full IndyCar schedule will give me the time I need before and after to seriously focus and dedicate everything I can and would need to to give my best performance in both races.”
Johnson is also open to two NASCAR exhibition events: The Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in the February preseason and the NASCAR All-Star Race in May at North Wilkesboro Speedway. While the eligibility for those races tends to be fluid, they’re still real possibilities for the seven-time NASCAR champ — though if he tried to compete in the 2022 All-Star Race, he wouldn’t have been eligible as it was for only full-time NASCAR drivers.
“I do have a few years left on my eligibility for the Clash,” he said. “And for the All-Star Race, I’m surprised no one has really asked or pushed hard to this point yet. …
“Those would be easy opportunities, I think, to to come back. But I honestly have not had an in-depth, serious conversation with anyone yet on any of those fronts.”
The Clash would be cool for sure with a purpose-built short track inside of the L.A. Coliseum, but Johnson said he’d relish the chance to be able to race at North Wilkesboro in the All-Star Race.
“I would love to go to Wilkesboro,” he said. “I’ve never driven on that race track. Lowe’s corporate offices were just down the street, and so I’ve driven by it many times. I went on a long bike ride with Matt Kenseth and some friends a few years ago and actually rode my bicycle around the track. So I’d love to go back into proper race car and a proper event someday, and hopefully that opportunity can develop.”
3
If Johnson does return to NASCAR for a few races, it could be with Trackhouse Racing
Should Johnson go back NASCAR, it likely won’t be with Hendrick Motorsports, the team he spend his entire Cup Series career with. The governing body limits teams to four cars, so Hendrick, Joe Gibbs Racing and Stewart-Haas Racing are probably not options.
But Trackhouse Racing is. The team co-owned by Pitbull and Justin Marks currently fields two full-time rides for Daniel Suárez and Ross Chastain, but it’s also got a third option known as the PROJECT91 car.
The team is utilizing that part-time ride for special opportunities to generate international interest, Marks has previously said, and Formula 1 star Kimi Raikkonen made his Cup debut in August behind the wheel of the No. 91 Chevrolet.
“He’s been a longtime friend and somebody that I stay in touch with,” Johnson said about Marks. “And he certainly made it known that the PROJECT91 car is available if I have interest, so I would need to continue those conversations forward.”
4
Johnson has no manufacturer obligations or limitations
When he says he has “a clean sheet of paper” for his future, he really means it. Johnson’s entire NASCAR Cup Series career was with Hendrick Motorsports in a Chevrolet, and his switch to Chip Ganassi Racing in IndyCar put him in a Honda.
But going forward, he could drive for any manufacturer.
“As far as the manufacturer relationship, I am currently not under a contract with Honda or with Chevrolet, so I do feel like my options are open,” Johnson said.
“I certainly have a long history with Chevrolet, and as I moved into IndyCar, I was hopeful to continue that, but my opportunity at [Chip Ganassi Racing] took me down the Honda pathway. And it’s been an amazing relationship there, and I’m thankful for the support they’ve given me. But moving forward, I am not under contract with any manufacturer at this point in time.”
5
Despite all these other options, Johnson doesn't seem finished with IndyCar
Johnson said he hasn’t had serious talks with other IndyCar teams, and after his experience the last two years with Chip Ganassi Racing — part-time in 2021 and full-time in 2022 — he’d love to stick with the team.
“Really only spoken to Chip,” Johnson said. “And I truly feel like I’m part of the family at CGR. If I am in an Indy car, that’s really where I want to be. I know that team, I know the inner workings of it. I do feel like we are working hard to continue the relationship together. So that would really be my intentions. If I was able to put something together and come back into a Indy car, I’d love for it to be there.”
As to what his potential IndyCar schedule could look like, Johnson said he’s not really sure. But it could be a little bit of everything, including the Indy 500.
“If something develops with Chip, and it’s a mixed bag of road and street courses and some ovals, I’m open to it,” he added.
