Jimmie Johnson responds to criticism about driving No. 84 car, potentially damaging his legacy

In the last few years, Jimmie Johnson has run a select number of NASCAR races under the Legacy Motor Club banner. Many of those races have ended with a DNF or an overall poor performance.

In fact, his P3 finish at Daytona was his only top-25 finish ever in a Legacy car. He had three starts in 2023 followed by nine in 2024, and Johnson will have one more race this year at the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.

Talking to Kelly Crandall of RACER.com, Jimmie Johnson touched on the criticism he has received for those starts. Many feel it is making his legacy less than. He doesn’t see it that way.

“I would see some of it,” Johnson said. “It started when I went IndyCar racing. And that wasn’t for anyone else but me. I mean, that was my childhood dream, so I don’t feel like I’m ruining my career I feel like it’s something to be proud of. I truly enjoyed that. My second year I ran the full IndyCar schedule and then the five endurance sports car races, and both of those divisions allow testing, and I was back on a Cup schedule.

“I was like, ‘Okay,’ that’s not what I wanted to do. To drive, I wanted the experience to drive for my own team, even though I was a minority owner, I want to experience that. Then also, the benefits of trying to help grow the team, trying to bring sponsors in, there was another reason for it. You know, trying to build something here. Now I think as time goes on people see the bigger vision and maybe it was just tough to see in [20]23 I guess, 24.”

In 2024, Jimmie Johnson had an average finish of 30.55 in his nine starts. That is not a great result. However, Legacy Motor Club has attracted a number of new sponsors.

On top of that, more investment has been made in the team. Johnson is now the majority owner of Legacy Motor Club. Knighthead Capital Management has joined as an investment group.

There were good things at Daytona for Legacy. Erik Jones almost won his Duel race if not for a late caution. Johnson was on the podium for the Daytona 500. Late in the race, John Hunter Nemechek was up near the front and poking around.

Jimmie Johnson only has one more race on his 2025 schedule. Will it be his last ever?

The post Jimmie Johnson responds to criticism about driving No. 84 car, potentially damaging his legacy appeared first on On3.