Jimmie Johnson has been ready to get behind the wheel for an IndyCar test for months, and Tuesday, he was able to make it happen finally at the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion is retiring from full-time racing at the end of the 2020 season, and he’s repeatedly expressed interest in trying out other types of racing, including IndyCar. So he teamed up with NASCAR-IndyCar team Chip Ganassi Racing to test one of its open-wheelers on Indy’s road course, rather than the oval.
Johnson was originally supposed to have an IndyCar test in April at Barber Motorsports Park, and he even brought an iRacing rig to “prepare for ’21 and ’22 for the different bucket list races” he has in mind. But the coronavirus outbreak led to that test being canceled.
Then he had another test planned for the iconic Indy track in early July after, for the first time, NASCAR and IndyCar raced at the same venue over the same weekend. But his positive COVID-19 test nixed that too.
So, “Third time’s a charm” for the 44-year-old Hendrick Motorsports driver, who also made his IndyCar iRacing debut at Watkins Glen International in March when real-life racing was still on hold.
Third time’s a charm pic.twitter.com/gMeLUUQLXz
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) July 28, 2020
And as Chip Ganassi Racing managing director Mike Hull tweeted, Johnson was having a great time:
JJ’s 1st comment after his initial @IMS road track run on the intercom: “It certainly was my dream as a kid to be an #IndyCar Driver, went a different direction which has served me well, this lites my fire.” https://t.co/jlJGu4H3sH
— Mike Hull (@IndyMHull) July 28, 2020
Johnson’s Twitter account also shared the first look at him driving an IndyCar machine, one of Ganassi’s regular rotation cars set up for when IndyCar took on Indy’s road course on July 4, Hull tweeted last week.
Posting plenty of IG Stories if you want to follow through the day —> https://t.co/GprdUWlIbZ
Suffice to say, today is already exceeding my expectations 😁 pic.twitter.com/0rI8VVyRps
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) July 28, 2020
And Johnson got an extra hand from five-time IndyCar Series champion and longtime Ganassi driver Scott Dixon.
Appreciate having @scottdixon9 come out to the test today to share pointers and give feedback.
Just finished reviewing his in-car footage compared to mine then took a ride on the track together to check brake points and areas to gain a little speed. pic.twitter.com/VjgueGgj3k
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) July 28, 2020
Find this amazing, count the multi-championships of @scottdixon9 & @JimmieJohnson talking #IndyCar drive-style pic.twitter.com/i4JalmIgVG
— Mike Hull (@IndyMHull) July 28, 2020
More from Johnson’s Instagram stories Tuesday:
In 2018, Johnson tried out another open-wheeled car when he and two-time Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonso swapped rides at Bahrain International Circuit.
It’s not a proper car swap without doughnuts… The @F1 car was a bit tricky in the beginning but I figured it out. 🤙🏼 #JJxALO @McLarenF1 @alo_oficial pic.twitter.com/iN7OA9yUh6
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) November 26, 2018
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