Jimmie Johnson Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer A day removed from the sad and alarming news of Jimmie Johnson and his wife Chandra testing positive for COVID-19, the race must go on without the seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion for the first time since Loudon in November 2001. Filling in the prestigious role for Sunday’s Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will be Xfinity Series regular Justin Allgaier of JR Motorsports, looking to make the absolute most out of driving the No. 48 Ally Financial Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 after getting the call fromRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson will miss out on competing in Sunday’s Big Machine Hand Sanitizer 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway after testing positive for COVID-19. After learning Friday morning that his wife Chandra had tested positive following allergy-like symptoms, Johnson, who has been asymptomatic, was tested as well, with the test returning a positive result. Per NASCAR’s guidelines, Johnson will not return to competition until being cleared by a doctor and will have to remain symptom-free and have two consecutive negative test resultsRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor While Jimmie Johnson is in the midst of his final full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series, the seven-time champion is taking the opportunity to also look toward his future racing endeavors. On Wednesday of next week, Johnson will climb behind the wheel of a Chip Ganassi Racing Honda at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a test at the track’s 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course, which also hosts the NTT IndyCar Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series this weekend for a historic doubleheader. Johnson had originally planned his firstRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor There have been many memorable moments in the history of the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but a native Hoosier capturing the checkered flag on his native soil, makes the 2005 running of the race one of the most special in the event’s history. In his first six starts at Indianapolis, Tony Stewart had come close to winning at the Brickyard, with two top-five finishes and a top-10 finish, but a win still eluded him. Stewart was on a roll when the 2005 edition ofRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Two weeks ago, NASCAR and Bristol Motor Speedway announced the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race would be moving from Charlotte to Bristol for the first time in the history of the event. Now we know the format for the July 15 extravaganza under the lights. The 140-lap race will be divided into four stages, with lengths of 55 laps, 35 laps, 35 laps, and 15 laps. All of the laps will count in the first three stages, while the final stage will only count green flagRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Two races in two days. Double the fun. Pocono Raceway will host a doubleheader weekend for the NASCAR Cup Series this weekend, with the running of the Pocono Organics 325 on Saturday afternoon, followed by the Pocono 350 a day later on Sunday afternoon. With only three turns, instead of the four turns at all other ovals on the circuit, Pocono is definitely one of the most unique tracks on the schedule. The three turns all have differing banking with Turn 1 and its 14-degree bankingRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor When the NASCAR Cup Series rolls into Talladega this weekend for the GEICO 500, it will be a bit of a throwback to the days when the 2.66-mile superspeedway was a mainstay on the summer schedule. Originally scheduled for late April, the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the race to June and the heat of the Alabama summer. Since opening its doors in 1969, Talladega has been a wild card on the schedule with the unpredictable nature of superspeedway racing on full display over the past half-century,Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor For nearly two decades, Homestead-Miami Speedway has been intertwined with championship weekend, but for the first time since 2002, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to South Florida without a title on the line as it prepares for Sunday’s Dixie Vodka 400. In addition to the different environment that the drivers will face on the variable banked 1.5-mile oval without the pomp and circumstance of championship weekend, they will also have to deal with a complete 180 when it comes to the weather and how the trackRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Martin Truex Jr. won his second consecutive Martinsville Speedway race Wednesday night, ultimately cruising to a 4.232-second victory over a super competitive Team Penske trio of cars in the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500. Compared to his dominating victory at the half-mile track last Fall (he led 464 of 500 laps), Truex had to negotiate and muscle his way to the front this time. “We’ve been working a long-time on trying to figure this place out and just been chipping away at it,” saidRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Mid-week racing is back on the docket tonight as the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Martinsville for a short track showdown under the lights in the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500. A mainstay on the schedule since 1949, the historic half-mile, which is also the smallest on the circuit, will test both man and machine over 500 grueling laps. This go around will be an even bigger test than normal. No practice, no qualifying, just line up and turn ‘em loose. Since being announced last year,Read More