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| Jimmie Johnson had a season-best third-place in spring Bristol race. |
“Bristol really takes a lot out of you both mentally and physically. It’s the most physical track we run and you have to stay sharp and on your toes while there is just chaos everywhere. We’ve put together some solid finishes the past few races at Bristol and had a good run in the spring race. Last week at Michigan was one of the best cars my team gave me all year. If it wasn’t for a loose wheel at the end we would have been a solid top-10. We are making progress.”
RETURN TO BEST FINISH SO FAR: The last outing at Bristol Motor Speedway in April resulted in a third-place finish for Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 crew – their best finish of the season to date. Throughout the chaotic race, which started on a Sunday and was completed on a Monday due to rain, Johnson made some notable on-track evasive moves, driving through several multiple-car incidents to survive the 500-lap event.
SHORT-TRACK STUD: Johnson has 14 total wins on short tracks across the NASCAR Cup Series circuit, which is the most of all active drivers. In addition to his two wins at Bristol, the 42-year-old driver has nine wins at Martinsville Speedway and three wins at Richmond Raceway. In 99 short-track starts, the El Cajon, California, native has accumulated five pole positions, 28 top-five finishes, 57 top-10s and 77 top-20 results. Johnson has led 4,238 laps on short tracks and has completed 97.8 percent of all laps run. Also impressive, in those 99 starts, Johnson has only three DNFs (did not finish).
CONSISTENCY IS KEY: Over the last nine races at Bristol Motor Speedway, Johnson has racked up some consistent finishes. He has a win and a runner-up result, five top-five finishes and six top-10s – both of which are either first or tied for first in the NASCAR Cup Series in that span – and his average finish of 8.22 is the best among drivers to compete in all nine races. During that span, he has led 125 laps at the track. In April at Bristol, he drove from 17th to first to win Stage 1, ultimately taking the checkered flag in third – his best finish of the season to date. Since the advent of stage racing at Bristol, Johnson and Kyle Larson are the only drivers with top-10 finishes in both Stage 1 and 2 in all three races. In each of those three races, Johnson is the only driver to never have finished outside of the top five in Stage 2.
MICHIGAN REWIND: Johnson ran better than his 28th-place result showed at Michigan International Speedway. Starting 19th, he worked his way toward the front of the field throughout the event. Pit strategy helped him gain the lead at the start of Stage 2, and he led 13 laps around the two-mile track in the Irish Hills of Michigan. In the closing laps, Johnson looked as though he would bring home a solid top-10 finish before a vibration caused him to bring the No. 48 Lowe's for Pros Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to pit road with seven laps to go. The unscheduled stop relegated the No. 48 team to a 28th-place finish.
NEXT UP, 84: Johnson's next trip to Victory Lane will be his 84th points-paying NASCAR Cup Series win. He secured his 83rd in June 2017 to tie NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough for sixth on the all-time wins list. An 84th win would tie Hall of Famers Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison for fourth all-time. Johnson is currently 10 wins behind former teammate Jeff Gordon, who has 93 victories and is third on the list. Johnson has the most wins of all active drivers and No. 48 team crew chief Chad Knaus has the most wins of all active crew chiefs with 81.
BIG EARL AT PRE-RACE PIT STOP: Longtime No. 48 team spotter Earl Barban will appear at the Pre-Race Pit Stop, located in the infield at Bristol Motor Speedway, for a fan question-and-answer session on Saturday, Aug. 18, at 4 p.m. local time.
CELEBRATE WITH SEVEN-TIMERS: Fans attending the race at Darlington Raceway will have an exclusive opportunity to hear from many of the stars and legends of NASCAR at Darlington’s “Saturday Night Celebration” event taking place at the track on Sept. 1. Seven-time Cup Series champion Johnson will appear alongside NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty. For more information, click here.
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