Jimmie Johnson, one of stock-car racing’s all-time greats and the most recent member of the elite club of seven-time Cup Series champions, was named as the final addition to the list of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers on Thursday.
Johnson has won 83 times in NASCAR’s top division and assembled an unprecedented streak of five consecutive Cup Series titles from 2006-10. He retired from full-time competition after the 2020 season but has returned to drive a limited schedule for Legacy Motor Club, an organization where he holds a partial ownership stake.
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Given Johnson’s accomplishments, his inclusion in the 75 Greatest list for NASCAR’s diamond anniversary is among the least surprising. He was presented with the honor during testing for the Garage 56 Le Mans project last month by Chad Knaus, Hendrick Motorsports’ VP of Competition and his longtime crew chief for all seven of his Cup Series titles.
Johnson made a quick rise to the Cup Series after attracting interest from team owner Rick Hendrick and his eventual teammate Jeff Gordon. He broke through for his first win in just his 13th Cup Series start, celebrating at Auto Club Speedway in his home state of California. From there, the victories accumulated.
Johnson’s win total ties him for sixth on NASCAR’s all-time win list with Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough, and his portfolio is rife with crown-jewel prizes. The 47-year-old driver has won the Coca-Cola 600 and Brickyard 400 four times each and the Daytona 500 and Southern 500 each twice. Johnson also has a career record of dominance at Dover Motor Speedway (11 wins) and Martinsville Speedway (nine wins).
Johnson’s recognition completes the unveiling of 25 new names added to the original 50 Greatest Drivers list to create the 75th-anniversary roster. The full list comes one day before the start of NASCAR’s Throwback Weekend at Darlington Raceway, where members of the 75 Greatest Drivers will be honored leading up to Sunday’s Goodyear 400 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).