DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Jimmie Johnson has officially put an end date on his NASCAR Cup Series driving career.
Johnson, the 83-time Cup Series winner and seven-time series champion, announced Saturday at Daytona International Speedway that he will make his final Cup start in the 2027 Daytona 500, putting a bow on an illustrious career that has already led to enshrinement in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
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Johnson, who first announced his news Saturday on ESPN’s “Marty & McGee,” stepped away from full-time competition after the 2020 campaign, spending 2002-2020 driving for Hendrick Motorsports. After a two-year hiatus, Johnson returned to part-time competition as co-owner of Legacy Motor Club. But ahead of his appearance in Sunday’s Daytona 500 (1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), Johnson felt now was the time to set his final scheduled Cup race in stone.
“I didn’t use the word retirement way back when in 2020,” Johnson said in a Saturday press conference. “You guys all know I still love to compete and want to be on the track and racing. The journey as an owner, and certainly where I am in life right now, to compete at the Cup level week in and week out is just a door that’s shutting for me now.”
The 50-year-old NASCAR Hall of Famer has made 700 starts in Cup, earning enough accolades to fill a shrine within the sport’s eternal hall. Three more races remain on his docket so far: this year’s Daytona 500, this summer’s inaugural race on Naval Base Coronado and next season’s “Great American Race.”
Johnson is a two-time champion of the Daytona 500, taking home the prestigious Harley J. Earl Trophy in 2006 and 2013. After finishing third in the 2025 edition of the “Great American Race,” Johnson believes he can add a third to his already stacked resume. That’s why he’s calling it quits after next year’s running.
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“It just made a lot of sense,” Johnson said. “I think, as a driver that moonlights, the restrictor-plate (drafting) track, that’s where you can be the most competitive. This car is so different than any generation of car I’ve driven before. To show up at Kansas and think that you’re going to have a shot to win – even when I ran a nine-race schedule – it’s just not a truth that can really be seen or realized. Daytona, you can. Talladega, you can. Atlanta, for sure.
“I want to show up and be competitive, and to have my last race in an event where I could truly win, it’d be that cool walk-off home run.”
Tyler Gibbs, president of Toyota Racing Development USA, extended his appreciation for Johnson on behalf of the manufacturer.
“Jimmie Johnson is a champion in every aspect of his life – with his family, as the leader of Legacy Motor Club and with his incredible success behind the wheel,” Gibbs said in a release. “As he prepares to close the chapter of his iconic on-track NASCAR career, we celebrate his legacy in the sport and look forward to what we’ll continue to achieve together in the years to come.”
The June 21 race at Naval Base Coronado is a homecoming for Johnson, who grew up in nearby El Cajon, California, some 15 miles northeast of the San Diego street race. Legacy Motor Club also indicated “additional plans to celebrate Johnson’s Legacy to include appearances, fan engagement and merchandise drops will be shared in the upcoming weeks.”
Announcing the finality of his career allows Johnson a tour that was more muted in his first outgoing season in 2020. The coronavirus pandemic left fans unable to attend most NASCAR races that season. No formal plans exist yet for what a second round of goodbyes looks like, but Johnson will be intentional in soaking in his last go-around as a NASCAR Cup Series driver.
“I was very disappointed with the pandemic and the scenario of not being with the fans at the race track for that final year,” Johnson said. “And it’s not that I’m looking for that now, but maybe there is a moment or two in there that we can have some fun with and kind of get back into that mindset a little bit and enjoy it.
“But I’m not going anywhere. Clearly, I have a big stake in Legacy Motor Club, and I’m excited about the future for the company, excited for all the time I will be spending in our sport and around it and help grow it. So we’ll see what the year brings. But I know it’ll be fun, and I know that next year here will be quite emotional to shut the door on that.”
Johnson will roll off 31st in Sunday’s Daytona 500 on FOX in the No. 84 Legacy Motor Club Toyota.