Jimmie Johnson ‘Still on the Path’ to Retirement after 2020

With the coronavirus shutdown threatening to abbreviate the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, it has become somewhat of an open question if Jimmie Johnson will consider a return in 2021.

The seven-time Cup Series champion revealed in November that 2020 would be his final season as a full-time NASCAR driver. He has entertained the idea of racing in other disciplines like IndyCar and sports cars, but only after giving his fans a chance to say goodbye in what he still hopes will be a return to the front of the field.

Johnson looked like a contender in the opening month of the season, ranking fifth in the currently frozen Cup championship standings, with three finishes inside the top 12.

With the next-generation car delayed until 2022, would Johnson consider making 2021 his swan song instead of the disrupted status quo?

“The truth is I really don’t have an answer just yet,” Johnson said on Thursday during a NASCAR media teleconference. “Mostly, it’s because I don’t know what’s going to happen in the coming months and if we’ll be able to run the full season or not.

“I feel like I set out to make 2020 my last full-time year, but I’ve always left the door open for other racing. I feel like I’m still pretty much on that path. I am hopeful we get our full year in and we can get back going in a month or so … and I can run the season in its entirety.

“So, I’ve just got to stay fluid at this point. It’s just up in the air with some much going on in the world right now.”

As it currently stands, NASCAR is on hiatus until May 7-9 at Martinsville Speedway, with a Virginia stay-at-home order running through June threatening to further delay the resumption of competition. The sanctioning body still intends to contest all 36 points-paying races, even if that means running midweek races or doubleheaders at select venues.

With that consideration in the back of his mind, Johnson still anticipates retiring at the end of the season, with the caveat that he could return for select events in 2021.

“I feel sorry for my fans who wanted to see me at their tracks and experience that,” Johnson said. “I know where I am in terms of fulfillment with the career I’ve had. Sure, I want to be on-track and, sure, I want to go to these places a final time.

“But I feel more for the fans who aren’t having that opportunity now than I long for myself to experience it and to be there.”

For now, fans can continue to cheer on Johnson, with the future Hall of Famer participating in both the NASCAR and IndyCar televised iRacing events. Johnson will be joined by Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Saturday as the two NASCAR guys race against a full field of IndyCar stars on a virtual Michigan International Speedway.

“There are different challenges that come with it,” Johnson said of sim racing. “And on the IndyCar side, especially running the Barber track, that’s where I had planned to test, and the reason I purchased my IndyCar sim in the first place …

“I feel like in some ways that If I’m able to find an opportunity in the IndyCar world in the future, I’m getting some reps on-track, so that’s a little rewarding and makes me feel good about the time that I’m putting in. I’m learning these drivers. It’s hard to say that our driving characteristics in sim will cross over to the real world, but there is some kind of foundation or groundwork being laid on that side if a door does open there for me to race someday.

“And then on the NASCAR side, the ovals are much easier to drive on the sim. It is interesting to see the personalities kind of emerge there that are similar to the real world. And I’m not sure if you guys can hear the in-race stuff that’s going on, but it’s pretty comical. I’m learning more about my competitors there (laughs) and how they deal with emotions from time to time. “


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