NASCAR: Jimmie Johnson now eyeing future Indy 500 bid
By Asher Fair
Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson has said for years that he wants to compete in IndyCar road course races. Now the Indy 500 is on his radar.
In the past, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson all but ruled out competing in the Indianapolis 500 due to the safety risks associated with driving an open-wheel, open-cockpit IndyCar at over 230 miles per hour at an unforgiving oval.
He has stated on numerous occasions that he wants to compete in IndyCar road course races once he retires from full-time Cup Series competition, which he announced in November that he is set to do after the 2020 season.
The 44-year-old El Cajon, California native has twice been scheduled to test an open-wheel car, but both tests were put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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His test with Arrow McLaren SP at Barber Motorsports Park was canceled in April due to the pandemic in general, and his test with Chip Ganassi Racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course this week was postponed after he tested positive for COVID-19.
After it was announced that he had landed his test with Chip Ganassi Racing behind the wheel of a Honda-powered car, Johnson reiterated his desire to run IndyCar road course races — even perhaps as a full-time road and street course driver should the right opportunity arise in 2021 or a few years down the road.
But he has now stated what he never would have or could have stated until now. Due to IndyCar’s safety improvements on ovals, particularly with the introduction of the aeroscreen ahead of the 2020 season, the Indy 500 is not something he is completely ready to rule out.
Jimmie Johnson says the IndyCar safety enhancements have him thinking again about the Indy 500 but right now his desire is to do IndyCar races on road courses: pic.twitter.com/HZqSXc1MMG
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) July 3, 2020
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This year’s COVID-19-postponed Indy 500 is scheduled to take place on Sunday, August 23. While that one is certainly not in Johnson’s plans, especially with a Cup Series race at Dover International Speedway on the schedule for that afternoon, it is worth noting that the 105th running of the race scheduled to take place on Sunday, May 30, 2021, at which point he will no longer be a full-time Cup Series driver.