With Jimmie Johnson running part-time in IndyCar next season, which Cup or Xfinity races should he run if he decides to add NASCAR to his schedule?
Despite retiring from full-time competition, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson has remained open to the possibility of a part-time NASCAR deal next year, when he is set to run the 13 road and street course races on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule for Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR).
While the number of NASCAR races for Johnson would likely be limited, here are some potential races that would make sense.
Jimmie Johnson 2021 races: NASCAR Cup Series regular season
The race that makes the most sense for Johnson is the Daytona 500.
The Great American Race, scheduled for Sunday, February 14, is well before the start of the IndyCar season. Plus, pack racing makes Daytona the great equalizer, which would give Johnson a better chance at victory if he races for a one-off team. The prestige of this event is a huge draw on its own.
Considering the fact that Johnson is set to race for CGR in IndyCar and they only have two Cup cars, there would be room for a third car to run the odd event. CGR’s alliance and Johnson’s history with Hendrick Motorsports could lend itself to some extra resources or personnel from the team to help pull that off.
Johnson has two wins, seven top five finishes and an average finish of 19.63 in 19 Daytona 500 starts.
A less practical event for him to enter would be the inaugural Bristol Motor Speedway dirt race, scheduled for Sunday, March 28.
The unknowns of Cup Series cars on this surface, the extra preparation already needed for this unique race and the possibility of a format featuring heat races makes it unlikely that CGR would consider fielding a third car there.
However, the first dirt race for the Cup Series since 1970 could draw Johnson’s attention, given his background of dirt racing as he worked his way through the ranks.
It’s possible that a smaller team with multiple part-time drivers could let Johnson take over for the Bristol dirt race if he’s just in it for the experience and to have some fun.
The Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway is another race that could peak Johnson’s interest, given its crown jewel status and proximity to home.
Johnson has four wins, seven top five finishes and an average finish of 15.05 in 19 Coca-Cola 600 starts, with four additional wins in the fall race at Charlotte. While that race is scheduled for Sunday, May 30, the date of the Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Johnson is not running any IndyCar oval races in 2021.
Another cool opportunity for Johnson could come in August, when he could run a NASCAR-IndyCar doubleheader at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. He’s already slated to compete in the open-wheel race there on Saturday, August 14 and could race a third CGR stock car the following day.
Besides the opportunity of doing a double, he’ll already be at the track, and Indianapolis was the only venue he missed this year in the Cup Series due to his novel coronavirus diagnosis. This would give him a Cup swan song at Indy, though it’s the first time the series is set to race on the road course as opposed to the oval for the traditional Brickyard 400.
Johnson has four wins and six top five finishes in 18 races on the Indianapolis oval, but he has only one win and nine top five finishes in 40 career road course events.
Jimmie Johnson 2021 races: NASCAR Xfinity Series regular season
On NBC Sports’ pre-race show ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series finale at Phoenix Raceway, Jimmie Johnson poked at the idea of running for former teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
With Earnhardt conducting the interview, Johnson said he “certainly would love to come back if the right opportunity came along in Cup or even Xfinity; I know you have an Xfinity team.”
With Noah Gragson, Justin Allgaier and Michael Annett each returning to JR Motorsports for the full season, the possibility for Johnson would be behind the wheel of the #8 Chevrolet, which has run part-time with multiple drivers in recent seasons.
The team previously announced that Josh Berry will run the #8 Chevrolet in roughly 12 races early in the season, with Sam Mayer set to run the car for the second half of the year after he turns 18 years old. That would be starting in the 16th event of the 33-race season on Sunday, June 27 at Pocono Raceway.
With all of that in mind, it’s possible that Johnson could run two or three races early in the season, given Berry’s background as an oval racer. Earnhardt himself is slated to run a single event, which could play into things.
The two races that would make the most sense for Johnson are the two road course races before Mayer’s birthday, which are scheduled to take place on Saturday, May 22 at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) and on Saturday, June 5 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
COTA is known for its annual Formula 1 race, which could be of extra interest to Johnson with his new focus on open-wheel competition. Speaking of which, running at Mid-Ohio could help him get to know the track before competing there in IndyCar on Sunday, July 4.
JR Motorsports could also find it advantageous to have Mayer on hand for those races to get some road course tips from the veteran.
Should Johnson want to stay closer to home, the Saturday, May 8 event at Darlington Raceway could also serve as a one-off Xfinity Series appearance. He has three wins, nine top five finishes and an average finish of 13.3 in 24 Cup Series races at the track.
Jimmie Johnson 2021 races: NASCAR playoffs
With the heavy focus placed on championship contenders during the NASCAR playoffs, it’s unclear whether Jimmie Johnson would want to run any races during that stretch.
A third CGR car could take away from their potential postseason efforts, while running the #8 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports could take away opportunities for Sam Mayer to gain experience ahead of a full 2022 campaign.
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If Johnson does decide to race during the playoffs, the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval and Martinsville Speedway would be good options, whether in the Xfinity Series or the Cup Series.
The Roval is close to home for Johnson and he has two top 10 finishes in three Cup Series races at the track, including a near-win in its inaugural running in 2018 when he wrecked with Martin Truex Jr. while battling for the lead on the last lap.
Similar to superspeedways, short tracks can be a bit of an equalizer when it comes to speed, giving him a better chance at winning. He has nine wins, 19 top five finishes and an average finish of 9.9 in 38 Cup Series races at Martinsville.
And finally, a third potential track for him to make an Xfinity Series playoff appearance would be Texas Motor Speedway, since a part-time JR Motorsports team should still be competitive on 1.5-mile tracks. Johnson has seven wins, 16 top five finishes and an average finish of 11.6 in 35 Cup Series races at Texas.
Should Johnson decide to add some NASCAR races to his 2021 schedule, these events would be good options that do not conflict with any of his IndyCar commitments.