Jimmie Johnson to race at COTA, Coca-Cola 600
Legacy Motor Club announced Tuesday that seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson will drive the No. 84 Chevrolet at Circuit of The Americas and in the Memorial Day Weekend Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, adding to his part-time schedule for 2023. Club Wyndham will be Johnson’s primary sponsor for the two races.
Johnson, who joined the team late last year in the role of part-owner/part-time driver, will compete in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on Sunday, March 26 at the 3.41-mile road course in Austin, Texas. Then, he will return for action for the May 28 Coca-Cola 600, a crown jewel race he has won four times.
“COTA has been on my racing ‘bucket list‘ for a very long time,” Johnson said in a team release. “But my timing was off by a year or so. I was hoping it was going to be on the INDYCAR schedule — and it wasn‘t — and then they added it to the NASCAR schedule after I left. I‘m excited to finally be able to check this one off the list and thankful to Club Wyndham for making it happen. From everything I‘ve heard, NASCAR drivers have had a lot of fun racing at COTA, so to say I‘m looking forward to it is an understatement.”
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Johnson made headlines with his NASCAR comeback in this year‘s Daytona 500, where he led opening practice but ultimately finished 31st in the race after getting caught in an overtime wreck. Johnson also announced earlier that he will compete in the inaugural Chicago Street Race on July 2, the Grant Park 220.
Johnson‘s busy year will also include a trip overseas for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he will compete as one of three drivers in NASCAR‘s Garage 56 collaboration with Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear. Jenson Button and Mike Rockenfeller are the other drivers, with Jordan Taylor available as a reserve driver and driver coach.
The race at COTA will have an international flair with England’s Button driving for Rick Ware Racing (with support from Stewart-Haas Racing and Mobil 1) and Finland’s Kimi Räikkönen competing for Trackhouse Racing as part of Project 91.
Johnson has 83 Cup wins in 687 starts with 232 top fives and 374 top 10s over the course of 21 years in NASCAR‘s top series. He retired from full-time duty after the 2020 season after 20 highly decorated seasons driving the No. 48 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports.
PHOTOS: Jimmie Johnson through the years
