Helton on Johnson: "I don't think we completely recognize the talent that he is"
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Kelly Crandall | January 24, 2023 1:52 PM ET
This is the seventh and final in a series of stories reflecting on Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR success from those who on the ground during his dominant Hendrick Motorsports era. Johnson has returned to the industry as a stakeholder in Legacy Motor Club and will run select races in 2023.
The early part of Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR career did not offer many hints of what was to come. Johnson was an unproven talent when Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon signed him, and for the longest time, the only thing Johnson was known for was crashing his Xfinity Series car at Watkins Glen and, after climbing out of the cockpit, standing on the roof with his arms raised.
“Then he comes in with Rick and Chad Knaus and all of a sudden, this 48 car gets in the garage, and it doesn’t take long for it to be a player amongst other very talented organizations and drivers,” NASCAR vice chairman Mike Helton tells RACER. “Then you’re thinking, hmm.”
Helton is continually amazed by those who can recognize talent in someone when it hasn’t fully revealed itself. Gordon and others saw talent in Johnson as he climbed the ranks, putting him in the No. 48 Chevrolet and pairing with him with Knaus, who was just as unproven even though Knaus had a year of Cup Series experience under his belt as a crew chief.
“Then the whole industry gets to see Jimmie, and the chemistry between him and Chad was obvious early on,” says Helton. “Then he starts winning – winning championships, winning multiple championships, winning three straight championships, and after he got his sixth one, I don’t know if anyone really truly thought he could get the seventh one, but he did. I think that’s about all it took, because there were so many individual races that he was kind of down and out early on, but him as a driver, the pit crew, Chad Knaus, the car chief, they figured out how to stay in the game, and more often than not, came out winning.
NO ONE has asked why he stopped before he broke the record of seven championships.Related
“That’s the heart and soul of what we do. We run long-distance races almost every weekend. Five or four hundred miles or 500 laps. In the world of motorsports, ours is a lot of mileage in one event, and Jimmie was a strategic driver who fit well in a strategic organization. I don’t know how long it’s going to take for the NASCAR family, fan base, and industry to totally appreciate his ability, even after all the wins and championships. I just don’t think we completely recognize him as the talent he is; it may take a while.”
Johnson spent his career under the watchful eye of Helton, who served as NASCAR president from 2000 through 2014. However, Helton hasn’t gone far and is still visible in the garage in his current role.
Helton viewed Johnson as an under-the-radar guy even while winning 83 races and seven championships. Equipment aside, Johnson could put on a show on the racetrack, and Helton was just as amazed as everyone else.
“He did it in an era where there were a lot of other talents, so it wasn’t like it was a window of opportunity just for him,” says Helton. “He went out (and succeeded) just like Jeff Gordon did in his era and Dale [Earnhardt] Sr. did in his era or Tony Stewart. I think part of his talent and ability was reading what else was going on on the racetrack and what part of the race they were in.
“It was kind of David Pearson-like and Bill Elliott-like. Where did he come from at the end of the race? Where has he been all day? That’s the strategic-ness of a guy like Jimmie that when he had to get on the wheel and accomplish what he needed to accomplish… he had that second and third wind in him that he could pull from.”
Johnson battles Tony Stewart at Phoenix in 2014. Helton points to the fact that Johnson was able to dominate in an era when the field was deep with talent. Russell LaBounty/Motorsport Images
It took Johnson’s team 10 races before they pulled into victory lane for the first time in 2002 and were in championship contention late in the season. Johnson didn’t win rookie of the year honors – that went to Ryan Newman – but the foundation was quickly built for sustained success.
In addition to seven championships, Johnson had 16 consecutive seasons of multiple wins. The last three years of his career finally saw a downturn when he went winless and missed the playoffs for the first time in 2019 – his 18th full season.
Through his first 10 seasons, Johnson finished no worse than sixth in points; a stretch that includes five straight championships. No matter the cars, rules, playoff format or schedule, Johnson and his team couldn’t be slowed down.
Helton chuckles when reminded that some accused NASCAR of making changes to try and stop Johnson’s reign of terror.
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“It speaks to the Hendrick organization and Chad Knaus’s ability to do the things he does, but it certainly speaks loudly to Jimmie Johnson’s talent because we never made the changes to affect anybody changes,” Helton says. “(It was) to improve the sport or to fix things that didn’t need to be a part of the sport. But the most talented athletes can adapt to whatever is thrown at
them. And you think about the changes NASCAR might make from one year to the next or maybe over two years, think about all the changes a driver has to react to and reflect on during the race itself. You think of all the different moments during those races a driver has to adapt, read it, figure out their place at that moment and adjust correctly.