Jimmie Johnson Still Sounds Uncertain About His 2026 Plans

What’s Happening?

Since retiring from full-time racing in 2020, NASCAR Cup Series legend Jimmie Johnson has continued racing as a part-time entry with his team, Legacy Motor Club. While he stated that he was interested in racing next season, during a recent interview, the seven-time champion seemed uncertain about what that might look like.

One season after making nine NASCAR Cup Series starts, the most since his 2020 retirement tour, NASCAR Hall of Famer Jimmie Johnson has made just two starts this season. His team, Legacy Motor Club, announced just the two races for their part-time No. 84 entry, the Daytona 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 (Johnson’s 700th start), in January.

This cut his schedule down by seven races from the prior season, and some assumed that Charlotte, a track where Johnson has impressed throughout his career, was where he would call it a career, reaching a milestone in career starts at a crown jewel event. But a third-place finish in the Daytona 500 hinted that the 49-year-old still had something left to give.

Though he has danced around racing again this year, his intentions to race again next season seem pretty clear, as he said during a Jul. 23 media availability, “I want to keep going. I want to stay in a car.” Johnson hinted at the time that there is a scenario where he races even more in 2026, should his team get a third charter, saying:

“There’s a chance that I run more races next year if we have a third charter on the docket and have a sponsor to bring along, team members to groom, a crew chief to get reps, a driver to get reps. There’s a lot of scenarios that are in play. I’m hopeful I can keep going.” — Jimmie Johnson on July 23

Nonetheless, Johnson was asked about his future once again during the latest episode of Kevin Harvick’s Podcast.

“Out of the Car and in the Suite”

During their interview on the Aug. 21 episode of Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour, Johnson told Harvick he does not have any more races lined up for 2025 but that he “would like to” continue racing in 2026.

But the two-time Daytona 500 champion then shifted the conversation to the business side of racing, saying that he has found that he has more of an impact on his team off the track than on it. “I am finding that I am more impactful for the business side of the house out of the car and in the suite, or in our hospitality area with sponsors,” Johnson said.

The now majority owner of LMC went on to say that he had an eye-opening experience during the season finale at Phoenix Raceway last fall.

“Last year, I ran the season finale in Phoenix and had meetings with Toyota scheduled on Friday and Saturday. They had some issues, couldn’t get to town, I couldn’t have my meetings. The executive group is walking down the grid as I’m getting ready to climb in the car. I’m like, ‘I should be in the suite right now, and I’m climbing in this car to go slide around.'” — Jimmie Johnson

While this does not suggest that he will not compete in 2026, it does shed some light on Johnson’s growing interest in working on LMC’s growth outside of the car.

LMC in 2026

On Jan. 27, LMC announced that Johnson, a part-owner of the team, was now the majority owner. Further, investment firm Knighthead Capital Management joined the team’s ownership group.

This shift in ownership followed a difficult first season in the Toyota camp for the team formerly known as Richard Petty Motorsports and Petty-GMS Racing.

Last season, the team’s full-time drivers, Erik Jones and John Hunter Nemechek, had an average finish of 22.9 and 25.4, respectively. Jones’ 22.9 was a step down from his 20.4 average finish during the team’s final season with Chevrolet in 2023. This season, the team has made a 180, and both drivers are achieving new heights. Both drivers currently average a 20.1 finish, matching and surpassing their total top fives and top ten finishes from last season.

The team is currently in a public search for a third charter for the 2026 season. This search has led to rumors about merging with or buying out another team, and is at the center of an ongoing lawsuit with fellow NASCAR Cup Series team Rick Ware Racing.

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