Yes, Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR career did not get off to the grandest of starts. He is one of the exceedingly rare cases of drivers who struggled in lower series and found a way to a Hall of Fame Cup Series career. Today, we focus on the beginning of his career, and why it took a while for Johnson to reach full bloom.

• Jimmie Johnson took an unorthodox route to NASCAR. He started in off-roading, eventually moving to asphalt through the ASA Series. In 2000, he made the jump into the NASCAR Busch Series.
• Johnson did not see immediate success in the Busch Series. His biggest highlight in his first season was one of the worst crashes in NASCAR history, and he had a top-10 points finish with an asterisk. He got his first career win in his second season, but, again, struggled.
• How did Johnson find a way into the Cup Series? He connected with some powerful people in the world of NASCAR, and he turned that around into a tremendous rookie season. The rest, as they say, is history.

How did Jimmie Johnson overcome his struggles in Xfinity to become a NASCAR Cup Series Hall of Famer and arguably the Greatest of All Time? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe for more great NASCAR content.

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