Johnson is making his ninth appearance in the famed Rolex 24 at Daytona IMSA Sports Car Race for Action Express Racing.
American Legion driver Jimmie Johnson has parked his No. 48 Carvana/American Legion Honda at Chip Ganassi Racing for two weekends to take a long drive in a Cadillac.
He is making his ninth appearance in the famed Rolex 24 at Daytona IMSA Sports Car Race for Action Express Racing.
Johnson spent this past weekend at Daytona International Speedway in the “Roar Before the 24.” He co-drove the No. 48 Ally Cadillac with Japan’s Kamui Kobayashi over the weekend, including the 100-minute qualifying race that set the starting lineup for next weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Johnson and Kobayashi finished third and will start in that position in Saturday’s famed Sports Car endurance race.
Johnson and Kobayashi will be joined by teammates Mike Rockenfeller of Germany and Jose Maria Lopez of Argentina in the 24-hour race.
Johnson qualified fourth for the qualifying race in the No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi-V.R. thanks to a qualifying time of 1:34.941. Johnson put in a solid stint and had the car up to second before handing it over to Kobayashi on lap 20.
“We have a little work to do with the balance of the car,” Johnson said. “But, (we got) more laps for me and more laps together as a group. We had a great strategy to finish third, so good day. We’re looking forward to getting more laps later in the week, taking the data from this race to learn more and then go racing.”
Kobayashi, who is seeking his third Rolex 24 title and who helped Ally finish second last year in the Rolex 24, had the No. 48 Cadillac up to fourth with about 15 minutes remaining. From there, he pushed hard to put the car in the top three with time running out. It finally happened when the No. 31 Whelen Engineering team-car had to make a final pit stop for fuel and Kobayashi finished third.
“I think starting P3 for the 24-hour is good,” Kobayashi said. “It really doesn’t mean anything in a 24-hour race. But obviously, it’s where we will start. I think this was a good moment to study for the 24-hour. I think we need to work on it (the car) a little bit more and we’ll see where we are at the end. But I think, so far, we’re in good shape.”
Next weekend, Kobayashi looks to win his third Rolex 24 (2019 and 2020), while Rockenfeller hopes to get his second Rolex 24 win (2010). Rockenfeller was part of the Action Express team that won the twice around the clock race in 2010. Action Express Racing won the Rolex 24 in 2010 and 2014.
Johnson is seeking his first Rolex 24 win.
“The Rolex 24 At Daytona is one of the marquee races in the world,” Johnson said last year before his first attempt at the race. “It’s such a challenging event for both team and driver and requires such a high level of concentration throughout. It’s just such a fun and unique race to compete in.”
Johnson is part of Action Express in the endurance races on the schedule. He will be a full-time competitor in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES in the No. 48 Carvana/Chip Ganassi Racing Honda including the 106th Indianapolis 500 on May 29.
Johnson won a record-tying seven NASCAR Cup Series championships. He also won 83 NASCAR Cup races, including two Daytona 500s, during his 20-year career.
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