Johnson fulfills IndyCar dream
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Jimmie Johnson fulfilled a childhood dream Friday when the 46-year-old IndyCar rookie at long last got to drive a race car on his home track.
Johnson is a superstar with seven NASCAR championships but he grew up an open-wheel fan from El Cajon who idolized Rick Mears. His family often made the 120-mile drive to the Grand Prix of Long Beach, where Johnson and his brothers hung from the fence watching cars zip along the shoreline and through the downtown city streets.
“I remember the roar of the cars on the track below the bridges and I decided then and there that I wanted to race in IndyCar,” said Johnson. “Long Beach always had a special place in my heart.”
The first season on Johnson’s midlife career change closes Sunday with the IndyCar season finale, a week after his strongest moments yet through 11 races in a brand new discipline. Johnson experienced his first true team orders at Laguna Seca when Chip Ganassi Racing ordered Johnson to make it difficult for Romain Grosjean to pass him in order to protect teammate Alex Palou.
Grosjean, not even a full season removed from Formula One, plowed his way through the corkscrew and past Johnson to cap a thrilling drive that earned him a standing ovation from the fans crowded below the podium celebration. The Frenchman found himself blinking back tears as he soaked in yet another moment of his joyous move to IndyCar.
“I was one of the 20 lucky guys in the world to make it to Formula One, had an incredible career,” Grosjean said. “The last few years were a bit tough and frustrating. I knew I knew how to drive but I couldn’t show anything, so definitely coming somewhere where you can fight at the front … it’s definitely a revival.
“I understand a lot of kids want to make it to Formula One. If it’s to be at the back of the grid every weekend, I think you’re better here (in IndyCar).”