NASCAR CUP SERIES
XFINITY 500
MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
NOVEMBER 1, 2020
JIMMIE JOHNSON, ALLY ‘SIGN FOR JIMMIE’ CAMARO ZL1 1LE, met with media and discussed nearing the end of the 2020 season, his goals looking ahead, his primary sponsor for 2021 INDYCAR and partners for other special events on his wish list, and more. Full Transcript:
WHAT EMOTIONS ARE YOU FEELING RIGHT NOW?
“I’m excited, honestly. It’s been an amazing journey and one that I could have never dreamed of; and to be here at the end of it going out on my terms and when I choose to go out. With the great support of Hendrick Motorsports, Ally, friends & family, partners, and everybody involved, I’m excited. I’m happy. I’m in a great head space. I’m excited to be at one of my best tracks. The sun is out, thankfully; unlike last week and I’m excited to get going.”
YOU’VE TALKED ABOUT MAYBE DOING SOME ONE-OFF NASCAR RACES IN THE FUTURE. NOW THAT YOU’VE GOT THE SPONSORSHIP SORTED OUT ON THE INDYCAR SIDE OF THINGS, HAVE YOU HAD THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND WHERE DOES THAT STAND?
“Yeah, nothing directly. The whole group understands some options that could be out there, but we’ve all been so busy trying to finish up the current NASCAR season and just trying to get prepared for the start of the INDYCAR season for next season, that nothing has really materialized yet. So, to be determined. I hope to get something kind of moving on the Rolex 24. That’s certainly high on my list for next year. But again, with my plate being so full wrapping up and then just trying to get started on the INDYCAR side, I haven’t had a chance to work on much of that, either.”
WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR TWO DECADES IN THE CUP SERIES, DO YOU HAVE ANY REGRETS? DO YOU WISH YOU COULD GET A DO-OVER ON ANYTHING OR WISH YOU COULD RE-DO AN ENTIRE SEASON OR WISH YOU COULD HAVE ONE RACE BACK?
“I think do-overs; I’m not sure about regrets. I’ve always felt like mistakes made really give you a chance to learn and grow. And although the last three years really haven’t been how I wanted them to go or expected them to go. I’ve done a lot of learning and soul searching on my own and feel like I’ve had a lot of personal growth through it all. So, I’m thankful for that. There are some moments in time that I wish I could do over or handle differently, but no real regrets at the end of the day.”
EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT WHAT A NICE GUY YOU ARE. PEOPLE ALSO SAY THAT NICE GUYS FINISH LAST. HOW HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO MESH THE TWO?
“I think if you just be yourself, ultimately you’re going to be the best that you can be. Anybody that’s trying to be nice and isn’t, is going to fall short. And it plays the same way in the other direction. And I think you’re personality and the way you treat people and handle things, not only impacts your live specifically, but it also attracts like-minded people to be around you and the teams that you drive for and the sponsors that you have. When I look at the big picture you see all these other variables where like-minded people have assembled together and we’re able to do what we do. So, it’s a saying and I think I understand why; because competition is fierce and you have to be cutthroat at times, but I think I’m one of quite a few examples that if you just be yourself, and do your thing, you can be respectful and kind to others and still succeed in a competitive sport.”
DO YOU THINK THAT WAS PART OF YOUR ATTITUDE EARLY JUST BECAUSE YOU DIDN’T HAVE SUCCESS IN THE XFINITY SERIES?
“Yes, Xfinity; and then I would back up to my ASA days, different moments in time in my off-road days, my motocross days; I’ve had patterns my whole life where things started slowly and then I was able to have my moment. And it goes all the way back to my earliest years of racing on dirt bikes. And then I’d also have to put my family dynamic in there; how I grew up and my parents and my siblings and just the way we lived our lives and interacted with others.”
ON THE SPONSOR-SIDE, YOU’VE BEEN PRETTY FORTUNATE WITH LOWES AND ALLY. HOW DID THE CARVANA SPONSORSHIP COME TOGETHER FOR YOU IN INDYCAR AND WHAT WAS YOUR ROLE IN THAT? HOW SATISFYING WAS THAT TO PUT TOGETHER?
“It was certainly satisfying. And, as I understood the hurdles, I had in front of me to go INDYCAR racing, I went to my contact lists and my friends, far and wide; some in North Carolina, some in New York, and some out in Colorado. I just started conversations with people that I knew were plugged into corporate America, if you will. And that led to some other phone calls and eventually phone calls to the Carvana folks. And quick in the conversations with them, I could sense that Ernie Garcia, the founder of Carvana, could really identify the opportunity here. Although he is not very familiar with auto racing and sports marketing in that sense, he could understand kind of the life story going on or my journey and the opportunity within all of that. And within short order, they expressed a verbal interest and wanted to move forward with things.
“So, I’m very pleased, obviously, to have them. It’s a tough world out there right now with the pandemic. And to find such an amazing sponsor with such reach and understanding of this opportunity was really special to us. And then we’re certainly looking forward to a few more partners to come on-board with the INDYCAR program; and then as I move into some other one-off events, we’ll need other partners for that stuff as well. Through our search in my office and the contacts that we have, what I’ve accumulated on a digital platform standpoint, clearly success on track, and this opportunity to tell a story in transitioning from NASCAR to other forms of racing, creates a unique opportunity for many marketers, that at least I could call on and they would listen to you. Finding those right partners are just so important.”
WAS THERE EVER A FEAR THAT YOU MIGHT NOT COME UP WITH SPONSORSHIP? WOULD THAT HAVE DE-RAILED THE INDYCAR DEAL OR WERE YOU JUST THAT CONFIDENT YOU WOULD FIND SOMEBODY?
“I’ve really felt good about things. I wasn’t sure, I didn’t feel in my heart that we would have a sole primary sponsor for INDYCAR. I felt like selling it in three, four-race blocks or four, three-race blocks, might be the way to go about it and the way we would get to the finish line. But as soon as we spoke to Carvana, we understood that if they came in they would come in on a big level. And that kind of changed our thought process then.”
YOU MENTIONED THE ROLEX 24 EARLIER. DO YOU WANT TO RUN IT AGAIN BECAUSE IN EIGHT STARTS YOU STILL HAVEN’T GOTTEN THE WATCH? TO GET THAT WATCH, WOULD THAT JUST BE SOMETHING YOU COULD ADD TO YOUR RESUME? IS THAT IMPORTANT TO YOU?
“Oh, without a doubt. The fact that I’ve been second twice fuels that fire a bit more (laughs). And, in these bucket lists items involve marquee events and Le Mans and the Rolex 24, those are on the top of any auto racer’s list. They’re still on mine although I’ve been in the Rolex 24 quite a few times; I just want to go back and do it. These marquee events and unique opportunities like this really sound fun and exciting to me moving forward.”
OTHER THAN THE INDY 500, IS THERE ONE TRACK IN PARTICULAR, FROM AN INDYCAR STANDPOINT, THAT CALLS YOUR NAME OR SOMETHING YOU’VE ALWAYS SAID, THAT’S THE ONE?
“There are quite a few that are really interesting. But as a kid, I just knew so much more what was going on in California. And the track in Monterey was always so picturesque and unique and different with the corkscrew; so that was really high on my list. But then as I started dreaming of a professional racing career, the Long Beach Grand Prix was an event that I would go to in order to get face time with everyone at Chevrolet. Showing up there and thinking of racing and wondering if I could have a professional career, changed my experience at that track. So, I think those two tracks are probably the most meaningful ones for me right now as I look forward to my schedule next year.”
TWO YEARS AGO, THIS WAS THE RACE WHERE YOU ANNOUNCED THE ALLY PARTNERSHIP. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT? WHAT HAS YOUR RELATIONSHIP BEEN LIKE WITH THEM? DO YOU EXPECT TO HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THEM AFTER YOUR NASCAR CAREER?
“I really do. We’re working on what that arrangement will look like. I feel like we just have so many synergies together and share so much in common with our identity or brand identity if you will. I’ve become very close with the executive staff at Ally. They’re not only working friends, but I have friendships and relationship with them and have been integrated into their company in a very unique and fun way. So, I really see the relationship continuing on longer. And I’m very happy for Mr. Hendrick and Hendrick Motorsports and the long relationship that they’ll have with Ally. I think they’re signed-up through 2023, if I remember right. It clearly makes a lot of sense from a B-to-B standpoint. But then again with Ally’s presence in Charlotte and their CEO living there in town and just the relationship we’ve all built; especially Rick (Hendrick) and the Ally folks. I would anticipate Ally being around at Hendrick Motorsports for a long time and hopefully with me, for many years to come, as well.”
REGARDING THE CHOOSE RULE, THE WAY THE CARS HAVE BEEN LINING UP HAS BEEN RATHER EVEN. WHY HAS THAT BEEN THE CASE?
“I don’t know. I’m running it through my mind. I think you’re probably right. You probably have stats to prove that (laughs). I don’t know. I think ultimately, we just wanted that opportunity to choose what happens. You see some of these races play out because you had a strong car and you didn’t have a chance to pick the right lane or you didn’t come off pit road in the right spot or drivers were dragging their feet to try to be even or odd for what needed on that particular race track. So just to take all that out seemed like a cleaner and easier way to go about it. And the conversation was bounced around for quite a few years. In the end, once we tried it, we realized there wasn’t a great affect and it’s pretty simple to manage. And everybody feels like they chose their own destiny. So, it just kind of negates any reason to argue and it’s turned out really well.”
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
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