Jimmie Johnson to compete on his home turf at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego in the NASCAR Truck Series for Tricon Garage.
Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson will compete in both the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and Cup Series races at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego. Johnson will drive the No. 1 Carvana Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for TRICON Garage in the Truck Series and the No. 84 Carvana Toyota Camry XSE for Legacy Motor Club in Sunday’s Cup Series race. The event takes place just 30 minutes from his hometown of El Cajon.
Jimmie Johnson to Compete in San Diego
Johnson joins Jamie McMurray in making a return to the Truck Series after a 17-year absence, as both drivers last made a start in 2008
In the Truck Series, Johnson will be racing in one of the fastest entries in the field. The No. 1 Toyota Tundra for TRICON Garage has already amassed two wins with Corey Heim in its select starts. While Johnson has shown strong consistency as a road racer throughout his legendary career, he has only managed one victory at Sonoma Raceway in 2010, aided by a spin from Marcos Ambrose late in the race. Additionally, Johnson struggled on road courses during his transition to IndyCar in 2022, managing a best finish of just 16th at both Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
On the Cup Series side, Johnson will continue to fulfill his driver-owner role at Legacy Motor Club, piloting the part-time No. 84 Carvana Toyota Camry while also overseeing the team’s full-time entries of John Hunter Nemechek in the No. 42 and Erik Jones in the No. 43. Both Jones and Nemechek have historically struggled on road and street courses, and both widely consider them to be their weakest track types—despite Nemechek’s standout performance at Mexico City last year.
Turnaround at Legacy
However, Legacy Motor Club has greatly improved in terms of speed as of late and most recently secured dual top-ten finishes with Erik Jones and John Hunter Nemechek at Pocono Raceway. Many speculate that this “summer surge” can be largely credited to Legacy’s expanded partnership with Joe Gibbs Racing and the resulting boost in on-track performance. Legacy Motor Club and Jimmie Johnson will look to use this momentum to their advantage this weekend in San Diego and hope to turn their recent road course fortunes around.
Dream Weekend for the Seven-Time Champ
Regardless of Johnson’s results on Friday or Sunday, the weekend is a dream come true for the 50-year-old. In an interview with Racing America, Johnson stated:
“…it’s just mind-blowing to me that NASCAR made this a reality. To come back home, compete in front of my community, the military, my family, and friends, and do it with Carvana and LEGACY MOTOR CLUB, this is one of those full-circle experiences I will never forget. It’s a lifelong dream.”
Despite being so enormously accomplished, competing in front of a hometown crowd on a course unlike anything NASCAR has attempted before will make this weekend one of the most memorable moments of Johnson’s racing career.
Watch the Races
The NASCAR Truck Series is running the inaugural race at Naval Base Coronado – San Diego Street Course on Friday, June 19th. The Navy 250 begins at 7 pm ET on FS1, NASCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
The NASCAR Cup Series is running its inaugural race at Naval Base Coronado – San Diego Street Course on Sunday, June 21st. The Great American Get Away starts at 1 p.m. ET on Prime, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. HBO Max is offering select driver views for fans.