USA Today via Reuters
Avondale, Arizona, USA; NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson prior to the final race of his career at the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
USA Today via Reuters
Avondale, Arizona, USA; NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson prior to the final race of his career at the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Among the many tributes and kind words for Jimmie Johnson as he ended his NASCAR career, one was from former female NASCAR driver Danica Patrick. Patrick ran at the highest level of the sport a few years ago and even won the pole position for the Daytona 500, becoming the first female driver to do so in the Cup Series.
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The next day, Patrick displayed another inspired performance and had a chance to go for the win. She was in third place heading into the final lap and felt she could have pushed for a strong result. However, Johnson snatched the win, while Patrick finished in seventh place.
Patrick was gutted to let an advantage slip away. “I was beating myself up a little bit for not having a plan. I was like, ‘Man, how did I not see that coming? Dale Jr. dropped back, and then he got a run. Man, I should have done something different’,” Patrick expressed recently.
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DAYTONA BEACH, FL – FEBRUARY 11: Danica Patrick, driver of the #7 GoDaddy Chevrolet, stands by her car during qualifying for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 11, 2018 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)
How Jimmie Johnson motivated Danica Patrick
What happened next improved Patrick’s day as Johnson himself came up to her and consoled her. Johnson urged Patrick to go easy on herself, adding that even he did not have any plans to win the race.
“I remember [Johnson] telling me he didn’t have any plan. There’s no plan going into those last laps at either of the [Daytona 500s] he won. And he said, ‘I didn’t plan for that one, and I didn’t plan for this one’,” Patrick said.
“And don’t beat yourself up that you should have had a plan because you can’t. It just happens’,” Johnson said to her. Such words, and more importantly, such a gesture coming from Johnson, already made Patrick feel better about herself.
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BROOKLYN, MI – JUNE 11: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, gestures while on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
“Making me feel better”
Johnson’s perspective on the situation helped Patrick look at things in a much better light.
“I remember thinking: Thanks, Jimmie. Thanks for making me feel better about myself as a driver when I was beating myself up that I coulda shoulda woulda done something different… And that was some nice, sage perspective from a guy like Jimmie,” Patrick expressed.
Johnson’s final few weeks in NASCAR were quite emotional. He also finished his full-time NASCAR career strongly, with a fifth-place finish at Phoenix last Sunday.
READ MORE – “Really Really Cool” – When Jimmie Johnson Gifted Martin Truex Jr the ‘Champions Journal’ He Created
