Hendrick Motorsports may have missed out on winning the NASCAR Cup Series in 2023 but they made a huge impact on the motorsports world. The organization is one of the most successful in the history of motorsports with 14 Cup Series titles to its name and Rick Hendrick is always looking for opportunities to expand the scale of operation. He did so last year when they brought a roaring Chevrolet Camaro to France for the 100th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the toughest and most prestigious events in the history of motorsports. European giants like Ferrari, Porsche, and Peugeot to name a few take part in the event every year. Drivers who have won the competition are considered to be among the greatest of all time and that is what Hendrick Motorsports will be aiming for in the future.

Hendrick Motorsports car was eye-catching at the premier European motorsports event

Rick Hendrick’s project was called Garage 56 and the collaborators were Hendrick Motorsports, NASCAR, Chevrolet, IMSA, and Goodyear. The team took three drivers to France: 7-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, Jenson Button, and Mike Rockenfeller. The HMS team finished in 39th place out of 62 cars. While it may not sound like a great result, finishing the 24 Hours of Le Mans for a debuting team is a huge deal.

What’s more is that when it comes to lap times, the loud, all-American Chevrolet Camaro #24 was able to keep up with the likes of Ferrari and Porsche. Such a performance drew huge cheers from the fans watching back home in the States. The performance was an endearing one and it will fill Rick Hendrick with a lot of hope for the team’s future in international competitions.

“The last thing I’d want to do is for us to come over here and fall on our nose. That’s what I was worried about. From the very beginning with Chad (Knaus) and Greg (Ives), I said we’ve got to do this right. We don’t spare any expense. Our NASCAR teams can do any kind of race they want to do. I mean, they got the talent, they’ve got the engineers, and they got a lot of smart people and they can do whatever,” he had said as per Hendrick Motorsports after his team’s impressive showing.

It’s not just the fans that Rick Hendrick’s team had impressed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. His drivers were pretty content with how things turned out as well. One person who wholeheartedly expressed his satisfaction was none other than the 7-time Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson.

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7-time Cup Series champion had his heart full thanks to Rick Hendrick

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Johnson has pretty much done it all in motorsports at this point. Stock cars, Indy cars, Formula One cars, he has driven them all. Taking part in Le Mans was a rare opportunity that he wasn’t about to let go. In a racing environment that he was not used to at all, the 48-year-old did a good job as the first driver from the team to race around the track in the 24-hour event.

“My heart is full,” Johnson said after his duties were done. “For all the reasons we know – coming here with NASCAR, Hendrick, Chevrolet, Goodyear. Many of the people here working were on different teams that I won races and championships with. There were so many familiar faces, to have this experience was just off the charts. My bucket is full. I’m really happy.”

No one expected a NASCAR car to turn up at Le Mans. Not only did Hendrick Motorsports take their iconic Chevrolet Camaro to France, but they were pretty fast around the track. It sure will be interesting to see how the team performs if they take part in the event again in the future.

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