“It Was Far More Personal”: Jimmie Johnson’s Perfect Reply to Haters in NASCAR

In any sport, an athlete, regardless of what he does will one day or the other be a target of hecklers and haters. There are always going to be people who would not agree with what they do and would react in such a manner that is often times rude and personal.

During a conversation on The Artist and the Athlete podcast, seven-time NASCAR Cup champion Jimmie Johnson discussed the topic of being heckled and how the drivers tune out of it and use it to their advantage.

The Hendrick Motorsports legend mentioned, “I think, you know, age helps, experience helps. You know, in the early days of heckling, it was far more personal as you get older and maybe it’s just a mindset and a flip.”

“And I’m sure you’ve experienced it well, but if there’s a tough critic or somebody in the crowd that’s not into what you’re doing that night, you use it as fuel.”

Johnson concluded that later on in his career the criticism tends to act as a fuel for motivation, something that helps drivers to perform at the top level.

Jimmie Johnson has experienced being heckled off the track as well

Back in 2015, details about Johnson’s fitness regime, including how he used to go on runs outside of the race track, were revealed.

During these runs, there were several times when there would be fans who would just see a man running around and begin mocking him. It was only when they got a better look at who the person is that their tone shifted.

Johnson explained, “They see a runner coming, and I usually hear the ‘Run Forrest!’ some kind of smartass joke and then ‘Oh, wait, wait. Jimmie! Jimmie! Hey let me have an autograph.’ And I’m thinking, ‘You were just heckling me and now all of a sudden you want me to stop.'”

Of course, heckling will remain an integral part of any sport. The only thing that the drivers can do is find a way to channel out the negative energy and convert it into motivation to do better. That is what Johnson did throughout his career and made him a legend of the sport.