NASCAR veteran and 23XI Racing co-owner Denny Hamlin recently opened up on his podcast about Jimmie Johnson‘s latest venture in the Cup Series. He offered insights into the challenges of reinvigorating a team and transforming it into a successful business, drawing upon his own experiences in team management. A couple of seasons ago, Hamlin joined forces with NBA legend Michael Jordan to launch their own racing team, enjoying support from Toyota Racing Development (TRD) and Joe Gibbs Racing.
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Given that Johnson is slated to run Toyota cars from the 2024 season, Hamlin’s perspective becomes invaluable. His experience aligns closely with the hurdles Johnson currently confronts with his team.
Denny Hamlin talks about Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR team
Being a team owner himself with 23XI Racing, Hamlin had a few things to say about the Legacy Motor Club team. The team had been renamed this year from Petty GMS after Jimmie Johnson took up ownership.
Hamlin stated, “They thought for so long, that team, Legacy. Let’s not forget this was Petty GMS and it was Petty before that. It’s always just been mediocre at best, right? They would get a few wins here and there not much. They had to win at the Southern 500 last year with Eric Jones and it was like they were hitting their… that was like their peak.”
He continued, “And then it just went kind of downhill from there, but they are in a rebuilding year, for sure. And I think the rebuild will take years for that team to be where they want to be for sure, because it just takes time. I can tell you as a guy building a team from the ground up…”
Johnson’s move to Toyota will break his Chevrolet exclusivity streak in NASCAR
Throughout his career, Jimmie Johnson has exclusively driven only Chevy cars. However, the recent announcement that his Cup Series team will be running Toyotas come next season, will change everything. Just like this season, Johnson would most likely return as a part-time driver aside from just his ownership duties. Therefore it would certainly be interesting to see him behind the wheel of a Toyota for the first time in his career, if and when he decides to get in the car.
Meanwhile, the situation at his team has not been looking good so far this season. With consistently terrible results, perhaps the move to change manufacturers might come in handy for the Legacy Motor Club team, considering that their drivers have been TRD drivers in the past.
