Every passing weekend is another crucial date ticked off the calendar in the race to the end of NASCAR’s charter agreement with its teams. As the fiasco surrounding revenues and permanent charters continues pulling back the stakeholders from signing deals with the promotion, seven-time Cup Series champion and Legacy Motor Club co-owner Jimmie Johnson has provided some much-needed insight into the issue.
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Johnson was answering questions from the press in Texas when the topic of the charter negotiations was brought up. He said that the hold-up was partly a “money thing” and that he was by far letting team owners who are more experienced than him do the talking. Quoting Rick Hendrick, he said, “It’s not about the money until it’s about the money,” and continued revealing his takeaways from the table.
He noted how the financials surrounding the TV deals were still in the air and that the teams were also looking to secure their futures in the game by making their charters permanent. While recent updates mention that the promotion is only willing to offer a 7-year extension to the charter agreement, Johnson reiterates that the teams are continuing to push for more.
“It’s been interesting to watch,” Johnson said about his participation in the deal. “This is my first time really in this world as a team owner. I’ve done a lot more listening than I have talking and letting the pros really do their job. But what’s ultimately been most impressive to me is just how the team ownership group has stuck together.”
Jimmie Johnson on the different perspectives between drivers and team owners
Talking about the inputs from drivers in the charter negotiations, Johnson said that there was still a lot of road to be covered for all the stakeholders. He underlined that though it seems like the deal has been left out to be tied up late, the negotiations are still far from over. “I know we feel like the clock is ticking but if you look at how much time is left, we’re just getting into the probably eighth inning, maybe ninth inning of what really needs to happen in negotiations for all parties,” he said.
The former HMS driver is in only the second season as a co-owner of Legacy Motor Club. A busy man from Day 1, he has implemented quite the shift in the team’s operations and is currently adjusting the mechanisms to adapt to the manufacturer change from Chevrolet to Toyota. In addition to his duties from the office, Johnson will also be driving the #84 car on certain dates including on Sunday in Texas.
