Rick Hendrick celebrated his team’s 10th Daytona 500 win thanks to William Byron last weekend, but his reasons for pride extended beyond this singular achievement. He reveled in becoming the team owner with the most Daytona 500 wins and the successes of former drivers who graduated from Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Jimmie Johnson, as they flourished as NASCAR Cup team owners.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. witnessed JR Motorsports’ successful Cup series debut with Justin Allgaier securing a top-10 finish at the famed event. Meanwhile, Jimmie Johnson, having joined the Legacy Motor Club as an owner a few years back, celebrated a P3 finish in the race, marking a turnaround from last year’s underwhelming performance from the team after their switch to Toyota in 2024.
Reflecting on Dale Jr.’s accomplishments, who drove HMS’s #88 car from 2008-2017, Hendrick expressed his admiration: “I was so proud of Dale. He got that car in the race. He wasn’t that happy when he won the 500, and to get that car in the race, I’ve never seen anything to beat it. But he and Kelley (Earnhardt-Miller) worked their butts off.”
Although Dale Jr.’s team has no additional Cup races scheduled for the season, Hendrick optimistically predicted that their success at Daytona might serve as a springboard for further endeavors: “I think this is going to fuel them to want to do it… I’ve never seen him this excited. I think this will lead to something.”
Hendrick also praised Johnson, who spent his entire Cup Series career with HMS from 2001 to his retirement in 2020, for his adept transition to team ownership, Hendrick commended:
“I’m super impressed with Jimmie… He’s gone about it the right way. He built it a brick at a time. You try to get your base right, and you can grow it. Jimmie’s a leader, and his work ethic is so good. He will be a force in the sport because he will surround himself with good people. And he’s articulate. He will be able to bring in good sponsors. I’m real proud of him.”
Everything about Johnson and Dale Jr.’s success as owners at Daytona
Johnson’s top 3 finish at Daytona catapulted him into the list of elite drivers such as Richard Petty, Jeff Gordon, and Ricky Rudd, who have secured a top-5 finish in the Daytona 500 more than two decades after their first. This also marked Legacy Motor Club’s most impressive performance since 2023. Alongside Johnson, John Hunter Nemechek crossed the finish line in P5, and Erik Jones rounded out in P12.
On the other hand, despite hovering on the edge of disqualification and only claiming his place in the main event by snagging ninth place in Duel 1, Dale Jr.’s driver, Allgaier, orchestrated a successful Cup series debut for JR Motorsports by coming in ninth.
As the season unfolds, all eyes will be on Legacy Motor Club to see if they can sustain this early momentum. Meanwhile, JR Motorsports and Dale Jr. are keenly assessing their sponsorship landscape to gauge the feasibility of additional Cup races this year.
