Despite Missing Playoff After Crash, Jimmie Johnson has No Regrets in his Career

When the 2020 Coke Zero Sugar 400 concluded, there was heartbreak for the 7-time Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson. The 44-year-old was on a mission to snag a record eighth Cup championship in the 2020 season.

Up until now, he was battling in a four-man fight for a chance in the playoffs. Sadly, a crash in the final laps of the race put an end to his hopes of a swan song at the Daytona International Speedway.

To make matters even more gutting, this is the second year in a row that he has missed the playoffs. Meanwhile, one man’s pain was another man’s gain, namely William Byron, who won the race to secure his playoff berth.

“That’s the disappointing part,” Johnson said, “To look back at ones that got away, ones that I never got a shot at like the Brickyard and to miss it only by six points. I knew it was going to be an emotional couple of weeks going down the stretch and in the position we were in.”

How did Jimmie Johnson miss a slot in the playoffs?

Johnson was running well until Joey Logano triggered an 11-car wreck towards the late stages of the race. He collided with Denny Hamlin and Bubba Wallace. William Byron tried to dodge the out-of-control cars, but even he didn’t escape unscathed.

Unfortunately, poor old Jimmie Johnson was right in the thick of the crash and suffered significant damage. Since this is Johnson’s last full-time season in the Cup series, this was essentially his last chance to earn a playoff spot.

Despite the pain of missing out on a playoff, Jimmie Johnson was still happy for teammate William Byron. The NASCAR veteran praised the young driver and crew chief Chad Knaus.

Now, the 44-year-old is solely focused on taking home at least one trophy before he walks away. He recently posted a picture of his race-worn car and wrote, “7 it is, I’m damn proud of that in case you were wondering.”

Truthfully, a positive COVID-19 test forced him to miss a race and put him in that position. However, one can never anticipate such things, but he did have control over another factor. Back in Charlotte, his car failed post-race inspection and had 2nd place taken away.