Hendrick Motorsports Legend Made History by Surprisingly Beating Roger Federer, Tiger Woods, Usain Bolt & Kobe Bryant to Prestigious Award in 2009

The story involves Hendrick Motorsports legend and a 7-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion, Jimmie Johnson. The #48 driver earned global recognition after his fourth consecutive championship wins in the history of NASCAR back in 2009.

One of the greatest NASCAR drivers of all time gained his fame when he was honoured with Male Athlete Of The Year in 2009 by the members of the Associated Press. This #48 driver was the first race car driver in the history of AP’s Athlete of the year.

Johnson received widespread attention as he defeated many legendary sports athletes like the Tennis legend Roger Federer & the sprinter Usain Bolt in the votes. Athletes like Tiger Woods, and Kobe Bryant had less than ten votes at that time.

The former NASCAR Cup Series continued his run of winning the NASCAR Sprint Series again in 2010 with 5 consecutive titles. By the end of his NASCAR career, he had a total of  7 NASCAR Cup Championships and has tied his record with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, the greatest NASCAR drivers of all time.

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The 7-time champion now competes full-time in the NTT IndyCar Series, driving the #48 for Chip Ganassi Racing and has hinted at a return to Cup Series in the 2023 season.

Is Jimmie Johnson making a comeback in 2023?

The #48 driver for Chip Ganassi Racing is yet to confirm his racing schedule for the next season. The NASCAR legend is awaiting a response from the NTT IndyCar series about their racing schedule in 2023.

This will let the #48 driver decide his future endeavours with IndyCar, IMSA and possibly even NASCAR. With Caravan returning as his sponsor and North Wilkesboro being the host for the All-star race in the 2023 season.

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With this new hope, it will be a thrilling experience for the NASCAR community and the new fans of the sport to watch this legendary driver race again in the NASCAR Cup Series.