Jimmie Johnson Opens Up on Fighting His Teammate Byron for the Playoffs Spot and his Chances of Making it

Jimmie Johnson is right on the bubble in terms of making it into the 2020 NASCAR playoffs. The 7-time Cup Series winner has to displace teammate William Byron to sneak in. Johnson stands a chance because he is 25 points adrift and can make up the difference in the remaining three races.

Recently, he spoke to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass on the likelihood of him making the playoffs. He said, “I have been reminded of the points situation a few times. I thought, ‘Man! That was really aggressive… wait… we’re all racing for playoff spots’. It will increase as the next couple of races come along.”

He advised that at the end of the day, he cannot worry about other drivers, but focus on his own race. Beyond that, he has to wait and see how Daytona plays out to his advantage.

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Can Jimmie Johnson make it into the playoffs this year?

Johnson confessed that he had some moments where he felt that he could have done things better. This year, he honestly felt that he was mentally stronger and more prepared to tackle the season. For him, the primary concern was scoring points instead of racking up wins.

This time around, he is engaging in new battles that he has never had to fight before. He also confessed that he didn’t fight for points to the best of his ability in the 2019 season. He also made a few mistakes on track and had that positive COVID-19 test that cost him a race start.

However, he has to try and salvage the positives from this season and reaffirm his commitment to the Hendrick Motorsports team. He is confident that he can close out the year with a couple of wins and hopefully make the playoffs.

With barely 3 races left in the regular season, it’s all or nothing and he needs to outscore Byron. At the same time, he has to be wary of the likes of Erik Jones and Tyler Reddick.

What does the future hold for Johnson? Only time will tell.