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LONG POND, PA – JUNE 01: Chase Elliott, driver of the #9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, and Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet, talk in the garage during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images)
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LONG POND, PA – JUNE 01: Chase Elliott, driver of the #9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, and Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet, talk in the garage during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images)
All the way back in 2018, Chase Elliott well and truly announced himself to the NASCAR world. To be precise, he snatched his maiden Cup Series victory at Watkins Glen International. Admittedly, after the race, he ran out of fuel, and teammate Jimmie Johnson decided to help him out.
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On one end, it was a huge moment of great sportsmanship. However, another interpretation was more symbolic for the NASCAR fans.
According to some responses, “This was the official passing of the torch.”
All in all, many thought that it was, “Such an iconic moment” and “Couldn’t have been more perfect!”.
How else did fans react to the Jimmie Johnson and Chase Elliott moment?
Some people even said, “I hadn’t cheered so hard for a win in my life aside from when Dale Jr won his 500s.”
Others agreed that “That was a fantastic show of partners and sportsman showman!”.
Another fan said, “I got teary when this actually happened! Love Jimmie and Chase!” and finally, “I loved when Chase won and Jimmie Johnson pushing him when he was out of gas!!”
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DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 19: Chase Elliott, driver of the #9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, waits in the garage area during practice for NASCAR Cup Series 64th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 19, 2022 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
In a way, it really was a changing of the guard because, as legendary as Johnson is, that spark was argubaly fading. Soon, there were young drivers like Elliott, who were pretty competitive. Since the youngster was the future, it was pretty much a special scene to see a driver of Johnson’s caliber, aiding his teammate.
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One would almost say that it was like that famous scene from the Cars movie. The only difference was that the roles were reversed, and Chase Elliott had already won the race.
Meanwhile, Jimmie Johnson could only muster 30th place, which was a pretty disappointing result for him. During that year, he failed to reach Victory Lane all season and did not win in either the 2019 or the 2020 seasons.
