Watch: Jimmie Johnson Holds off a Field of Legends to Win the 2005 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona

NASCAR over the years has delivered some thrilling races, While the modern NASCAR race drivers are the real deal, nothing comes close to those 2000s days. Legends like Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Kurt Busch were often at loggerheads on the racetracks. However, on the special occasion of the 2005 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona, it was Jimmie Johnson who ushered in a new era of NASCAR domination that put the rest of the competition in shame.

Jeff Gordon convinced Mr. Hendrick to get Johnson onboard at Hendrick Motorsports and what followed next is history. The team was able to scale heights that were unimaginable at the time as Johnson clinched a record five back-to-back Cup Series Championships. However, before Hendrick Motorsports and Johnson scripted the domination of the decade, it was a teaser at the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona in 2005 that acted as a launchpad for the rise of Johnson and HMS’s unchallenged NASCAR domination.

Watch Jimmie Johnson march to the finish line unfazed at the 2005 Budweiser Shootout

This was the exhibition stock car race of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. With the 27th iteration of the race that initiates the Cup Series, all eyes were on Johnson as he was close to winning the Cup Series in the 2003 and 2004 seasons. A 2nd place finish was a bitter pill to swallow for Johnson, so he was on a mission to make the next season count and he did just that with a dominating win at the exhibition event.

The race was scheduled to run 70 laps. Johnson’s P1 finish was set into motion when he grabbed the lead on lap 55. It was a nervy final lap for HMS’s lead car as Jeff Gordon and Rusty Wallace tried their very best to snatch the first-place finish. However, with smart tactics on display, Jimmie Johnson took the win at the 2005 Budweiser Shootout.

The last lap was as frantic as it could get and Johnson’s #48 tucked close to the yellow lines. Doing so he made sure the chasing pack could not get past him and he tried to not give any room to be exploited. While fellow drivers Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman were tussling to get their noses in front in the final stretch of the money lap, Johnson’s Chevrolet just went on full steam ahead, all the way to the finish line as seen in this video.

There have been instances of NASCAR driver hanging their boots after a brief period of success but this sentiment does not hold well for Johnson. The 48-year-old is still in search of more wins in NASCAR and is all set to feature in a few Cup Series races in 2024.

Johnson is yet to hang his boots for good from NASCAR racing

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On the back of seven NASCAR Cup Series Championships and 83 race wins, it looks like Jimmie Johnson still is hungry to get some more wins under his belt. Having served in a glorious stretch from 2002-2020 with Hendrick Motorsports, he decided to put the brakes on full-time racing in NASCAR. But racing remained at his heart and he tried his hands at several racing championships around the world, including the IndyCar series.

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However, racking up a few more wins would be a cherry on top of his glorious career. Johnson will feature in the #84 car of the Legacy Motor Club in 2024 for at least three races. He will compete at the Texas Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and Kansas Speedway in the 2024 season.

Jimmie Johnson is the legend of the sport without a doubt, maybe the GOAT on the back of his dominating run in the 2000s. While every era or generation has its pick of the best racer of all time, one can easily say that Johnson has done enough to rub shoulders with them all and has etched has name in NASCAR’s history books.

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