Jimmie Johnson seems to take shot at Joey Logano on radio during Coca-Cola 600
Jimmie Johnson doesn’t appear to be too happy with how Joey Logano is racing him during the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway Monday.
Per Jeff Gluck of The Athletic, Johnson told his team on the radio that an unnamed driver was the “worst mirror-driver in the field.” At the time, the driver in front of Johnson was Logano.
“It sounded like Jimmie Johnson said something like, ‘worst mirror-driver in the field. Nothing’s changed.’ But team couldn’t hear him and when they asked him to repeat, he just said, ‘All good.’ Joey Logano is in front of him,” Gluck wrote on Twitter.
Johnson, the seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion now co-owner of Legacy Motor Club, is making just his third start of the 2023 season. He finished 31st in the Daytona 500 before tallying a 38th place finish at the Circuit of The Americas. Having not competed at a 1.5-mile oval such as Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Next Gen car, Johnson said he felt unprepared going into the race.
“A couple hours [testing] in Phoenix is the only comparable oval experience I’ve had,” Johnson said, via Fox Sports. “We had 30 to 40 laps in a simulator and that’s been it. I want to survive the first stage and go from there… A top 10 or top 15 would be an awesome finish for us.”
Unfortunately for Johnson, his desired finish is well out of reach. Shortly after voicing his displeasure with Logano, Johnson spun out going into Turn 2. He took his No. 84 Chevrolet immediately to the garage, where it remains undergoing repairs.
“It just took off,” Johnson told his team. “I don’t know what happened there.”
Legacy Motor Club struggling in Coca-Cola 600
Prior to the spin, Johnson had been making ground after starting from the 37th position. He worked his way up to 24th and appeared to have one of the faster cars in the field. All for naught as Johnson looks to get back out on the racetrack to finish the race.
It’s been a struggle for the Legacy Motor Club team, as in addition to Johnson, Erik Jones and Noah Gragson find themselves out of the race. Both Jones and Gragson hit debris on the track, ripping each of their radiators at the same time.