The lofty expectations started with Chip Ganassi. The team owner is the one who said Jimmie Johnson would win a race during his rookie IndyCar season.
And even after his first two races – Johnson has spun, stalled and caused three of the five cautions called – Ganassi hasn’t changed his mind. He still thinks the seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion is going to find himself at the right place at the right time and get to victory lane this year.
“Above all, he’s a racer,” said Ganassi, who has a four-team operation in IndyCar as well as a two-car stable in the Cup Series. “He understands race craft. Is he going to win a race on all-out speed? You’d probably say that’s a challenge. But things happen in these races, and I don’t think it’s out of the question.”
Johnson’s next chance comes Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where he is a four-time winner. But those victories were on the big oval in NASCAR races for Hendrick Motorsports, and this will mark his debut on the IMS road course in just his third career start in the open-wheel series.
Johnson tested the course in July with Chip Ganassi Racing, the first step in this two-year deal that transitioned him from NASCAR to IndyCar road and street course racer.