Seven-time Cup winner Jimmie Johnson tops Daytona 500 practice in NASCAR return

AP photo by Terry Renna / Former NASCAR driver Richard Petty, center, poses for a photo with Jimmie Johnson, left, and Erik Jones before the first of two qualifying races for the Daytona 500 on Thursday night. Johnson, Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt share the record for most Cup Series championships with seven apiece. AP photo by Terry Renna / Former NASCAR driver Richard Petty, center, poses for a photo with Jimmie Johnson, left, and Erik Jones before the first of two qualifying races for the Daytona 500 on Thursday night. Johnson, Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt share the record for most Cup Series championships with seven apiece.

By MARK LONG / The Associated Press February 17, 2023 3 min read

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — It sure seemed like old times.

Jimmie Johnson, making his return to NASCAR competition after a two-year dalliance in IndyCar, topped the first practice session for the Daytona 500 on Friday.

The two-time Daytona 500 winner and seven-time Cup Series champion reached a top speed of 194.25 mph around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. He edged fellow Chevrolet drivers Chase Elliott — his former teammate at Hendrick Motorsports — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and pole-sitter Alex Bowman, the driver who replaced Johnson when he left NASCAR after the 2020 season, to create a feel-good moment for the bow-tie brigade.

It was Johnson’s first extended stint behind the wheel in the Next Gen car at Daytona International Speedway. He did take part in a one-day practice session last month at Phoenix Raceway.

“I honestly think it’s too early to read far into this. It is plate racing, and that was just a practice session,” Johnson said. “We didn’t make any mistakes and did some things right to end up where we did. …