“I just thought it was over”: Jimmie Johnson once reflected on crashing at ‘150 mph’ after a brake failure

Jimmie Johnson became one of NASCAR's greatest drivers in history through his 19-year, full-time career in the Cup Series. The California native's seven Cup championships are tied for the most all-time with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, while his 83 Cup Series victories rank sixth on the all-time wins list.

Despite the litany of success, including winning five straight Cup Series titles from 2006-2010, Johnson endured some major crashes throughout his career, with one scary wreck coming in the early days of his career.

Back in 2000, Johnson was racing in the Xfinity Series, formerly the Busch Series, at Watkins Glen International. On the 46th lap of the event, Johnson's #92 car suffered a brake failure as he went down the track's front straightaway. This caused Johnson to lose control of the car and slam head-on into the turn one outside retaining wall at 150 miles per hour, causing the car to come to a dead stop.

Luckily, the former driver of the #48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet didn't suffer any injuries. However, in a 2021 interview with Graham Bensinger, Johnson said he feared the worst as he headed for the wall.

"Cars crash often and you know some are really bad. That was really the first time when I thought it was over and kinda went limp in the car. Thankfully, I did, because preparing for the impact and lowering my head as I did and going limp was the best thing for me. This crash took place before soft walls were mandatory and before we had any of the mandatory restraint systems in the car to prevent a basilar skull fracture, which is the injury that killed five drivers, and the fifth being Dale Earnhardt Sr." (0:15 onwards)

When Bensinger asked Johnson what he recalls thinking as his brakes failed and his car went out of control, Johnson said:

"Oh s***. Then, I knew the racetrack went to the right and I tried to make the turn and I was into the grass and lost control of the car at that point and I had no brakes. When I first went to slow the car down, the brake pedal went to the floor. Had a brake failure and 150 miles an hour with no brakes." (0:49 onwards)

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Jimmie Johnson helped in the formation of Legacy Motor Club before the 2023 season

Jimmie Johnson joined forces with fellow seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Richard Petty to form Legacy Motor Club, a team that fields two full-time Cup Series cars. Johnson, meanwhile, makes part-time appearances as a driver in the #84 car.

The co-owner of LMC made three starts in 2023 but failed to finish in any of them. In 2024, Johnson made nine more starts behind the wheel of the #84 machine and scored a best finish of 26th in the season-finale race at Phoenix.

Johnson stepped away from full-time Cup Series racing after the 2020 season. He piloted the #48 Hendrick Motorsports his entire full-time career since entering the series in 2002.