"Integral to the success": Jimmie Johnson's LMC taps in Kyle Larson's former HMS "asset"

Jimmie Johnson's co-owned venture, Legacy Motor Club has signed Hendrick Motorsports' former technical director, Brian Campe. The University of North Carolina 2004 graduate worked at Rick Hendrick's garage in 2021 when Kyle Larson ran his maiden year with the team. Recently, Campe was assigned as the HMS driver's strategist at the Indy 500.

The current Cup Series season has seen a lot of movement inside the seven-time Cup champion's paddock. During the summer break, they sacked multiple members of Johnson's #84 team, including crew chief Jason Burdett. He was replaced by Gene Watchel, who previously worked as Director of Vehicle Performance at LMC.

After Burdett's internal promotion, the Statesville-based outfit has tapped in Brian Campe, as the technical director. The latter has notable working experience in the realm of NASCAR and IndyCar. His resume boasts lending expertise for teams like Penske Racing, HMS, and Dale Earnhardt Inc. Furthermore, Campe was Josef Newgarden's race engineer in the IndyCar when the driver clinched the 2017 championship.

Amidst hiring the "asset," Jimmie Johnson expressed his "eagerness to see" LMC improve under Campe's guidance. He said (via Jayski).

“The addition of a talent like Brian Campe is integral to the success of LEGACY M.C. Brian’s experience with championship teams like Hendrick and Penske will make him a huge asset to LEGACY M.C., and we are eager to see the improvement his leadership will bring to the engineering arm of the CLUB,” Johnson said.

Brian Campe got his first NASCAR break in 2002 at Dale Earnhardt Inc., as a race engineer for Paul Menard.

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A deep dive into LMC releasing Jimmie Johnson's crew members

Jimmie Johnson returned to the Cup Series after retiring from the sport post-2020 season. However, upon exercising the co-ownership of LMC, the legendary driver marked his return to the asphalt, at the 2023 Daytona 500. Since then, he has competed in ten races.

This season has been lackluster so far, as from seven races entered this year, Johnson has succumbed to two DNFs and hasn't been able to finish inside the top 25 since returning to the Cup Series. That said, rumors floated about LMC letting go of the #84 team's personnel.

On July 26, Bob Pockrass confirmed that Jimmie Johnson's co-owned outfit released several members, including Jason Burdett. Pockrass also outlined that the #84 Toyota driver's remainder of the 2024 schedule will go as planned. Accordingly, he will run two more races this year- at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the season finale at Phoenix Raceway. However, Johnson is yet to announce his plans for the 2025 season.

LMC's previous hiring, Gene Watchel also boasts NASCAR experience, having worked at HMS, Stewart-Haas Racing, and Dodge Motorsports. His expertise includes data acquisition, simulation, and testing, among other engineering roles.