Jimmie Johnson’s legendary feat unlikely to be repeated as per Dale Earnhardt's former crew chief

Jimmie Johnson is one of the three NASCAR drivers in history to have 7 Cup titles to their name. Along with Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Richard Petty, Jimmie Johnson is the only other driver who has won NASCAR's premier championship more than anyone else.

But there's something that Johnson achieved which neither Earnhardt nor Petty managed to do. The feat in subject is Johnson winning five consecutive Cup titles from 2006 to 2010, becoming and remaining to this day, the only driver to do so.

This is something that Earnhardt Sr.'s former crew chief, Larry McReynolds, believes may never happen again. Talking about Jimmie's achievement via the Kansas City Star, McReynolds said:

"I’ll never be bold enough to say we won’t see another Jimmie Johnson, but I’m just not sure we’re ever going to see another driver winning multiple championships like that. Seven championships is a tall order. Only three drivers in the history of our sport have ever done that, but to me, the thing that has set Jimmie apart was five in a row when the competition was getting tougher and tougher, and all these different generations of cars and rules changes and aero changes."

The former crew chief mentioned how NASCAR was "always changing the rules" and the format to curb Johnson's dominance. But despite that, Johnson and his crew chief Chad Knaus continued to figure it all out and won five in a row.

“Kyle Busch put it best. With this format, you can win 35 races and not win the championship, because it’s about making it to that Championship Four in Phoenix and being good on one race day," he added.

Jimmie Johnson's fifth title meant more to him than his first

Speaking via CBS in 2010 after coming out triumphant against a title challenge by Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick, the Hendrick #48 driver claimed that his fifth Cup title meant more to him than his first.

"I've always told you the first championship, the first win, that stuff has meant the most to me. This one, I think this takes the lead. It's not that the other Chases weren't competitive. We were stronger in the previous two Chases, at least, but this one, I am just so proud," Johnson said (via CBS).

The future Hall of Famer said that by winning his fifth title in a row, he and his team have shown what they're made of. Johnson added that at times in the 2010 season, they didn't have "the most speed," but they prevailed because they had "the most heart."