Jimmie Johnson dressed like Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty before Southern 500 throwback race
Jimmie Johnson said he was going “all in” for his final throwback weekend at Darlington Raceway, and he wasn’t kidding.
The Southern 500, a “crown jewel” race, is usually the NASCAR Cup Series’ lone trip to the South Carolina track — it will be the third race in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic — and the weekend pays tribute to the sport’s past. Drivers and their teams run throwback paint schemes celebrating old looks and NASCAR legends.
While Johnson’s teammates are honoring him with their cars before he retires from full-time NASCAR racing at the end of the 2020 season, the No. 48 Chevrolet driver is paying tribute with his paint scheme to the two seven-time champions who came before him: Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt.
And he even dressed the part before Sunday night’s Southern 500.
Let’s roll.#NASCARthrowback #TheKing #DaleEarnhardt pic.twitter.com/riyZTGrwTf
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) September 6, 2020
(Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
The glasses are just like the iconic ones often worn by the late Earnhardt, while the hat, feathers included, resembles the one Petty still regularly wears to the track.
Update: According to NBC’s Southern 500 broadcast, which included Dale Earnhardt Jr., both items are authentic. Johnson got Gargoyles sunglasses from Dale Sr.’s sister, Cathy, and the signed hat from Petty.
#DaleEarnhardt #NASCARthrowback pic.twitter.com/C5D2ReT5H8
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) September 6, 2020
#TheKing #NASCARthrowback pic.twitter.com/uJIDlB581A
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) September 6, 2020
Johnson’s No. 48 car and look Sunday combined the two iconic paint schemes associated with Petty and Earnhardt:
I’m all in for my final #NASCARthrowback weekend. Stay tuned, more to come. pic.twitter.com/AWTJqwLJYt
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) September 6, 2020
I’m proud to honor these two legends and what they’ve meant to me and the sport with this 7x scheme at Darlington. #RichardPetty #DaleEarnhardt pic.twitter.com/K8gJ2aoSoC
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) August 19, 2020
Although the Southern 500 was the first race of the Cup Series playoffs, Johnson was not among the 16 drivers who made the cut in his final season before retiring from full-time racing.