CONCORD, N.C. – Jimmie Johnson will try to make the playoffs one final time this Saturday at Daytona International Speedway.
The seven-time Cup Series champion is four points below the playoff cutoff. However, teammate William Byron currently is sitting in the coveted No. 16 playoff spot. In a unique twist, competitor Matt DiBenedetto also is in the mix at just nine points above the bubble, meaning both Johnson and Byron can make the playoffs.
“The thing that is very encouraging is we now have the 21 car (DiBenedetto) there in the mix, so we both can get through,” Johnson said. “We'll just have to race smart and see how stages play out and then, obviously, the finish at the end of the race.”
Johnson gained ground in the playoff battle during the doubleheader at Dover International Speedway. He finished in seventh on Saturday and third on Sunday, inching him closer to the cutoff line.
While Johnson has won at Daytona International Speedway three times, including two DAYTONA 500s, he said the superspeedway is an unpredictable beast where experience can quickly go on the wayside. Because of this, Johnson said he, Byron and the rest of the Hendrick Motorsports teams will share information like normal as they prepare for Saturday's race.
“It's so hard to know how things will play out down in Daytona,” Johnson said. “If you get single file and it's the old track with high tire wear, which it won't be, you can work with a teammate and really try to create some opportunity, but if we're all running in a big group, luck is going to play a bigger role in things for the majority of it.”
Johnson said after Sunday’s race at Dover he’s going to do his best “to forget” the pressure this week since worrying will not change the outcome the end of the regular season. He also is optimistic both he and Byron can reach the playoffs and join the hunt for a championship with teammates Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman.
“At the end of the day for the 24 car, I wish them the best. They're my teammates. That car and that number, (crew chief) Chad Knaus, William Byron, they're friends, they're teammates, and now that I know there's a path in for both of us, maybe I'll stop thinking so many bad thoughts about those guys and maybe we can both get in,” he joked.