Jimmie Johnson’s Indy 500 journey gathers speed with fastest lap of his storied career

INDIANAPOLIS – Jimmie Johnson has legendary accomplishments in racing, from seven NASCAR Cup Series championships to 83 career victories that include two Daytona 500s and four Brickyard 400s.

But during Thursday’s second day of the Indy 500 Open Test, Johnson ran the fastest lap of his life.

He turned 138 laps around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway during a frantic four-hour test session (which started four hours late and was shortened by two hours).

It often was busy enough to seem as if it were race day for the Indianapolis 500. On Lap 129, Johnson’s No. 48 Carvana/American Legion Dallara-Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing went 227.900 mph — the fastest lap of his storied career.

“Man, that’s really boogieing,” Johnson told NBCSports.com after practice. “This is the reason why wanted to become an IndyCar driver.

“I wanted to experience driving a really fast race car really fast.”

Johnson got his wish Thursday as one of 31 drivers testing at IMS for the 106th Indy 500 on May 29 (11 a.m. ET, NBC). At one point in the first hour of testing, Johnson was the fastest driver.

He stayed in the top three as the final test session entered “Happy Hour” – the final hour when conditions are ideal for running fast laps.

He would finish the day as the eighth-fastest driver but was very impressive on the IMS oval and further established himself as a potential contender to win the Indy 500 in his debut.

Continuing the climb. ⬆️