Jimmie Johnson’s Indy 500 Rookie of the Year experience: ‘The biggest rush of all time’

INDIANAPOLIS – From the moment he first watched the world’s biggest race on TV with his grandfather and father in El Cajon, California, Jimmie Johnson dreamed of racing in the Indy 500, long before becoming its 2022 rookie of the year.

At 46, he got to live his childhood dream in the 106th Indy 500 and despite finishing 28th after crashing hard into the Turn 2 wall with five laps to go, the experience greatly exceeded Johnson’s expectations.

That’s remarkable considering Johnson is a seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion who won 83 races in NASCAR.

“The experience was amazing,” Johnson told NBC Sports before the Indianapolis 500 Victory Celebration that was held Monday night at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis. “I’m so thankful to have had this opportunity. I wish I had performed better in the race and had a better result, but that’s racing. I learned a ton. If I have a chance to come back and do it again, I’ll be a lot smarter when I come back.”

Johnson was among the fastest drivers in nearly every practice session and made the Fast 12 round of qualifications. He started 12th and quickly realized the race itself is completely different than running in large packs in traffic.

He lost four positions on the first lap and dropped to 16th. It would get more challenging from there.

“I really feel like track position was my biggest issue,” Johnson said. “I was a little cautious at the start of the race and lost a couple of positions. Ultimately, the caution flag coming out when it did and putting us at the tail end of the field, I couldn’t recover from that.

“I simply could not figure out how to pass cars and get around anybody.”

In the back of the field with all of the turbulence from the other race cars, Johnson’s