Jimmie Johnson Reportedly Returning to NASCAR With Historic Team

Jimmie Johnson is reportedly returning to the world of NASCAR, this time as an owner.

Sources told The Athletic that Johnson, the seven-time Cup champion who retired in 2020, will return next season as a part-owner of Petty GMS Racing - the team formerly known as Richard Petty Racing that's owned by The King himself.

In addition to owning an "ownership stake" in the team, Johnson will also drive select races beginning next season.

Jimmie Johnson returning to NASCAR with Richard Petty

Johnson and his 83 career wins left NASCAR following the 2020 season, and the future Hall of Famer has spent the past two seasons trying his hand at IndyCar.

Johnson ran select races in the series in 2021, and raced full-time last season before announcing last month that he would be stepping away.

"I feel like 2022 checked so many boxes for me that I’m going to take a deep breath," he said at the time. "I’m still working on my bucket races to compete in … I’ve always been curious to see if there’s a one-off event in NASCAR that might work for me."

Seven-time NASCAR champ Jimmie Johnson may be coming back with Richard Petty. (Photo by Jerry Markland/Getty Images)

Seems like Johnson, 47, has taken a deep enough breath and is ready to jump back into the NASCAR world full throttle.

Johnson won seven NASCAR Cup titles over a two-decade career, most recently in 2016. His performance waned in later years, with his last Cup win coming at Dover back in 2017.

Since retiring from full-time Cup racing two years ago, he's run two Rolex 24s, finishing second with the No. 48 Cadillac in 2021.

Along with the reported NASCAR return, Johnson also said he’d like to run the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

One possible "select" race to keep an eye on for Johnson could be the All-Star race at North Wilkesboro.