When Jimmie Johnson started as a rookie in 2002, little did NASCAR folks and fans realize the champion they were about to witness in the coming years. And that debut was special, as in that rookie year, he won the pole for Daytona, swept both races at Dover, and notched three wins that year. But a post-race moment after that Dover domination caught more attention than the win itself.<\/p>\n
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Seeing Johnson\u2019s fiery form, his crew chief, Chad Knaus, in his excitement, laid out the team\u2019s championship ambitions for him. Without realizing he\u2019s on live TV, he exclaimed, \u201cWho says the 48 team\u2019s too young to win a championship!? We\u2019re f\u2014\u2013g going for it!\u201d <\/p>\n
Though this could have invited problems for Johnson, Knaus, and the HMS team itself, an insider recently shared a light-hearted backstory on how the situation amusingly turned around.<\/p>\n
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When embarrassment turned into team confidence<\/p>\n
Insider Matt Yocum recently shared a backstory as to what happened next. Knaus was obviously instantly embarrassed after he realized his expletive was caught on live TV. Yocum shared, \u201cWhen done talking, Chad looked at me and said, \u2018Hey can we delete that fucking part out?\u2019 I said \u2018Chad, it was live.\u2019 He said \u2018Oh shit.’\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The matter obviously didn\u2019t end there, as Yocum explained how Knaus got scolded a couple of days later for his quick stint. \u201cA couple days later, Chad told me when he was sitting in a HMS leadership executives office getting reamed for saying \u2018We\u2019re f\u2014\u2013g going for it\u2019\u2026the CEO of Lowes just happened to call\u2026perfect timing.\u201d Lowes, the sponsor for HMS back then, would have naturally called to add in their share of scrutiny for Knaus\u2019 actions. But that\u2019s where the tables turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cHMS guy said well Mr. so and so, I happen to have Chad here in my office as a matter a fact we are discussing his post race comments. The Lowes CEO said, \u2018Well I don\u2019t want to intrude on your meeting but let me just say\u2026. I\u2019m glad he\u2019s fucking going for it too.’\u201d<\/p>\n