NASCAR Hall of Fame member and 1960 Daytona 500 winner Junior Johnson has died. Johnson, the former moonshiner turned winning NASCAR driver and championship winning team owner, was 88 years of age.
Johnson’s passing was confirmed by the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Friday.
“We have lost one of NASCAR’s true pioneers, innovators, competitors and an incredible mechanical and business mind,” said NASCAR Hall of Fame Executive Director Winston Kelley as part of a statement released on Friday. “And personally, I have lost one of my dearest friends. While we will miss Junior mightily, his legacy and memory will forever be remembered, preserved, celebrated and cherished at the NASCAR Hall of Fame and in the hearts and minds of race fans around the world. Please join us in remembering and celebrating Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr.”
Johnson – who reached national recognition thanks to a story in Esquire magazine in 1965 by Tom Wolfe – was a 50 time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Johnson is also credited with many as the driver to discover “drafting”, or using a competitor’s wake cutting through the air to use less horsepower at speed. He would use this technique to his advantage to drive a less powerful car than his competitors to the win in the 1960 Daytona 500.
Johnson would score wins with legendary drivers such as Leeroy Yarbrough, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip, Terry Labonte and Geoff Bodine. He would add Daytona 500 victories to his tally with Yarbrough (1969) and Yarborough (1977).
While he would not win a championship as a driver, he would score titles as a car owner. With Yaborough at the helm, he would score three titles in a row (1976–1978) and three with Waltrip (1981, 1982, 1985).
Born in Wilkesboro, North Carolina on June 28, 1931, Johnson had racing ties with Northeast Georgia.
In 1992, he teamed with fellow NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott of Dawsonville, Georgia. With Elliott behind the wheel of the No. 11 Budweiser Ford, the teaming won five races, just missing the series title by seven points to the late Alan Kulwicki in the season finale at Atlanta Motor Speedway, despite winning the race.
Elliott would record the final win for Johnson as a car owner in the 1994 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
Johnson also served as a past Grand Marshal for the annual Mountain Moonshine Festival in Dawsonville, Georgia, and was a fixture at the gathering that honors past racers and moonshiners alike.
In 2010, Johnson was elected as an inaugural year inductee to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
A famed moonshine runner in his younger days, Johnson was never caught on the road during his time hauling illegal liquor. However, he was arrested in a rain on the family still in 1956 and spent a year in prison in federal prison in Ohio. He was granted a pardon by President Ronald Reagan in 1986.
Johnson’s fame was also outside of the realm of auto racing. Inspired by the Tom Wolfe article in Esquire, a fictionalized version of Johnson’s life story was made in 1973 entitled “The Last American Hero” starring Jeff Bridges.
Johnson was also referenced in the song “Cadillac Ranch” by Bruce Springsteen on his 1980 album “The River.”
“Junior Johnson truly was the ‘Last American Hero.’ From his early days running moonshine through the end of his life, Junior wholly embodied the NASCAR spirit,” said NASCAR President and CEO Jim France in a statement released Friday afternoon.” He was an inaugural NASCAR Hall of Famer, a nod to an extraordinary career as both a driver and team owner. Between his on-track accomplishments and his introduction of Winston to the sport, few have contributed to the success of NASCAR as Junior has. The entire NASCAR family is saddened by the loss of a true giant of our sport, and we offer our deepest condolences to Junior’s family and friends during this difficult time.”
