CONCORD, N.C. -- Last week, Jimmie Johnson took home a 15th-place result in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.
As he returns to Charlotte Motor Speedway for this weekend's 600-mile race, the driver of the No. 48 Lowe's Patriotic Chevrolet SS isn't looking for a repeat performance.
"Unfortunately the showing we had in the All-Star Race was less than stellar," Johnson said. "The confidence we would normally walk in with has been diluted with lack of speed that we had then."
But that doesn't negate the success Johnson has historically found at the 1.5-mile oval.
He has a total of seven Sprint Cup wins at Charlotte Motor Speedway with four coming in the 600-mile event. His victory last May in the 600 broke a tie with NASCAR Hall of Famers Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip, making Johnson the all-time series points-paying win leader at Charlotte.
“It’s always great to come to a track that you have a great past at, great history at," he said, noting that the No. 48 team has brought brand new chassis to the race and will look to alter the setup from that of the All-Star Race.
"I think the 600-mile race has always been good for us," he continued. "(Crew chief) Chad (Knaus) and I seem to fix our racecar as the night goes on, be aggressive with adjustments, chase the racetrack well and do a nice job searching for a line. The distance of the race doesn’t bother me. I think we will have a strong night, but we have a few things to sort out today and even into Saturday’s practice sessions."
Johnson acknowledged that Charlotte Motor Speedway is a "tricky" track, and he and Knaus will take some of the lessons they learned from the All-Star Race into Sunday's event.
"Luckily it's a long race," he said, "and if need be in the race we will make big changes.”