What are those next steps?
“Gosh, I don’t know,” Knaus said. “Jimmie and I had this grand plan when we were younger. We were going to retire together. We were going to build Baja trucks and go-karts and all these things and IMSA cars and go race all these races. I know he’s got a desire to hit some of those pinnacle races. He’s capable of going and competing in them. We’ve seen it.
“He’s raced in the 24 Hours. He’s raced stock cars. He’s raced Baja and he could easily go to any of those series and be competitive. I would love it.
“I told him, look at Scott Pruett. He raced for a long time and won championships, and Jimmie could do the exact same thing. If he wants to,” Knaus continued. “A lot of those other series are much shorter than what we do. So, keeping your interest level for a shorter period of time is a lot easier.
“That’s the one thing that people don’t realize about Jimmie. And I’ve been able to witness it firsthand. When he puts his mind to something, he sets the goals and he achieves them.”
So, what is Johnson’s legacy?
For one, he’s a champion among champions — the equal to NASCAR legends Petty and Earnhardt.
Although those two drivers are far more popular than Johnson, the magnitude of what Johnson did should never be diminished.
Johnson’s greatness has never been appreciated because he made difficult things look easy.
He was also a very clean driver on the race track.
“I tried to turn him into a dirty driver at times,” Knaus said. “I tried to make him be more aggressive at times. I tried to do all this stuff and shame on me for doing that because just like what Mr. Hendrick said, he’s going to leave this sport with everybody knowing that he did it the right way.
“And he didn’t shove people around,” Knaus added. “He couldn’t crash somebody if he had to, he just doesn’t have the capability. It’s not in his DNA. So, what he’s done, the way he’s done it, the races he’s won, the people that he’s touched. You can look at his accomplishments and say that’s what is going to be longstanding, but I can tell you from what he’s done for me personally and what he’s done for a lot of our friends and family, that’s what his legacy is.
“It’s just being a damn good guy and a hell of a race car driver.”
As Johnson begins his final season, he hopes to author the last chapter of his NASCAR career.
“The outlook is to absolutely win races and be in that Championship 4,” Johnson said. “If you are in that Championship 4, at Phoenix now, you’ve got a shot. And that is absolutely the goal for next year.
“I have the fire. Our team is getting stronger. With it being my final full-time year, that’s a special opportunity. It’s like, 2020 just looks like an awesome opportunity.”
Johnson is hoping for a perfect ending.