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Jimmie Johnson's driving style
For the last couple of weeks JJ has been under the spot light for some aggressive driving. A lot of fans that follow the sport are quick to point out that he's been involved, or had something to do with a lot of cautions in the last few weeks. He has been called Nascar's golden boy because everyone seems to think he can get away with anything and Nascar won't punish him. From the fan readings that I have access to, I can say with pure confidence, that there are many more people that dislike JJ than there are that like him. So that brings me to my point. The most famous and well followed driver of our time, was and still is, Dale E. One of the things that made him so good and so well liked was his driving style. He was aggressive, competitive, and relentless on the track. He wasn't given the name the Intimidator, he earned it. The same type of style that made Dale E. so famous, is turning fans against JJ. So what's the difference. If the black #3 was behind a car and put em int the wall to win a race, he was deemed as the man. If JJ puts some one in the wall to gain spots or win a race, he's deemed as a coward, or better yet, no driving son of a *%$#. Now, let me make this clear to all the readers out there. Dale E. is in a league apart from JJ. All I'm saying is that JJ is getting torn apart about his driving style lately and its the same driving style that made Dale E. famous. So what gives.
May 2, 2005 in Race talk | Permalink
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Comments
if jj wants to drive like earnhardt did fine but there is one huge difference-dale would say yeah i did it. jj continues to whine and cry and say i don't know what happened? i didn't do anything! waaa waaa! he needs to be a man about it if that is possible!!!
Posted by: k8 | May 2, 2005 7:56:22 PM
I agree with K8. JJ can drive aggresive if he wants to BUT he needs to own up and not say that Stewart break checked him going into the turn. Who would ever break check someone there? You know if you do you are in the wall... JJ shoulda just said I got into him, it was an accident I thought he was gonna go and he didn't. Sorry...
Ugh! Did you hear him after the 2nd wreck? It was obvious he bounced off the wall! So we hear him say that there was stuff going on in front of him. Well only car in front was Stewart... He just coulda said Yeah it got hairy, I bounced off the wall and into harvick. Sorry....
Be a man about it like Dale Sr was and it's all good.
Posted by: Eddie | May 2, 2005 8:02:56 PM
Well, first of all don't forget that Big E had as many detractors as he did followers. He got away with it because he was the man. Nobody else can or could measure up, so anybody trying to be like E gets slapped down. Remember Ernie Irvan's early career with all the wrecks caused by his reckless driving? He got slapped down by the other drivers and the meda. Reminds me of what's going on with Johnson now. The slapdown is coming.
Posted by: AKScott | May 2, 2005 8:27:24 PM
The difference is Earnhardt wasn't a whining wuss. Johnson has the balls to call for Harvick to be fired for getting into him at Daytona and then turns around and takes out Harvick at Talladega and then can't be a man and admit that he hit the wall and got into Harvick after seeing the replay. Earhnhardt would not have been crying after the Daytona incident and he would have admitted he got into the wall and apologized for it after Talladega. It's that simple. Yesterday, Johnson looked at a replay that clearly showed him hitting the wall and coming down into Harvick to cause a wreck of a number of contenders and didn't have the integrity to admit he was the cause of the wreck. What a pussy.
Posted by: Steve | May 2, 2005 8:31:16 PM
I agree with everyones comments so far, Jimmie Johnson has used every excuse in the book for why it was someone elses fault and not his. If he would own up to it he wouldn't catch half of the greif he has gotten. If you think Dale Sr didn't catch wholy hell from fans for his driving style you are sorely mistaken. Being a Dale Sr fan and now a Dale Jr fan I have gotten all kinds of grief from their detractors so I don't feel one bit sorry for Jimmie.
Posted by: Jon | May 2, 2005 8:35:24 PM
Can you imagine what Jimmy Johnson would have said yesterday if he was running in the top 10 with a few laps to go and Harvick brushed the wall and got into him and caused him to wreck? Johnson would have been calling for NASCAR to fine and suspend Harvick. Instead, it's Johnson who causes the wreck and he looks at a reply showing him running out of talent and hitting the wall and causing a wreck yet he can't even admit he made an error. What a friggin' wussy hypocrite. If the situation was reversed he would have been whining something fierce yesterday.
Posted by: Alan | May 2, 2005 10:23:12 PM
Here's Harvick's quote from yesterday after Johnson brushed the wall and wrecked him late in the race, "I'm disappointed because we had a car that could run with the No. 24," said Harvick. "He was really fast and I'm not sure we could have passed him, but I would have loved to have had that chance. We'll take the points and get ready for Darlington." You notice no whining like Johnson, no calling for Johnson to be fired. That's why alot of Sr's fans still root for Harvick. He's a man. He admits to mistakes (Daytona) and doesn't cry when he gets wrecked by drivers who run out of talent (Johnson). Johnson bitches like a woman way too much and doesn't take responsibility when he obviously should. PUNK!
Posted by: Ed | May 2, 2005 10:30:55 PM
Can you imagine what Jimmy Johnson would have said yesterday if he was running in the top 10 with a few laps to go and Harvick brushed the wall and got into him and caused him to wreck? Johnson would have been calling for NASCAR to fine and suspend Harvick. Instead, it's Johnson who causes the wreck and he looks at a reply showing him running out of talent and hitting the wall and causing a wreck yet he can't even admit he made an error. What a friggin' wussy hypocrite. If the situation was reversed he would have been whining something fierce yesterday.
RIGHT ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Joe | May 2, 2005 10:39:24 PM
i think everyone has addressed the difference. Dale Sr. owned up to his driving. Johnson continues to play the media golden boy and owns up to nothing. everything is always someone else's fault. spin him, and he wants someone fired, he spins someone and "he brake checked on me".
i know my venom would be a lot less if he didn't pass the blame so much.
Posted by: mayorjimmy | May 2, 2005 11:30:40 PM
Mayor venom is one thing, everyone has a passion for certain things. Mis-representing a headline by altering it to suit your viewpoint, then placing quotes around it is flat out dishonest.
And don't deny it happened, the proof is available for all to see despite the fact you did your little version of whinning and crying (just like JJ) by deleting the comment at Rantville.
Posted by: Marc | May 3, 2005 2:35:09 AM
Earnhardt never whined it was everyone elses fault not his. He probably would have said, "yeah guess we got into him a bit there" Then smiled that sneaky smile of his.
Posted by: Keith | May 3, 2005 6:14:24 AM
The respect for Earhardt was earned by his actions on and off the track. As any here have said, Dale never hid behind an excuse, never blamed the mitigating circumstance when the onus was on him.
Johnson's driving style similiar to Earnhardt's? That's not only laughable but obscene as well. Stewart's style reminds me of Earnhardt much more than Johnson's. Too bad Tony's such a hothead.
~TR
Posted by: TR | May 3, 2005 8:23:10 AM
The point is, Trent, that Dale Sr. had the balls to say he was driving like that. Johnson just whines and complains and points the finger at other people.
Posted by: Stephanie | May 3, 2005 8:44:01 AM
I think the hatred of JJ started way before any of his recent whining and terrible driving. Earnhardt was a grizzled old veteran who did whatever the hell he wanted to. JJ is a whiny chotch who constantly wants to cornhole Jeff Gordon. I think the hatred starts there, with his Jeff Gordon loving, gelled out sideburns, whiny, spoiled attitude. I hate JimmyJank and I hope that other drivers start targetting him on the track and puttin ghim in the wall.
Posted by: brian | May 3, 2005 8:50:07 AM
I remember Dale as a man who would say, "Got wrecked" after a being sidelined from behind.
I do not remember him calling for other drivers to be fired and constantly blaming someone else. He seldom even granted interviews after losing or wrecking.
Jimmy is differnt egg and you cannot compare fairly. When interview after the wreck Jimmy first tried to blame Harvick but the showed him the replay and he softened that to it was in front of him. He still dodged any responsibility. Sometimes driving requires being a man and standing up and taking it.
Remember when Ernie was getting a tad too agressive. He apologized during a drivers meeting! Think Jimmy ever will??????
Posted by: Mike Childress | May 3, 2005 9:39:24 AM
Trent,
You need to visit more boards in your errr free time. Most aren't critisizing Jimmies driving as being fans of drivers we all understand that errors are made. That being said and reading all the comments I don't think the question is JJ's driving style but his lack of being a man and admitting errors when made. The constant in JJ is the the finger pointing and what is perceived as whining that has turned many fans against JJ. All said, I think Jimmie is one terrific driver but mistakes happen, and its time for him to own up and stop the whining.
Posted by: Sue | May 3, 2005 10:08:04 AM
I think "what gives" is that the sport has changed so much since Dale E was alive. So much of the sport revolves around sponsers, owners, teammates...ect. I think the new fans expect drivers to be gentleman, I am a newer fan but i think it is slowly turning into F1 where the drivers arent allowed to express any emotion over anything. I am a big fan of Ryan's becuase he respects other drivers as long as they give him respect, and I think thats the key. Who knows what was going on between JJ and the other drivers that he has been in conflict with that the TV cameras didnt show...or that the media people blew out of preportion.
Posted by: stephanie caruso | May 3, 2005 10:30:38 AM
I agree with you Sue that JJ's admission to guilt might be the question here, not his driving style. What if JJ wasn't as good as he is. Do you think people would still be on him like they are. There are alot of bad drivers out there that are cry babies and start a lot of wrecks, but you dont ever here about them cause there no good. JJ is the easy target because he's winning.
Posted by: Trent | May 3, 2005 10:34:19 AM
The main difference is Dale Earnhardt never tried to come across as the Golden Boy. He was aggressive and made no bones about it. The problem with both Johnson and Jeff Gordon is they have a hard time admitting when they're over-aggressive. So does their fans. If you're going to be aggressive, that's fine, just don't try to be the goody clean driver.
Oops I mentioned Jeff Gordon, I guess Don, Jessie, Bob, and Darren are going to be all over my case. Just call them like I see them. Before you throw his 70+ wins and 4 title in my face, I agree he's great. Before you say I'm jealous, I guess I am. I wish my favorite driver Mayfield had 72 wins adn 4 titles. If there 's anything else you can throw at me, I guess go ahead.
Posted by: Jay | May 3, 2005 10:51:14 AM
I agree with K8... own up to the driving... not too long ago Hamilton Jr owned up to it and many drivers do... He needs to stop whinning... Dale Jr also is one to not own up... seen it many times... like they are above it.
Posted by: M Benson | May 3, 2005 10:56:23 AM
Trent,
Big E would stand up and say he moved him. Terry Labonte at Briston in '99 is a great example as big E said, " I wasn't trying to wreck him, I was just trying to rattle his cage a little bit."
When he'd get moved or taken out, he'd generally say it was, "one of them racin' deals."
JJ whines blames the other guy when he hits him in the rear end. Case and point, the whole brake checking incident at Phoenix a couple of weeks ago.
When Rusty Wallace is involved, it's always the other guys fault too. i think us fans just prefer a guy to stand up and take ownership and some of responsibility for these incidents.
Posted by: Cliff Wahl | May 3, 2005 11:35:30 AM
OK, So JJ wiggled and got into the 4. If the 4 hadn't been getting pushed up through the middle to cause three wide I don't think it would have happened (JMO). I also believe that yes, JJ should have admitted he had SOME responsibility for it, but come on would that really change everyone's opinion of him even in the slightest. I DON'T THINK SO. To most everyone he is always going to be a whiny little gutless wannabe that will never be any good.
Posted by: Jodi | May 3, 2005 12:29:10 PM
I have to agree with stephanie. The new NASCAR fans, like myself, don't like to see the Earnhardt style of driving. If someone (Princess Jimmie) does wreck someone else, they HAVE to admit at least some fault. PJ doesn't admit to anything, ever. And yes Jodi, if he did admit fault EVER, a lot of people's opinions would have changed. But it's too late now because so many people already see him as a whiney little bitch. I personally think he's a good driver, he just needs to accept some responsibility. Even just a little bit would be nice to see. And judging by the race here at Texas a couple weeks ago, whiney little bitch is not used only by me to describe Jimmie Johnson.
Posted by: Shane | May 3, 2005 12:42:48 PM
JJ doesn't have to throw himself at anyone's feet, he just needs to say he's sorry that other drivers' days ended early. Also, it's easy to forget how much racing has changed since Earnhardt died. If a driver tried to own up to causing a wreck now, he'd probably be fined by Nascar or something. The current Nascar management (along with certain sponsors) has created this situation, and now we've all got to pay the price with drivers that act like either robots or crybabies.
Along with just the change in the sport itself, I think it's important that JJ is a very different person than Dale was. This is still a sport with a blue-collar fan base, and so many people identified with Earnhardt's background. When he bumped someone, it was because he was "the man." When JJ does the same thing, he comes off like a 16 year old bitching because mommy wouldn't let him drive the new SUV to the mall. I think that's an unfair stereotype, but it's there. Jimmie's got to either disprove it (not recommended - you'll just piss people off) or overcome it, like Gordon has (somewhat).
Posted by: Sara | May 3, 2005 1:01:11 PM
You people need to get real..So BIG DEAL..he didnt admit it was his fault...Like there has never been another driver not to admit to it, nor will there never be another one in the future....But you have to keep going back to that, because its the only excuse you can come up with.. SO WHAT.I've heard him take responsibility before...guess you don't hear what you dont want to..My personal opinion...You people dont like the fact that Jimmie is a dominant driver and he is a threat to all of the drivers out there...and the points leader the last few years , so this sounds like a bit of jealousy to me...JJ has always been a clean driver..so he frigs up the last few races...Get over it...As far as Jeff Gordon goes....Keep him out of it...This is a Johnson issue...No need to bring him into it...Another theory of jealousy there to me...Maybe Johnson ought to learn that *Sneaky* smile that Earnhardt used to use..Better yet...He can comeup with one of his own...You go Jimmie, sounds like sore LOSERS to me!
Posted by: Terry | May 3, 2005 1:16:51 PM
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