MOTORSPORTS 101

JR Motorsports and Jimmie Johnson will team up for the March 2nd NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Phoenix International Raceway. The news was announced on Thursday by team owner Kelley Earnhardt Miller.

Johnson, the five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and 60-time Sprint Cup Series winner, will drive the No. 5 Great Clips Chevrolet in the race.

“I appreciate Junior letting me run one of his cars,” Johnson said of his Hendrick Motorsports teammate and JR Motorsports owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. “My goal is to make my team owner so proud that, perhaps, he’ll invite me back more often than once every two years. In all seriousness, this is a great opportunity for me to get more familiar with the new configuration at PIR.”

It will be Johnson's 93rd career Nationwide Series start and first since 2011 at Watkins Glen when he also raced for JR Motorsports and finished second. Johnson's one Nationwide Series win came in 2001 at Chicagoland Speedway driving the No. 92 owned by Stanley Herzog. He has 24 career top 10's in his 92 starts.

Great Clips will sponsor JR Motorsports cars for 29 races in 2013. The original deal was for 28 races, with Brad Sweet racing at Phoenix. Now that Johnson will take that ride, Great Clips and sweet will team up at Michigan on June 15 instead. Kasey Kahne will also drive the Great Clips No. 5 car in 2013. Dale Earnhardt Jr will drive the No. 88 Great Clips car at Talladega in May.

JR Motorsports has won 10 times in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Regan Smith will drive the team's full time entry in the No. 7 car.

Tags: Brad Sweet, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Great Clips, Jimmie Johnson, JR Motorsports, Kasey Kahne, Kelley Earnhardt-Miller, Motorsports, NASCAR Nationwide Series, Nationwide Series, Regan Smith, Sprint Cup Series, Stanley Herzog

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