Four Chevrolets occupied the top five positions following Sunday’s Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and surprisingly, Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 car wasn’t one of them. The six-time Sprint Cup champ led 45 laps in the 267-lap race, but he struggled to stay competitive after tire issues arose on lap 90.
Johnson was in the lead when he abruptly dropped out and headed for the pits, citing wheel vibration as his reasoning. His team tightened a lug nut to remedy the problem, but another tire issue sent him into the wall on lap 172. The repairs cost him 10 more laps, and he was soon back in the pits after another tire problem sent him into the wall once more.
According to Johnson, the beading that holds the tire together separated, which he described as “kind of a freak deal.” The silver lining to the situation, in his opinion, was that the No. 48 car was fast before it was sent careening into the wall.
“It would really be a bummer if we were slow and blowing tires and hitting the wall,” Johnson told USA Today.
Johnson was able to complete the race, but he finished in 41st and was over 30 laps down from winner Kevin Harvick. A quick rundown of his tire issues can be seen in the video below.
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