Junior Johnson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Junior Johnson |
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Johnson in 1985
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| Born | Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. June 28, 1931 Wilkesboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
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| Died | December 20, 2019 (aged 88) Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
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| Achievements | 1960 Daytona 500 winner 6-time Winston Cup Series Owner's Champion with Cale Yarborough (1976, 1977, 1978) and Darrell Waltrip (1981, 1982, 1985) |
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| Awards | Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998) International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee (1990) Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee (1991) NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductee (2010) |
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| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 313 races run over 14 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 6th - 1955 in NASCAR and 1961 (Grand National) | ||||||
| First race | 1953 Southern 500 (Darlington) | ||||||
| Last race | 1966 American 500 (Rockingham) | ||||||
| First win | 1955 Hickory Motor Speedway | ||||||
| Last win | 1965 Wilkes 400 (North Wilkesboro) | ||||||
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Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. (June 28, 1931 – December 20, 2019), better known as Junior Johnson, was a NASCAR driver of the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966.
In the 1970s and 1980s, he became a NASCAR racing team owner; he sponsored such NASCAR champions as Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip. He now produces a line of fried pork skins and country ham. He was credited as the first to use the drafting technique in stock car racing.
He was nicknamed "The Last American Hero" and his autobiography is of the same name. In May 2007, Johnson teamed with Piedmont Distillers of Madison, North Carolina, to introduce the company's second moonshine product, called "Midnight Moon Moonshine".
Johnson died at a hospice care facility in Charlotte, North Carolina on December 20, 2019, at age 88. He had Alzheimer's disease at the time of his death.
Images for kids
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Junior Johnson, Darrell Waltrip, Car No. 11, Nashville 420, July 16, 1983
