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Johnson expects stage racing to "ramp up" the aggression at the Glen

Jimmie Johnson has not won at Watkins Glen in 15 previous Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series starts.

Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Action Sports Photography

Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

The famed New York road course is just one of three current tracks where he's yet to win at -- Chicagoland Speedway and Kentucky Speedway being the other two.

“I thought that I would win here before I would at Sonoma," admitted Johnson. "I took to this track pretty quickly in the Busch days and in the Cup Series, I’ve been a top three car at times, but probably more often than not, a top five car. So, I hope to find that little bit extra to hold on with the long run speed.

"I seem to be able to be competitive on the short runs, but like many drivers deal with here, I just get the brakes too hot. And on the long runs I seem to give up a little bit of speed. I need to create lap time, I think, without depending on the brakes so much come race time. So, we’re working on a few things in that department. Certainly driver input plays a big role in that and I’m looking forward to getting on track. We had a terrible race here last year and were taken out early in a pretty spectacular fashion off the carousel, and I’m looking forward to a good strong run here this weekend.”

Johnson is a a big fan of WGI and the surrounding Finger Lakes region, saying, "I love this area. I’ve always been a big fan of this track ... I’d love to win here without a doubt. It’s a very cool track. There’s a lot of history here. And it’s one of three tracks where I haven’t won, so I have a lot of motivation to win here.”

So far, the weekend hasn't gone without issue for the seven-time MENCS champion. In the opening practice session, Johnson went for a spin in Turn 1, contacting the tire barrier in the run-off area. Fortunately, the damage wasn't significant enough to bring out the back-up car. He ended up 18th on the time sheets.

Stage racing

With the addition of stage racing in 2017, it will bring a new layer of strategy to this weekend's race and according to the driver of the No. 48, a heightened level of aggression too.

“There are two or three obvious areas to make a pass here," he explained. "And if you know somebody is faster behind you, and you can hold them up for a lap or two and let their tires get hot or overwork their brakes, you throw a couple of blocks to protect your spot, you can keep somebody behind you pretty easily here. So, when that starts to happen, if you’re somebody that needs a win or who is desperate in points, you might have a bumper coming in your direction.

"I think that stage racing in general has really ramped this up. And then the equality in the cars and how difficult it is to pass is another component to that. So I anticipate it being very exciting here. The speeds are higher here versus Sonoma. So moving somebody out of the way is a bit trickier and I don’t think as common. But, it should be a very exciting race.”

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