Locked up: Jimmie Johnson, Lowe's extend with Hendrick through 2017

By foxsports
Published

On the heels of making his 12th Chase for the Sprint Cup appearance, Jimmie Johnson has signed a two-year contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports, sources confirmed to FOXSports.com.

The deal will keep the six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion behind the wheel of the No. 48 Chevrolet through the 2017 season.

Johnson took to his Twitter account to share the news in his typical humble, humorous manner.

In addition to Johnson's extension, Hendrick Motorsports has also signed sponsor Lowe's to a two-year contract extension through 2017.

"Lowe's has a longstanding history with NASCAR and knows its fans are some of the most loyal in all of sports," said Tom Lamb, chief marketing officer of Lowe's. "Our partnership with Jimmie and Hendrick Motorsports has been an amazing ride as we chase history, and more than 265,000 Lowe's employees are proud to be part of such a legacy."

Johnson made his Sprint Cup Series debut for Hendrick Motorsports on Oct. 7, 2001, driving the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The future champion would run three races that season before kicking off his full-time Sprint Cup career in 2002, when he began his long-time partnership with crew chief Chad Knaus.

Knaus recently signed an extension with Hendrick Motorsports through the 2018 season.

The partnership between Hendrick, Johnson, Knaus and Lowe's has led to six Sprint Cup championships, 74 victories, 204 top fives, 309 top 10s and 33 poles.

"My relationship with Lowe's and Hendrick Motorsports means so much," Johnson said in a team release. "To me, this just reinforces how committed Lowe's is to our sport and to our partnership. It says a lot to have one sponsor and one team for this amount of time. I couldn't be prouder to represent everyone at Lowe's and Hendrick Motorsports. This is my home, and I'm looking forward to many more victories together as a team."

While the No. 48 team has enjoyed great success and rewritten the NASCAR history books, team owner Rick Hendrick admits it was all a gamble in the beginning.

"The contributions Jimmie and Chad have made to Hendrick Motorsports can't be overstated. When Lowe's took a chance by sponsoring the No. 48 team back in 2001, we never could've envisioned the results," he said. "It's a championship combination and genuine partnership that we're proud to continue and committed to develop even further."