This is not a good beginning for Jimmie Johnson.
The Hendricks Motorsports titan went into the wall at New Hampshire practice as he was taking Turn 3 and by the looks of it, he's severely damaged the No. 48
Not the start to the weekend @JimmieJohnson was looking for at @NHMS.#NASCARPlayoffs #Chasing8 pic.twitter.com/zDSXZozaUD
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) September 22, 2017
The damage is as bad as it looks, and NASCAR on NBC reported Johnson will have to go to his back-up car. If this were 2018, he would have had to start in the back of the pack because that's when a NASCAR rule changes takes effect.
Johnson is chasing his eighth NASCAR title.