Jimmie Johnson becomes majority owner of Legacy Motor Club as private equity firm buys into team

 

[January 28, 2025]  By JENNA FRYER

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson is now the majority owner of Legacy Motor Club under a restructuring in which investment adviser Knighthead Capital Management bought into the Cup Series team.

Knighthead manages $9 billion of assets with a portfolio that includes investments in Hertz, World Endurance Championship sports car team JOTA Racing, Singer Vehicle Design, Revology Cars and a controlling stake of English soccer team Birmingham.

Johnson told The Associated Press that the deal announced Monday makes Knighthead “a significant minority partner” in that the private equity firm bought much of the ownership stake held by Legacy co-owner Maury Gallagher.

Gallagher retained some shares in the NASCAR team but will step down from day-to-day operations and join Hall of Famer Richard Petty as an ambassador for Legacy.

Johnson, who has been living in England for more than a year, will return to Charlotte to be hands-on in his larger role with Legacy. His wife and two daughters will follow at the end of the school year.

“I thought I was going to have three more years to understand ownership more,” Johnson told the AP of his original plan when he bought into the NASCAR team ahead of the 2023 season.

Legacy is essentially the rebuild from the bones of what was once Petty Enterprises, one of NASCAR's oldest and winningest race teams. Gallagher, the chairman of Allegiant Air, owned GMS Racing and in 2021 acquired Richard Petty Motorsports and rebranded it as Petty GMS Racing.

Johnson signed on at the end of 2022 and the team was again rebranded into Legacy as it expanded to two full-time Cup cars ahead of the 2023 season. The plan was to allow Johnson to grow in his role as NASCAR team owner over about five seasons, but the timeline changed when he developed a relationship with Knighthead and Gallagher decided to step back.

“I've had an open eye to the private equity world and trying to understand what's out there,” Johnson said. "I know that there are some other teams with PE involvement, and I just started to get to know people. I had a head start and a few friendships out there, but ultimately the opportunity and access to Knighthead and the friendship I built was done socially, and when it was time to really engage in the PE world, we just clicked and got together to see where we could go.

“We wanted to move quick. And here we are, it's only been a couple of months, it's been very, very quick.”

The partnership begins immediately and Knighthead will be part of Legacy when the NASCAR season begins this weekend with the preseason race at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem.

Tom Wagner, co-founder and co-managing member of Knighthead Capital, said the firm was drawn by “NASCAR’s rich history and Legacy MC's ambition and innovation make it a unique opportunity."

“We’re thrilled to collaborate ... to drive the team forward, both on the track and within the wider racing community,” Wagner added.

Tom Brady has stakes in Knighthead but the deal with Legacy does not involve Brady at this time, Johnson said. But, Johnson and Brady have discussed possibly partnering on an Indianapolis 500 entry for driver Sebastian Bourdais with Chip Ganassi Racing. Ganassi told the AP he had only one preliminary conversation with Johnson about it and there has been no further discussion.

Legacy this season will field two full-time cars, the No. 43 Toyota for Erik Jones and the No. 42 Toyota for John Hunter Nemechek. Johnson will attempt to qualify next month for the season-opening Daytona 500 and also the Coca-Cola 600 in May.

Johnson, who turns 50 in September, ran nine races last year but said he realized at the season-finale in Phoenix that Legacy needed him available in his executive role more than it did as a driver.

He thanked Gallagher for the opportunity to become a NASCAR team owner and is eager to help Legacy improve its on-track performance while working with Knighthead to expand the Legacy brand into more spaces.

“He has been an outstanding partner, mentor and friend and I’m grateful we had the opportunity to work together,” Johnson said of Gallagher. "I’ve learned so much from him, and as his professional career takes a different path, he can worry less about being an owner and more about focusing on family and enjoying life.”

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