Jimmie Johnson Q&A from Pocono

WHAT IS YOUR PLAN OVER THE NEXT 5 WEEKS? WILL YOU BE THERE FOR THE BIRTH OF YOUR CHILD?
“Yeah, that’s our goal. And again, we’re going off of averages and what the doctors can tell us; how long labor typically takes and all that stuff. But still each individual’s body and the way the birth goes, it can be fast it can be long. But looking on averages, we feel now with the due date being right after Chicago on that off-week, we won’t have a problem. If the baby does decide to come earlier, Aric (Almirola) will be there. The first goal for me would be to drive a lap and get some points. But it just depends on the situation. There could be a situation where I’ve got to make a tough decision. Do I wait and drive that one lap and potentially miss the birth of our daughter, or do I stick around? That exists. There is no way around that. It just depends on how things shake out. Hopefully she’s on time or long as it traditionally goes and if that’s the case we’ll be into the off-weekend and everything will be fine.”

DID YOU HAVE ANY PAUSE IN CHOOSING ARIC ALMIROLA TO SIT IN THE CAR FOR YOU WHEN THE BABY IS BORN? OR ANY PAUSE ABOUT ANY OTHER DRIVER FOR THAT MATTER
“Starting with Rick (Hendrick) and then to Chad (Knaus) and my guys are all so excited for Chani and I to experience this and for me to be there and be a part of the birth and enjoy all those moments that come with it, that it’s been really cool, especially from Chad’s standpoint. He said, ‘There is no way you’re missing the birth of your daughter. You will be there. I don’t care what it costs, or what it takes, or if we don’t get points or whatever the situation is, you’re going to be there.’ And I’m like, I appreciate that but let’s focus here and make sure we can cover all the bases if it’s possible. So it’s been really good from those guys. They’re extremely supportive and it seems as if they’re more interesting in me being there on time than anything.”