AN American driver who wowed Premier Speedway fans during his regular visits to Warrnambool is being remembered as a respected competitor who reached the sport’s pinnacle.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Jason Johnson died following a crash during a World of Outlaws round in Wisconsin on Sunday. He was 41.
Johnson was affectionately known as the ‘Ragin Cajun’ and enjoyed success on Australian soil, including a third-place result in the 2011 Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic.
His most recent visit to the Allansford track in January netted a runner-up finish on night two of the Classic.
Premier Speedway general manager David Mills said the sprintcar world had lost a respected driver.
“From the club’s point-of-view, he was always a welcome addition anytime here and a racer that was greatly respected by his fellow competitors and I think by the race fans as well,” he said.
“He came here as a young guy and we’d seen him develop into a very, very good racer, and that culminated in him winning the 2016 Knoxville Nationals which was an amazing feat in itself.
“We welcomed him back here to the Classic the last couple of years as well and were looking forward to him coming back many more times in the future but unfortunately that’s been cut short now. It is just a tragic loss to the sport as a whole and our sympathies go out to everyone that was close to him and especially his wife Bobbi and his young son Jaxx.”
Johnson’s Australian achievements included finishing World Series Sprintcars runner-up twice.
Justine McCullagh-Beasy
Sports journalist with an interest in feature reporting. Email: justine.mc@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Sports journalist with an interest in feature reporting. Email: justine.mc@austcommunitymedia.com.au
