After Jimmie Johnson's win at Atlanta on Sunday, he immediately, rightfully and classily turned that victory into a tribute to Dale Earnhardt, whom he'd just tied for seventh on NASCAR's career wins list at 76.
During his celebratory victory lap, he flashed a three-fingered salute out the window of his ride. During his Victory Lane celebration, he accepted hugs and praise from Dale Earnhardt Jr., who had finished second. And during his post-win news conference, Johnson openly bemoaned the fact that he'd never had the opportunity to race against the man they called The Intimidator.
But that doesn't mean he was never intimidated by him.
It was 1997 when Johnson, then in his mid-20s and known only to West Coast fans of off-road stadium truck racing, had come east to North Carolina to knock on doors in NASCAR country.
As was often the case back then for any young California racer, he'd ended up crashing at the home of Ron Hornaday Jr. Those were the days when Hornaday was at the pinnacle of the still-new NASCAR truck series.
He was the reigning series champion, just getting going in a career that last week earned him a place on the NASCAR Hall of Fame ballot for 2017.
Hornaday's boss was Dale Earnhardt, driving for soon-to-explode Dale Earnhardt Inc. But in '97, DEI hadn't yet broken ground on the race shop that would become known as the Garage Mahal.
Instead, Earnhardt worked out of an office in a redbrick house next to the smaller shop where Hornaday's NAPA trucks were prepped.
One day Hornaday needed to stop by the DEI office and asked the kid sleeping at his house whether he'd like to go meet the Man in Black.
"I said, 'Hell yes,'" Johnson recalled to me for an ESPN The Magazine piece nearly a decade ago.
When the two walked into Earnhardt's office, the veteran met young Johnson and went to put the nervous kid at ease. He tossed him a pocketknife as a gift.
Then, just as Johnson was beginning to relax, Earnhardt went into full Intimidator mode. He informed the kid that the knife wasn't free. He demanded a penny in return. Johnson chuckled. Then he looked at America's scariest mustache and the lip it garnished was not smiling back.
Dale Earnhardt was serious.
"I didn't have a penny," Johnson remembered. "He said if I didn't give him one I would give him 10 years bad luck. And I knew he was superstitious, so I went looking for a penny."
He didn't have one in his pocket or his wallet. In those days he never had any money in his pocket or wallet. He scoured the DEI parking lot. No penny. He rifled through Hornaday's truck. No penny. He was totally panicked.
Eventually, he found one and returned to The Intimidator still in a cold sweat. But a slap on the back and trademark wink let him know he'd passed the test. And, as anyone who grew to know Earnhardt would learn, if he messed with you, that meant he liked you.
This past Sunday, Earnhardt's son said he knew "Dad would have thought the world of" Jimmie Johnson. He'd already shared that with his teammate.
"I spoke to Junior a little bit [six months ago]," Johnson explained. "And he shared with me that he really feels like his dad would have had a ton of respect for me and would have enjoyed racing against me and we would have had a great friendship."
That never happened. But today they share a spot in the record books. If Johnson wins one more Cup series championship, they will share another.
If Johnson's career keeps rolling, he's likely not to share those stat lines for long.
But they'll always share that penny.