Caution flag.

• Author: Martin, Edward
• Position: NCTREND: NASCAR

Jimmie Johnson is not The King or The Intimidator, which suits sponsors just fine. But can a sanitized NASCAR pick up the sport's flagging pace?

Richard Petty chomped cigars, sounded like Sheriff Andy Taylor and, even years after his seventh NASCAR championship in 1979, still lacked patience with slowpokes. Bumping one out of the fast lane on Interstate 85 near Concord cost the Randleman Rocket a reckless driving ticket. By contrast, after Jimmie Johnson tied the NASCAR seven-championship record that Petty shared with Dale Earnhardt Sr., the California native was back home in Charlotte, scrubbed, polished arid speaking evening-anchorman English, handing out some of the $9 million he has distributed from his family's charitable foundation.

But there's more distance between the two seven-time champions than the shade-tree, down-home Randolph County where Petty greased his fingernails and Johnson's $14.5 million apartment in Manhattan. Industry analysts say his November championship will likely double the more than $22 million he pocketed after finishing 10th in the points race in 2015, a relatively bad year for him. The take underscores the stratospheric financial realm the championship and NASCAR have achieved since Petty earned iconic status. In his 200-win, 35-year career, Petty won $8.5 million. Johnson, 41, has won 80 races and more than $150 million.

UNC Charlotte sports economist Craig Depken II estimates a typical top race team burns through $15 million to $20 million a year, most from its primary sponsor. In Johnson's case, that is Lowe's Cos., which refused comment on financial aspects of Johnson's sponsorship. A championship can give team owners such as Johnson's, Hendrick Motorsports Inc., a lofty position from which to negotiate with sponsors the next year.

However, unlike the days when drivers were sometimes paid on the spot from ticket proceeds--if the race promoter didn't abscond with the cash first--the worth of Johnson's 2016 championship is hidden in the financial morass that...