Hendrick Motorsports' No. 48 team began Cup Series competition in 2001 when Hendrick signed Jimmie Johnson, a second-year Busch Series driver for Herzog-Jackson Motorsports. The team is co-owned by Hendrick and Jeff Gordon. Johnson made his debut at the fall Charlotte race, qualifying 15th and finishing 39th after crashing out. Johnson competed in two other races that year before moving to the Cup Series full-time in 2002. The No. 48 team took over old cars from the No. 24 team, which built new cars for the 2002 season. Johnson won three races and finished fifth in points, behind only Ryan Newman among rookies. He won three more races in 2003 and finished second in points.