Jimmie Johnson's podcast co-host and long-time buddy, Marty Smith, reflected on how their bond has only grown stronger over the years. He shared that Johnson has always been there for him—even reaching out after their conflict in late 2006.Johnson, who just won the 2006 NASCAR championship, broke his wrist after "horsing around" on top of a golf cart and falling off. Around the same time, Smith had just joined ESPN and reported on the incident, even though Johnson preferred he didn’t. The tension followed them all the way to Paris for the Race of Champions Nations Cup, where the former Hendrick Motorsports driver told Travis Pastrana (his supposed teammate, but he missed the race due to injury) not to speak with Smith.When they returned to the U.S., Marty Smith recalled Jimmie Johnson reaching out to him, saying they should talk it over because he owes him an apology. Since then, they have gotten closer, with Smith calling their friendship “impenetrable”.The American sports journalist and 'Never Settle' podcast co-host said:“Y’all can’t imagine the things this man’s done for me.”“I can't believe this. Yeah, that was crazy, man. But we hashed it out, and I'll tell you the funny thing about conflict is if you're willing to shed pride, the bond that comes out of that is so much stronger, and it did. It made our friendship impenetrable,” he added. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostJimmie Johnson, meanwhile, admitted he crossed the line and took their dispute as a lesson. The now 49-year-old said it taught him how a friend should, and shouldn’t, be treated.“You didn't cross any lines there”: Jimmie Johnson on Marty Smith after their dispute in 2006On the same podcast episode with Ally Financial CMO Andrea Brimmer, Jimmie Johnson clarified that Marty Smith hadn’t really crossed any lines. He was frustrated that Smith had reported the incident, which Johnson believed should have remained private.The 83-time Cup race winner said:“You didn't cross any lines there. It was all public knowledge. Like everything you reported was the truth. I just happened to see it and I didn't like it because it was you.” [1:28:34]He admitted he was always trying to be “squeaky clean”, not realizing that his peers made mistakes too, adding:“The flip to that is, in our conversation with Andrea (Brimmer), we spoke a bit about how 20s, 30s, or I did. I said when I got to my 40s, I started to realize that my peers also made mistakes. At that moment in life, and the way I created opportunity was by being squeaky clean.”Despite missing the Race of Champions Nations Cup in 2006, Johnson carried on to win four more consecutive NASCAR championships (2007-2010) in the #48 Chevrolet. He also won the title in 2013 and 2016 to tie Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. on the all-time list.The Californian is currently a co-owner and part-time driver at Legacy Motor Club. The Toyota-affiliated team fields two full-time NASCAR Cup Series entries, namely the #42 of John Hunter Nemechek and the #43 of Erik Jones.