Jimmie Johnson and Paul Menard clear air over Daytona Clash crash

Menard was leading the non-championship event when Johnson moved to the inside in an attempt to pass, and triggered a crash that caught up most of the rest of the field.

The race then ended due to heavy rain while under caution following the incident, with Johnson securing victory.

Wood Brothers driver Menard criticised Johnson afterwards, with the seven-time Cup champion saying he was "remorseful" but defending his driving.

The pair met on Wednesday at Daytona to discuss the crash and Menard declared the matter closed.

"Jimmie did what he did to try to win. It was not intentional," he said.

"Maybe I moved down a little bit, I don't know. There was no room for error and two cars collided.

"What's done is done. We're not looking in the rearview mirror on that one - just moving on."

Johnson said soon after the crash that he wanted to clear the air with Menard in person, and now accepts he could have left more space too.

"It was great to have that conversation and talk to him. He knew then that it wasn't intentional," Johnson said.

"Looking back, I could have given him a few more inches. That way when he came down, there was a bit more margin for error between us.

"There's always lessons to learn, going back on the tape and talking to someone about those things.

"Sure he wasn't happy after the race, but he knew that wasn't intentional and it was more of a racing thing than anything."

Johnson believes the backlash against his driving was bigger because of how many other drivers were collected as Menard rebounded off the wall.

Only four of the 20 cars in the race got through completely unscathed.

"If we just bump and nobody gets turned around, it's the most the exciting finish we've had in the Clash in however long," Johnson said.

"But, unfortunately, it didn't turn out that way and a lot of cars were torn up."