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Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 Toyota wins the NASCAR Nationwide Series owner’s championship, claiming nine victories with four different drivers during the season. (Photo Credit: Marc Serota/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Jimmie Johnson wins his third consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship, becoming only the second driver in history to accomplish the feat. Johnson’s championship performance is highlighted by his strong showing in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, as he posts three wins, six top fives, eight top 10s and an average finish of 5.7. (Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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The new NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car completed its first full season. More cars had lead-lap finishes (48.26 percent) and more were running at the finish (89.6 percent) than in any season in NASCAR history. (Photo Credit: John Harrelson/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Kyle Busch excels in all three national series, winning a combined 21 races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup, NASCAR Nationwide and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. (Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Tony Stewart announces he’s leaving Joe Gibbs Racing to become owner/driver of Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009. Stewart won two Sprint Cup championships during his 10-year tenure with JGR. (Photo Credit: Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Carl Edwards wins a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series-high nine races and finishes runner-up in both the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series. (Photo Credit: Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Johnny Benson edges Ron Hornaday Jr. to win the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship in the second-closest points battle in series history. Benson joins Greg Biffle as the only other driver to win titles in both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. (Photo Credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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In his first season driving for Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Jr. breaks a 76- race winless streak by winning at Michigan on Father’s Day. Earnhardt Jr. finishes 12th in points with one victory, 10 top fives and 16 top-10 finishes on the season. (Photo Credit: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) |
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Jeff Gordon’s streak of 14 consecutive seasons of winning a race is snapped as he goes winless in 2008. (Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Clint Bowyer wins the NASCAR Nationwide Series championship and continues to establish himself as one of the rising stars in the sport. (Photo Credit: Jaime Squire/Getty Images) |
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Ryan Newman wins his – and owner Roger Penske’s – first Daytona 500, with teammate Kurt Busch finishing second. (Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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Mark Martin announces he is going to return to a full-time racing schedule in 2009, joining Hendrick Motorsports’ mega-team of Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Photo Credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) |
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Eighteen-year-old Joey Logano bursts upon the national series scene, competing in 19 NASCAR Nationwide Series events, winning at Kentucky Speedway and posting five top-five and 14 top-10 finishes. Logano will drive the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2009. (Photo Credit: Padraic Major for NASCAR) |
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Greg Biffle wins the first two races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and re-establishes himself as a championship contender after a two-year absence from the Chase. (Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images) |
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Camping World is announced as the new title sponsor for NASCAR’s Truck Series beginning in 2009. Craftsman had been the title sponsor since the series’ inception in 1995. (Photo Credit: John Harrelson/Getty Images for NASCAR) |
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NFL standout Randy Moss enters the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series as owner of the No. 84 Randy Moss Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado. (Photo Credit: Geoff Burke |