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This was perhaps the easiest of them all. Inarguable. Unanimous. A slam-dunk. No contest. A no-brainer. Don’t even come around here with that, “yeah, but what about that long losing streak at the end?”
No. A thousand times no!!!
There is no argument that the semi-retired Jimmie Johnson is as worthy as anyone has ever been of being included among NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers. The seven-time Cup Series champion was named on Thursday to join the organization’s other 74 greatest drivers in this, NASCAR’s 75th anniversary season. (All 75 or their representatives will be recognized during pre-race ceremonies at this weekend’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.
NASCAR unveiled its newest 25 greatest – to accompany the original 50 greatest unveiled 25 years ago – in no specific order. But was it really “random” that three-time champion Tony Stewart was the first honoree at No. 51 and Johnson bookended him at No. 75?
No matter… the other 74 “greatest” almost certainly would have returned their certificate (and maybe a cool “75 Greatest Drivers” jacket?) if Johnson hadn’t been named among them. Even the most cynical or low-brow would agree that 2-J absolutely belongs to their little group of stars that includes drivers from as far back as 1949 and as recently as last weekend.
Evidence? You want evidence? How about this for evidence:
• Johnson’s seven Cup Series championships are matched only by fellow Hall of Fame legends Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt. The only full-schedule active drivers anywhere near that exalted trio are two-time champions Joey Logano and Kyle Busch… and it’s a long, tough slog from two championships to seven;
• Among Johnson’s seven titles were an unprecedented five in a row, between 2006 and 2010. It’s indisputable that Petty’s 27 points-paying victories in 1967 and his 10 consecutive victories that year will never be matched. NEVER!! But his son, Kyle, contends that Johnson’s five consecutive titles is equally as unapproachable as Richard’s dominance in 1967. And who better than the King’s kid to make that assessment? (In addition to seven titles, Johnson was second in points twice and third once. Surprisingly, though, he wasn’t 2002 Rookie of the Year, an honor given to Ryan Newman);
• Johnson spent parts of 20 seasons in No. 48 Chevrolets at Hendrick Motorsports, most of them with Chad Knaus atop the pit box. His numbers at HMS are undeniably Hall of Fame worthy: 36 poles, 83 victories, 232 top-5 finishes, 374 top-10 finishes, and 15 top-10 points finishes in 686 starts. He spent two dismal seasons in IndyCar (2021-2022) before becoming a part-time driver/co-owner this year with Maury Gallagher of Chevrolet-based Legacy Motor Club;
• Many of his 83 victories came at NASCAR’s most important tracks: 11 times at Dover, nine at Martinsville, eight at Charlotte, seven at Fort Worth, six at Fontana, five at Atlanta, four each at Indianapolis, Phoenix, and Las Vegas, three each at Darlington, Daytona Beach, Kansas City, Loudon, Richmond and Pocono, two each at Bristol and Talladega, and one each at Homestead, Michigan, and Sonoma.
Granted, Johnson struggled down the stretch. His last victory with Knaus at Dover in June of 2017 led into a puzzling 130-race losing streak. They were 0-for-36 in 2018, Johnson was 0-for-36 with crew chiefs Kevin Meendering and Cliff Daniels in 2019, then 0-for-35 with Daniels in 2020. (FYI: Daniels won the Cup title in 2021, his first season with Kyle Larson).
• If “Grand Slam” victories are, indeed, another mark of excellence, then Johnson stands tall: four in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, four in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, two in the Daytona 500, two in the Southern 500, and two at Talladega. His victories came on superspeedways, short tracks, road courses, and mid-length speedways… all told victories at 20 tracks;
So don’t despair because Johnson finally made the cut after so many others went ahead of him on the ballot to get NASCAR’s “greatest drivers” class from 50 to 75. Intentionally or not, maybe the voting panel in Daytona Beach and Charlotte simply wanted to save the best of the newest 25 for last.
NASCAR’S Greatest Drivers
Original 50
SELECTED IN 1998
Bobby Allison
Davey Allison
Buck Baker
Buddy Baker
Geoff Bodine
Neil Bonnett
Red Byron
Jerry Cook
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Earnhardt
Bill Elliott
Richie Evans
Red Farmer
Tim Flock
A.J. Foyt
Harry Gant
Jeff Gordon
Ray Hendrick
Jack Ingram
Ernie Irvan
Bobby Isaac
Dale Jarrett
Ned Jarrett
Junior Johnson
Alan Kulwicki
Terry Labonte
Fred Lorenzen
Tiny Lund
Mark Martin
Hershel McGriff
Cotton Owens
Marvin Panch
Benny Parsons
David Pearson
Lee Petty
Richard Petty
Tim Richmond
Fireball Roberts
Ricky Rudd
Marshall Teague
Herb Thomas
Curtis Turner
Rusty Wallace
Darrell Waltrip
Joe Weatherly
Bob Welborn
Rex White
Glen Wood
Cale Yarborough
LeeRoy Yarbrough
The New 25
SELECTED IN 2023
(No particular order)
51, Tony Stewart
52, Kasey Kahne
53, Mike Stefanik
54, Randy Lajoie
55, Kyle Larson
56, Greg Biffle
57, Sterling Marlin
58, Ryan Newman
59, Chase Elliott
60, Carl Edwards
61, Ron Hornaday
62, Jeff Burton
63, Dale Earnhardt Jr.
64, Bobby Labonte
65, Martin Truex Jr.
66, Brad Keselowski
67, Larry Phillips
68, Sammy Ard
69, Kurt Busch
70, Kyle Busch
71, Denny Hamlin
72, Kevin Harvick
73, Joey Logano
74, Matt Kenseth
75, Jimmie Johnson
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