Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR Champ: His Ranking Among 10 Best Champions of NASCAR
Winning the title in NASCAR's top-tier of racing has never been an easy feat, but Jimmie Johnson's five consecutive titles almost make it look easy.
Johnson is a different breed of driver, not born of southern roots like so many other champions in the sport. He has a mental advantage that combines with his emotional control to benefit him in ways that have contributed to success on his road to five titles.
He is by no means the greatest driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series now or compared to drivers who are no longer active. Many other drivers have shown more natural ability behind the wheel than Johnson.
It is the pairing of Johnson with Chad Knaus, his crew chief, and the team assembled at Hendrick Motorsports that has created magic—blending Johnson's ability to race and communicate with Knaus.
Johnson made history with his fourth and fifth consecutive wins. It may be a record that will never be broken in NASCAR unless, perhaps, by the driver of the No. 48 Lowe's Chevy.
There have been many great champions in the sport of NASCAR at the Cup level. They all faced the challenges of their particular era, having to race, at times, in conditions and with equipment that put their life on the line with every lap
The modern-era drivers have seen amazing changes with safety, equipment and incredible amounts of money spent to get them on the track to do their jobs. Johnson had the best of everything money could buy to help him continue to win titles, but, of course, without his ability, it means nothing.
Let's take a look at where Jimmie Johnson ranks against the 10 best Sprint Cup champions in the history of NASCAR.
No. 10: Bobby Allison
1 of 10
Bobby Allison only won one NASCAR Cup championship, in 1983. He had 84 career wins with 446 top 10 finishes spanning 718 races during 25 years.
True, other champions have won more, like Ned Jarrett. Allison was able to win on all types of tracks, which showed his versatility as a driver.
The Miami-born driver moved to Alabama with his brother to seek better racing and greater monetary rewards. He became the leader of the "Alabama Gang" which consisted of Allison, his brother Donnie and Red Farmer. The three drivers were feared when they showed up at some of the local southern short tracks.
Allison has been a great spokesperson for NASCAR, despite the loss of his sons to the sport and near fatal injuries he received while racing.
No. 9: Lee Petty
2 of 10
Lee Petty was the patriarch of a racing dynasty that included his son, Richard, grandson, Kyle, and great grandson, the late Adam Petty. He started racing when he was 35 years old, which made him a late bloomer in NASCAR.
Petty won three NASCAR Grand National (Sprint Cup) titles in 1954, 1958 and 1959. He won 54 races with 332 top 10's out of 427 races.
Petty won the inaugural Daytona 500 in 1959 with a controversial finish involving Johnny Beauchamp. It took three days of viewing photos to determine the winner.
No. 8: Tony Stewart
3 of 10
Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart got his racing start in open-wheel cars and won championship titles in USAC and the IRL.
Stewart began his career in NASCAR's top tier in 1999. During those 12 seasons, he has 39 wins and 246 top-10 finishes. He won the NASCAR Nextel (Sprint Cup) title in 2002 and 2005.
Stewart made the Chase in 2010 and is ranked seventh in the final point standings. As an owner/driver, he has shown his ability to manage and drive in NASCAR, and to do both well.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
No. 7: Cale Yarborough
4 of 10
Cale Yarborough won his first NASCAR series race at the 1957 Southern 500 at Darlington. The South Carolina native won three consecutive Winston Cup (Sprint Cup) Championship titles in 1976, 1977 and 1978.
His consecutive titles were considered unique to the sport until Jimmie Johnson blew by with a fourth and now a fifth consecutive championship.
Yarborough's record shows 83 wins and 319 top-10 finishes, with four Daytona 500 wins: 1968, 1977, 1983 and 1984. He was a scrappy driver who was tough on his fellow competitors.
No. 6: Darrell Waltrip
5 of 10
Darrell Waltrip was the winner of three NASCAR Winston Cup (Sprint Cup) Championships in 1982, 1983 and 1985. He was a three-time runner-up for the NASCAR title in 1979, 1983 and 1986.
His statistics show 84 wins and 309 top-10 finishes during 809 races over 29 years. He was the first driver to win $10 million, in 1990, and he has been honored many times, including as NASCAR's Most Popular Driver twice.
We see him now as a television commentator for NASCAR coverage.
No. 5: Jeff Gordon
6 of 10
Jeff Gordon was the first four-time NASCAR Winston Cup (Sprint Cup) champion at Hendrick Motorsports. He ran his first Cup race in 1992 at the Hooters 500 in Atlanta.
Gordon became the youngest driver to win a title in NASCAR's top-tier by battling seven-time defending champion Dale Earnhardt in 1995.
Gordon's other three championships came in 1997, 1998 and 2001. He has 82 wins and 378 top-10 finishes.
It was Gordon who convinced Rick Hendrick to bring Jimmie Johnson in as a developmental driver in 2002 at HMS and even shared ownership of his car. He hasn't won a title since and he was ranked ninth in the 2010 point standings.
No. 4: Jimmie Johnson
7 of 10
Jimmie Johnson started dirt-bike racing at age five in his home state of California. He raced in other series, including the NASCAR Nationwide series. In 2001, he ran a few races in the top-tier of NASCAR racing, but his first full season was in 2002 with Hendrick Motorsports.
In the nine seasons he has raced in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series, he has won five consecutive titles, beginning in 2006.
His career statistics show 53 wins and 203 top-10 finishes. Considering the relatively brief time he has been racing, his stats are amazing when matched against those who raced much longer and were champions in the sport of NASCAR.
No. 3: David Pearson
8 of 10
David Pearson, the South Carolina native, won three NASCAR Grand National (Sprint Cup) championships in 1966, 1968 and 1969. His third title, in 1969, tied him with Lee Petty for the most titles in NASCAR history.
His record shows 105 wins and 366 top-10 finishes. He won an amazing 113 poles, 12 of which were consecutive at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
During the 1966 season, Pearson won 15-of-49 events. Many races were held at short tracks around the south such as Greenville-Pickens and Hickory Motor Speedway. Some years he did not run full seasons yet still finished well in the points, like in 1962 when he started 12-of-53 events, yet finished 10th in the points.
Pearson is a 2011 inductee for the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
No. 2: Dale Earnhardt Sr.
9 of 10
Dale Earnhardt won seven NASCAR Winston Cup (Sprint Cup) Championships to tie a record with seven-time title winner, Richard Petty.
Earnhardt began racing in the Cup series in 1975. It wasn't until he began driving for Rod Osterlund in 1979 that he found success, when he became Rookie of the Year despite missing four races with a broken collarbone.
In 1980, he won the first title with Osterlund and the other six championships came in 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1994—the last with Richard Childress Racing.
Legendary NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee for the class of 2011, Bud Moore, said of Earnhardt: "He can do more things with a car than anyone I've seen. I'll put it this way, he is the best I've ever seen and that includes Fireball Roberts and like that."
Moore pretty much summed up what the driver known as the "Intimidator" was to the sport. Earnhardt was inducted in the first class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
The tragic death of Earnhardt at Daytona in 2001 left a void in the sport of NASCAR that may never be filled.
No. 1: Richard Petty
10 of 10
Richard Petty was the son of racing legend, Lee Petty. Nicknamed the "King," Petty was the first to win seven NASCAR top-tier titles. He won the Grand National (Sprint Cup) title in 1964, 1967 and 1971, and the Winston Cup (Sprint Cup) title in 1972, 1974, 1975 and 1979.
Petty has the record of 200 wins and his statistics show 712 top-10 finishes and 127 poles over a period of 35 years and 1,184 races.
The famed driver of the No. 43 had his last win at the Firecracker 400 at Daytona in 1984. He announced his retirement in 1991, with the following year being his last. At the 1992 Firecracker 400, he qualified second and was honored in a gift ceremony which included President George H. W. Bush.
Petty always fielded his own cars under the Petty Enterprise banner. During the last few years, financial turmoil and mergers forced Petty to lose control of the company he built. Petty just announced he is regaining control of a new, leaner company. NASCAR would not be the same without the iconic Petty having a team.
Petty was inducted in the first class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
