NASCAR’s 2008 Season Shows That Age Does Matter

In NASCAR's 2008 season, the majority of the races were won by three drivers: Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Carl Edwards.  These three drivers were among the youngest in the top 12 who qualified for this year's Chase for the Championship.

Carl Edwards scored the most wins for the 2008 season at nine.  He was the next to the youngest driver in this year's Championship Chase at age 29.

Kyle Busch, at the tender age of 23, was the youngest of the Chase contenders.  He was also the next most prolific winner, scoring a total of eight race victories.

And then there was the three-peat Champion Jimmie Johnson, who won seven races in the 2008 season.  Johnson was the oldest of the three majority winners but still weighed in at the young age of 33 years.

The "older" drivers in this year's Chase did not fare as well as their younger counterparts.  Oldest driver Jeff Burton, at age 41, scored two race wins for the year.

Greg Biffle, the next oldest Chase contender at age 39, also won two races this season.  But 37-year-old Jeff Gordon went winless on the season, something that he had not done since his rookie year.

While the numerical differential between the "younger," more winning drivers and the "older," less successful drivers in 2008 may not seem great, the divide between the "generations" seems to be widening. 

Fewer drivers at the top level of the sport seem to be in the over-35 age bracket.  The younger drivers seem to be taking over the sport and having more of the success.

Of course, this is not new to the NASCAR racing scene.  Jeff Gordon took the series by storm when he was just a young man, winning races and championships as well.

What seems to have changed are the "older" drivers, who seem to be lagging further and further behind in race wins and competing for championships.   There are few drivers over the age of 45 years who are even able to remain competitive in the sport.

In an article "History Shows Prime Time for Wins, Titles is Early 30s," for NASCAR.COM, Mark Aumann theorizes that drivers between 31 and 35 years are in their prime racing years.  In fact, statistics show that a third of all races have been won by drivers in that age range.

These statistics held true in this year's Chase.  The average age of the three winners of the majority of the races this year was 33.25 years, right in the sweet spot of the statistical range. 

And of course, the champion Jimmie Johnson is smack dab in the middle of the range at 33 years of age.

So, are Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, and Greg Biffle over the hill?  And are Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, and Carl Edwards just headed into their prime? 

Does Jimmie Johnson have a statistical opportunity to break Cale Yarborough's record and achieve four championships in a row, since he is still well within the age range for success?

Only time will tell if the great age divide will continue to matter.  But the odds are surely in the favor of the younger NASCAR driving set for the upcoming 2009 season.

Photo Credit

RICHMOND, VA: (Left to Right - Back to Front) The Top 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Kyle Busch, pose on stage after making the Chase for the Sprint Cup following the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 7, 2008 in Richmond, Va. (Photo by Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images)