NASCAR officially names ‘75 Greatest Drivers’ in celebration of 75th anniversary

Thursday night’s announcement of seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson as one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers completed the list after a several-week rollout. The drivers, honored in celebration of NASCAR’s 75th anniversary, will be recognized during the annual Throwback Weekend at Darlington Raceway.

The unranked collection of the sport’s greatest drivers comprises 25 new names who were added to the list of 50 Greatest Drivers that received the distinction during NASCAR’s 50th anniversary in 1998.

The new additions were determined by a blue-ribbon committee of former drivers, team owners, industry personnel, NASCAR executives and current and former media members. NASCAR partnered with industry stakeholders to add the element of surprise as it revealed five new names each of the past five weeks, much to the delight of fans and the drivers themselves.

Darlington race weekend will serve as the capstone celebration for the 75 Greatest Drivers, as the full group will be honored prior to Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Several NASCAR legends will attend and participate in fan-facing activities including autograph sessions and live Q&A’s on Saturday and Sunday. More details are available at darlingtonraceway.com.

Fans can visit the NASCAR 75 content hub for more details about the 75 Greatest Drivers and other anniversary content, including interactive historical timelines, entire seasons-in-review, original content with legendary drivers and more.

The following were recently announced as one of NASCAR’s Greatest Drivers:

Sam Ard – Back-to-back NASCAR Xfinity Series champion (1983-84).

Greg Biffle – Won 19 NASCAR Cup Series races. 2002 Xfinity Series champion and 2000 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion.

Jeff Burton – Won 21 NASCAR Cup Series races and 27 Xfinity Series races.

Kurt Busch – 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion won 34 Cup races including the 2017 Daytona 500.

Kyle Busch – Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion (2015, ’19) and 2009 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. – 15-time Most Popular Driver won 26 times in the Cup Series, including two Daytona 500s. Won back-to-back Xfinity Series championships in 1998-99.

Carl Edwards – Won 28 NASCAR Cup Series races. 2007 Xfinity Series champion.

Chase Elliott – 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion and 2014 Xfinity Series champion.

Denny Hamlin – Won 49 NASCAR Cup Series races including three Daytona 500s (2016, ’19, ’20).

Kevin Harvick – 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion has 60 Cup wins. Two-time Xfinity Series champion (2001, ’06).

Ron Hornaday Jr. – Four-time NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion (1996, ’98, 2007, ’09).

Jimmie Johnson – Record-tying seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion (2006-10, ’13, ’16).

Bobby Labonte – 2000 NASCAR Cup Series champion and 1991 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion.

Randy LaJoie – Won consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series championships in 1996-97.

Kyle Larson – 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion.

Joey Logano – Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion (2018, ’22) has 32 Cup Series wins including the 2015 Daytona 500.

Kasey Kahne – Won 18 NASCAR Cup Series races.

Matt Kenseth – 2003 NASCAR Cup Series champion won 39 Cup races including two Daytona 500s.

Brad Keselowski – 2012 NASCAR Cup Series champion and 2010 Xfinity Series champion.

Sterling Marlin – Won 10 NASCAR Cup Series races including back-to-back Daytona 500s (1994-95).

Ryan Newman – Won 18 NASCAR Cup Series races, including the 2008 Daytona 500, and 51 poles.

Larry Phillips – Five-time NASCAR Weekly Series champion (1989, ’91-92, ’95-96).

Mike Stefanik – Record-tying nine NASCAR championships – seven Whelen Modified Tour (1989, ’91, ’97-98, ’01-02, ’06) and two East Series (1997-98).

Tony Stewart – Three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion (2002, ’05, ’11).

Martin Truex Jr. – 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion and back-to-back Xfinity Series champion (2004-05).

NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers
Bobby Allison
Denny Hamlin
Ryan Newman
Davey Allison
Kevin Harvick
Cotton Owens
Sam Ard
Ray Hendrick
Marvin Panch
Buck Baker
Ron Hornaday Jr.
Benny Parsons
Buddy Baker
Jack Ingram
David Pearson
Greg Biffle
Ernie Irvan
Lee Petty
Geoff Bodine
Bobby Isaac
Richard Petty
Neil Bonnett
Dale Jarrett
Larry Phillips
Jeff Burton
Ned Jarrett
Tim Richmond
Kurt Busch
Jimmie Johnson
Fireball Roberts
Kyle Busch
Junior Johnson
Ricky Rudd
Red Byron
Kasey Kahne
Mike Stefanik
Jerry Cook
Matt Kenseth
Tony Stewart
Dale Earnhardt
Brad Keselowski
Marshall Teague
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Alan Kulwicki
Herb Thomas
Ralph Earnhardt
Bobby Labonte
Martin Truex Jr.
Carl Edwards
Terry Labonte
Curtis Turner
Bill Elliott
Randy LaJoie
Rusty Wallace
Chase Elliott
Kyle Larson
Darrell Waltrip
Richie Evans
Joey Logano
Joe Weatherly
Red Farmer
Fred Lorenzen
Bob Welborn
Tim Flock
Tiny Lund
Rex White
A.J. Foyt
Sterling Marlin
Glenn Wood
Harry Gant
Mark Martin
Cale Yarborough
Jeff Gordon
Hershel McGriff
LeeRoy Yarbrough.

Celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, NASCAR Mexico Series, NASCAR Pinty’s Series (Canada), NASCAR Whelen Euro Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA.

Based in Daytona Beach, Fla., with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 12 countries and more than 30 U.S. states. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).