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The NASCAR Cup Series Drivers' Championship is awarded by the chairman of NASCAR to the most successful NASCAR Cup Series racing car driver over a season, as determined by a points system based on race results. The Drivers' Championship was first awarded in 1949 to Red Byron.[1] The first driver to win multiple Championships was Herb Thomas in 1951 and 1953. The current Drivers' Champion is Joey Logano, who won his third NASCAR Cup Series championship in 2024.[2]
The NASCAR points system has undergone several incarnations since its initial implementation. Originally, races awarded points by a complicated system based upon final positioning and weighted by prize money purses, such that higher-paying events gave more points. Soon after the advent of the modern era in 1972, the championship was decided by a more basic cumulative point total based solely upon a driver's finishing position in each race. In order to reduce the possibility of a driver clinching before the final event, NASCAR implemented the "Chase for the Cup" in 2004 which, with minor modification from 2004 to 2013[3] and more radical changes in 2014,[4] stands as the current format. Before the final ten races, 16 drivers, chosen primarily on race wins, are reset to an equal number of points, with bonus points awarded to a driver for each win prior to the reset.[4] With these changes, the last Drivers' Champion to clinch before the final race was Matt Kenseth in 2003.[5]
Overall, thirty-six different drivers have won the Championship,[2] with Richard Petty,[6] Dale Earnhardt,[7] and Jimmie Johnson holding the record for most titles at seven. Johnson has the record for most consecutive Drivers' Championships, winning five from 2006 to 2010.[8] Thus far, every champion has originated from the United States.[2] Byron has the fewest number of race starts before winning his first title with six in 1949.[9] Bill Rexford is the youngest Cup Series champion; he was 23 years, 7 months, and 15 days old when he won the title in 1950.[10] Bobby Allison is the oldest Cup Series champion; he was 45 years, 11 months, and 17 days old when he won the championship in 1983.[11]
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As of completion of the seventy-sixth season (2024), 36 different drivers have won a NASCAR Cup Series Drivers' Championship – with 17 of these drivers winning more than once.[2]
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Consecutive Drivers' Championships
As of completion of the 2024 season, ten drivers have achieved consecutive wins in the NASCAR Cup Series Drivers' Championship.[2]
| Championships | Driver | Seasons |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Jimmie Johnson | 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 |
| 3 | Cale Yarborough | 1976, 1977, 1978 |
| 2 | Buck Baker | 1956, 1957 |
| Lee Petty | 1958, 1959 | |
| Joe Weatherly | 1962, 1963 | |
| David Pearson | 1968, 1969 | |
| Richard Petty | 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975 | |
| Darrell Waltrip | 1981, 1982 | |
| Dale Earnhardt | 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994 | |
| Jeff Gordon | 1997, 1998 |
Since 2017, NASCAR has awarded a regular season championship which recognizes the best driver of the regular season. It is awarded to the driver with the most non-playoff points before the beginning of that season's playoff.[166]
| Season | Driver | Owner(s)/Teams | No.(s) | Man.(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Martin Truex Jr. (1) | Barney Visser (Furniture Row Racing) | 78 | Toyota |
| 2018 | Kyle Busch (1) | Joe Gibbs (Joe Gibbs Racing) (1) | 18 | Toyota |
| 2019 | Kyle Busch (2) | Joe Gibbs (Joe Gibbs Racing) (2) | 18 | Toyota |
| 2020 | Kevin Harvick | Tony Stewart, Gene Haas (Stewart-Haas Racing) | 4 | Ford |
| 2021 | Kyle Larson | Rick Hendrick (Hendrick Motorsports) (1) | 5 | Chevrolet |
| 2022 | Chase Elliott | Rick Hendrick (Hendrick Motorsports) (2) | 9 | Chevrolet |
| 2023 | Martin Truex Jr. (2) | Joe Gibbs (Joe Gibbs Racing) (3) | 19 | Toyota |
| 2024 | Tyler Reddick | Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin (23XI Racing) | 45 | Toyota |
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- Stewart won the 2011 championship on tie-breaker against Carl Edwards; Stewart had five wins against Edwards' one.
- Kyle Busch missed 11 races after suffering an injury during that year's Daytona 500 companion Xfinity Series race, 2015 Alert Today Florida 300, but was granted a waiver by NASCAR that allowed him to compete for the Chase.
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