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100 Top NASCAR Drivers Of All-Time | Best Of The Best

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Jeff Gordon Credit: Matthew O
Jeff Gordon Credit: Matthew O /

The Numbers

  • 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001 Sprint Cup Series Champion
  • 93 Sprint Cup Series wins
  • 3-time Daytona 500 winner, 5-time Brickyard 400 winner and 6-time Southern 500 winner
  • Became NASCAR’s Iron Man (797 consecutive) in 2015 breaking Ricky Rudd’s streak for most consecutive races run.
  • Most consecutive seasons win at least one pole in NASCAR (22)

The History

Gordon is a four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion who will be ending his full-time Sprint Cup Series career after the 2015 season. Gordon won his four titles in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001. If Gordon were to win his fifth title in 2015 he would set the mark for the longest span between championship seasons. Gordon is often known as a victim of NASCAR’s chase. Gordon would have entered the 2015 season with seven titles under his belt had NASCAR used the same point system under which his won his first four titles.

Gordon currently has 93 wins which is third on the all-time list. He has won the Daytona 500 three times (1997, 1999 and 2005), the Brickyard 400 five times (1994, 1998, 2001, 2004 and 2014), Southern 500 six times (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2007), the Coca-Cola 600 three times (1994, 1997 and 1998) and the Sprint All-Star Race three times (1995, 1997 and 2001). Gordon is also tied for the most wins in a single season in the modern era (13) and he has the most consecutive seasons with at least one pole award (22).

The Legend

To go along with his 93 wins, Gordon also has 81 poles and 475 top-10 finishes in 797 races. In 2015 Gordon passed Ricky Rudd and became NASCAR’s Iron Man having run more consecutive races (797) than any other driver in the history of the sport. Aside from his stats Gordon is also known for shaping NASCAR into what it is today. Gordon broke the mold of what a “prototypical” NASCAR driver was supposed to look like in the 90’s and he was there to help NASCAR reach its peak in popularity in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.

2015 was the last ride for Gordon and the No. 24 machine which will be taken over by Chase Elliott in 2016. Although Gordon did not win a fifth title, he did make it to the final-four before stepping away. In a surprise, Gordon returned in 2016 to fill in for Dale Earnhardt Jr. and he added a couple of top-10’s to his legacy.

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