NASCAR’s All-Time Best- The Top 10

David Poole’s recent column regarding the Hall of Fame got me thinking about the subject of who should be among the first to enter the hallowed halls of NASCAR’s best ever. The list of deserving candidates is long- including those at trackside and behind the scenes.

NASCAR’s first calls of hall of famers may well include mechanical genius Smokey Yunick, broadcasters Ken Squier and Chris Economaki, and the late great NASCAR founder “Big Bill” France Sr. For today’s purposes, we’ll look at the best drivers, though it’s unknown how many entrants will be inducted into NASCAR’s first Hall of Fame class.

I’m going where angels fear to tread. I expect AND WELCOME disagreement from my fellow fans. You will see I chose from a number of different criteria in making up my list. Your entitled to your opinion, and I, mine.

Missing The Cut, But Possibly Deserving- Davey Allison, Joe Weatherly and Tim Richmond. In their short careers, they accomplished much. May they rest in peace. Mark Martin, winner of a combined 93 races in Cup and Nationwide may be the best driver to never win a championship. Curtis “Pops” Turner was a master of the “power slide” and dirt track stud extrordinaire who’s career was waylayed by a power struggle with Bill France that also included NASCAR pioneer Tim Flock.

Worthy Of Mention- Tony Stewart, of whom it was once said that he could “Put four wheels on a cockroach and race it.” His 2 titles (2002 & ‘05) and prowess outside NASCAR are hard to ignore. Rusty Wallace and Bill Elliott had fine careers. I also really struggled to leave out Ned Jarrett- winner of two championships and 50 races to go with a great broadcasting career out of the top 10. Same with early NASCAR star Herb Thomas- winner of 48 races and titles in 1951 and 1953. Tim Flock was a great racer and colorful character who raced with a chimp in his car named “Jocko Flocko.” Flock won 40 out of 189 races, plus titles in 1952 and 1955.

But there can only be 10 in the top 10….

#10- Lee Petty (1949-64)- “The Grand Patriarch” of NASCAR’s original family dynasty was one of the first true professionals. Dad to Richard, grandfather to Kyle and great-grandfather to the late Adam Petty- Lee won 54 races and 3 titles- 1954, 55, and 59. The elder Petty also garnered nationwide attention with his photo finish in the first ever Daytona 500 at the new Daytona International Speedway.

#9- Junior Johnson (1953- 66) – The original face of NASCAR. In his 1960 victory, Johnson powered an inferior car to victory by discovering the art of the “draft.” Though he never won a title, Johnson won 50 races and enjoyed huge success as an owner. Had NASCAR’s early days lent itself more to concentrating on it, perhaps Johnson would have steered clear of trouble by not running moonshine.

#8- Glenn “Fireball” Roberts (1950-64)- Roberts was NASCAR’s original superstar- the Earnhardt of his time. He got his nickname from his days as a sandlot baseball player. Roberts was among the first to employ a workout regimen in NASCAR and was keenly aware of his market value. Roberts death brought about safety innovations- the fuel cell and the fire suit. His car caught fire in the World 600 after colliding with Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson. While recovering from severe burns, Roberts caught pneumonia and died 39 days after the wreck. Fireball was 35 and planning to retire after the 1964 season.

#7- Bobby Allison (1961- 85)- The “President” of the “Alabama Gang” is tied for 3rd with Darrell Waltrip- a winner of 84 races. While he only won one title, Allison’s skill kept the likes of Richard Petty, David Pearson, Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip on their toes for season after season. It can be argued his spectacular crash in the 1987 Winston 500 brought about the advent of the restrictor plate. Make no mistake, there was no tougher customer than Bobby Allison.

#6- Darrell Waltrip (1972-2000)- Ol’ DW was the original smack talker. Waltrip- a winner of 3 championships and 84 trips to victory lane brought new visibility to NASCAR with his brash ways and colorful personality. Well-loved and well-hated- Waltrip was impossible to ignore and has gone on to make a name for himself as something of a NASCAR ambassador. Waltrip was good everywhere- short tracks, road courses and speedways- Waltrip could handle them all- racing for everyone from Junior Johnson to Rick Hendrick.

#5- Jeff Gordon (1993- )- Loved by many, and reviled by just as many, Jeff Gordon brought a different kind of style to NASCAR. California born and Indiana bred, Gordon has produced 81 wins and 4 titles to his credit. Gordon’s presence in the sport has definitely played a part in growing its fan base.

#4- Cale Yarborough (1957-88)- There’s an old southern expression- “He’s got as much chance as a kerosene cat in Hell with gasoline drawers on.” That cat’s got a decent chance if his named is Cale Yarborough. Until this year, only Yarborough had won 3 titles in a row. Cale may have spawned one of NASCAR’s true defining moments when he banged doors with Donnie Allison at the 1979 Daytona 500- the first race given flag-to-flag national coverage. The resulting fist fight between Yarborough and the Allison brothers is the most famous brawl in NASCAR history and was caught on camera. People still talk about Cale banging his head on Bobby Allison’s fist to this day. In the spirit of Curtis Turner and Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough had the “check ‘er or wreck ‘er” mentality down to a tee.

#3- David Pearson (1961-76)- The “Silver Fox” was a different breed. For many years, Pearson only ran a part-time schedule, making his 2nd place all-time mark of 105 wins all the more amazing. The South Carolina native got those wins in just 574 starts! Breaking into Cup racing at 26, Pearson got a relatively late start. Pearson was a sly strategist, hanging back from the pack, caring for his car until the very end to win it all. His slingshot move to victory over Richard Petty is the stuff of legend. Some would argue Pearson number one. The case could be made, but you know what? Pearson doesn’t care. He raced 7 years for the legendary Wood Brothers team in the #21 car and won 3 titles in the late 60’s.

#2- (Edged by a nose) Richard Petty (1960- 1992)- “The King” holds records no one will ever touch: 200 wins for a career, 27 wins in a season, and 10 wins in a row in that mother of all dominant seasons: 1967. For Petty, it was a summer of love. The knock on Petty was the superior equipment he drove. Many argue a lot of those wins would have been harder to come by in today’s NASCAR.
It may be true- but 200 wins don’t come by pure luck. Petty is a greatly revered driver and his contributions go far beyond the track. Petty is quite visible with son Kyle on behalf of the Victory Junction Gang, a charity for sick children run in memory of grandson Adam- who died in a practice run in New Hampshire at the age of 19. Petty also shares the record for championships with 7: 1964, 1967, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, and 1979.

#1- (bumping and banging all the way home with sheet metal hanging off)- Dale Earnhardt (1975-2001)- “The Intimidator” earned 7 titles of his own: 1980 (his second full season), 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993 & 1994. “Ironhead’s” 76 victories may not lead all-time, but no one can match his impact. Dale Sr.’s career almost didn’t get off the ground, though his father Ralph was a regional legend and a 1956 champ in what is now the Nationwide Series, he let Dale make his own way into the sport.
His humble beginnings, cowboy persona and mischievous smile endeared him to legions of fans- many of whom have still never recovered from his fatal wreck at the 2001 Daytona 500. His death brought about mandatory use of the HANS device and he’s the last Cup driver to have lost his life while doing what he loved.
To be sure, many fans hated Earnhardt- something many people would like to forget. Earnhardt used his villainous reputation to his advantage in psychological warfare- much like one of his arch-rivals- Darrell Waltrip. Ironically, the death of NASCARs biggest legend may have done more to grow the fan base of the sport than any other event. Curious novices had to check out the sport to see what triggered such loyalty. Many go hooked.

So there you go. I look forward to your comments. I’m sure many of you have other ideas. All of these guys will get in sooner or later and its quite likely Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. may one day join them.