The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the official sanctioning body of the sport of stock car racing in North America.[1] [2] It was formed in February 1948 by race car driver Bill France Sr. as the replacement for the National Championship Stock Car Circuit sanctioning body. NASCAR sanctions the top level national NASCAR Cup Series, the second-tier proving ground NASCAR Xfinity Series, the third-tier NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for modified pickup trucks,[3] as well as a series of American regional championships. The NASCAR championship season consists of a series of races, held usually on oval tracks, and in a few cases, road courses.[4] Each season throughout NASCAR history has consisted of between 8 and 62 races.
The results of each race are combined to determine two championships in each of the top series, one for drivers and one for manufacturers. The Drivers' Championship is awarded to each division's most successful NASCAR driver over a season, as determined by a points system, and has been awarded since the first NASCAR season in 1949. The Manufacturers' Championship is awarded to the each division's most successful NASCAR manufacturer over a season, also determined by a points system based on race results.[5] The Manufacturers' Championship was first awarded in 1952.
Note: In any given season, the overall Manufacturer's champion may not been the supplier to the overall Driver's champion.
| Season | Races | Drivers' champion | Manufacturer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | 8 | Red Byron | Not awarded | |
| 1950 | 19 | Bill Rexford | ||
| 1951 | 41 | |||
| 1952 | 34 | |||
| 1953 | 37 | |||
| 1954 | 37 | |||
| 1955 | 45 | |||
| 1956 | 56 | |||
| 1957 | 53 | |||
| 1958 | 51 | |||
| 1959 | 44 | |||
| 1960 | 44 | Rex White | ||
| 1961 | 52 | |||
| 1962 | 53 | |||
| 1963 | 55 | |||
| 1964 | 62 | |||
| 1965 | 55 | |||
| 1966 | 49 | |||
| 1967 | 49 | |||
| 1968 | 49 | |||
| 1969 | 54 | |||
| 1970 | 48 | Bobby Isaac | ||
| 1971 | 48 | |||
| 1972 | 31 | |||
| 1973 | 28 | Benny Parsons | ||
| 1974 | 30 | |||
| 1975 | 30 | |||
| 1976 | 30 | |||
| 1977 | 30 | |||
| 1978 | 30 | |||
| 1979 | 31 | |||
| 1980 | 31 | |||
| 1981 | 31 | |||
| 1982 | 30 | |||
| 1983 | 30 | Bobby Allison | ||
| 1984 | 30 | |||
| 1985 | 28 | |||
| 1986 | 29 | |||
| 1987 | 29 | |||
| 1988 | 29 | Bill Elliott | ||
| 1989 | 29 | Rusty Wallace | ||
| 1990 | 29 | |||
| 1991 | 29 | |||
| 1992 | 29 | Alan Kulwicki | ||
| 1993 | 30 | |||
| 1994 | 31 | |||
| 1995 | 31 | |||
| 1996 | 31 | |||
| 1997 | 32 | |||
| 1998 | 33 | |||
| 1999 | 34 | Dale Jarrett | ||
| 2000 | 34 | Bobby Labonte | ||
| 2001 | 36 | |||
| 2002 | 36 | |||
| 2003 | 36 | Matt Kenseth | ||
| 2004 | 36 | Kurt Busch | ||
| 2005 | 36 | |||
| 2006 | 36 | |||
| 2007 | 36 | |||
| 2008 | 36 | |||
| 2009 | 36 | |||
| 2010 | 36 | |||
| 2011 | 36 | |||
| 2012 | 36 | Brad Keselowski | ||
| 2013 | 36 | |||
| 2014 | 36 | Kevin Harvick | ||
| 2015 | 36 | |||
| 2016 | 36 | |||
| 2017 | 36 | Martin Truex Jr. | ||
| 2018 | 36 | |||
| 2019 | 36 | |||
| 2020 | 36 | |||
| 2021 | 36 | |||
| 2022 | 36 | Ford (15) | ||
| 2023 | 36 | Ryan Blaney | Ford (16) | |
| 1949–2022 | 2,750 | Total races over 75 seasons | ||
| Season | Races | Drivers' champion | Manufacturer | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 29 | ||||||||
| 1983 | 35 | ||||||||
| 1984 | 29 | ||||||||
| 1985 | 27 | ||||||||
| 1986 | 31 | ||||||||
| 1987 | 27 | ||||||||
| 1988 | 30 | Tommy Ellis | |||||||
| 1989 | 29 | Rob Moroso | |||||||
| 1990 | 31 | Chuck Bown | |||||||
| 1991 | 31 | Bobby Labonte | |||||||
| 1992 | 31 | Joe Nemechek | |||||||
| 1993 | 28 | Steve Grissom | |||||||
| 1994 | 28 | David Green | |||||||
| 1995 | 26 | Johnny Benson Jr. | |||||||
| 1996 | 26 | ||||||||
| 1997 | 30 | ||||||||
| 1998 | 31 | ||||||||
| 1999 | 32 | ||||||||
| 2000 | 32 | Jeff Green | |||||||
| 2001 | 33 | ||||||||
| 2002 | 34 | Greg Biffle | |||||||
| 2003 | 34 | Brian Vickers | |||||||
| 2004 | 34 | ||||||||
| 2005 | 35 | ||||||||
| 2006 | 35 | ||||||||
| 2007 | 35 | Carl Edwards | |||||||
| 2008 | 35 | Clint Bowyer | |||||||
| 2009 | 35 | Kyle Busch | |||||||
| 2010 | 35 | Brad Keselowski | |||||||
| 2011 | 34 | ||||||||
| 2012 | 33 | ||||||||
| 2013 | 33 | Austin Dillon | |||||||
| 2014 | 33 | Chase Elliott | |||||||
| 2015 | 33 | Chris Buescher | |||||||
| 2016 | 33 | Daniel Suárez | |||||||
| 2017 | 33 | William Byron | |||||||
| 2018 | 33 | ||||||||
| 2019 | 33 | ||||||||
| 2020 | 33 | Austin Cindric | |||||||
| 2021 | 33 | Daniel Hemric | |||||||
| 2022 | 33 | Ty Gibbs | |||||||
| 2023 | 33 | Cole Custer | |||||||
| 1982–2023 | 1,338 | Total races over 42 seasons | |||||||
| Season | Races | Drivers' champion | Manufacturer | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 20 | Mike Skinner | ||||||||
| 1996 | 24 | |||||||||
| 1997 | 26 | |||||||||
| 1998 | 27 | |||||||||
| 1999 | 25 | |||||||||
| 2000 | 24 | Greg Biffle | ||||||||
| 2001 | 24 | |||||||||
| 2002 | 22 | Mike Bliss | ||||||||
| 2003 | 25 | Travis Kvapil | ||||||||
| 2004 | 25 | Bobby Hamilton | ||||||||
| 2005 | 25 | Ted Musgrave | ||||||||
| 2006 | 25 | |||||||||
| 2007 | 25 | |||||||||
| 2008 | 25 | Johnny Benson Jr. | ||||||||
| 2009 | 25 | |||||||||
| 2010 | 25 | |||||||||
| 2011 | 25 | Austin Dillon | ||||||||
| 2012 | 22 | James Buescher | ||||||||
| 2013 | 22 | |||||||||
| 2014 | 22 | |||||||||
| 2015 | 23 | Erik Jones | ||||||||
| 2016 | 23 | Johnny Sauter | ||||||||
| 2017 | 23 | Christopher Bell | ||||||||
| 2018 | 23 | Brett Moffitt | ||||||||
| 2019 | 23 | |||||||||
| 2020 | 23 | Sheldon Creed | ||||||||
| 2021 | 22 | Ben Rhodes (1) | ||||||||
| 2022 | 23 | Zane Smith | ||||||||
| 2023 | 23 | Ben Rhodes (2) | ||||||||
| 1995–2023 | 689 | Total races over 29 Seasons | ||||||||