NASCAR Cup Winners Of 2010

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Nov 21, 2010

NASCAR Cup Winners Of 2010

Ford 400 at Homestead: Carl Edwards

Edwards ended the season with consecutive victories, the first time he's won two straight races since Michigan and Bristol in 2008. He finished the year fourth in the points standings behind Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick.

Arizona 500 at Phoenix: Carl Edwards

Edwards did his trademark back flip after a Sprint Cup race for the first time since the 2008 finale as he ended a 70-race winless drought at Phoenix International Speedway.

AAA Texas 500: Denny Hamlin

There's a reason Denny Hamlin is holding up eight fingers. The driver won his eighth race of the season at Texas (and second victory of the year at that track) to take the Sprint Cup lead from defending champion Jimmie Johnson with just two races to go.

AMP Energy 500 at Talladega: Clint Bowyer

A last-lap caution forced NASCAR to go to replay before it named Clint Bowyer the winner over Kevin Harvick. It was the second win of the Chase for Bowyer and the first of his Cup career on a restrictor-plate track.

Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville: Denny Hamlin

Hamlin passed Kevin Harvick for the lead with 29 laps to go to for his third straight win at NASCAR's oldest track and the fourth overall. With the win, Hamlin cut Jimmie Johnson's lead in the Chase to six points with five races remaining.

NASCAR Banking 500 at Charlotte: Jamie McMurray

McMurray made it three wins on three of the sport's most historic tracks as he followed victories at Daytona and Indianapolis by reaching Victory Lane at Charlotte. It was also the first win for a non-Chase driver in the playoff.

Pepsi Max 400 at Fontana: Tony Stewart

Tony Stewart cut the number of current Sprint Cup tracks he's never won on to two as he held off Clint Bowyer for his first win at Auto Club Speedway.

AAA 400 at Kansas: Greg Biffle

Greg Biffle is back in the title hunt, and Jimmie Johnson has resumed his normal spot atop the NASCAR leaderboard. Kansas Speedway once again played a major role in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, which got a whole lot tighter after a fast-paced Sunday race dominated by the title contenders. Biffle was the first of seven in the Chase to cross the finish line, pulling himself out of a deep hole with seven races remaining to determine the championship.

AAA 400 at Dover: Jimmie Johnson

The leading rebounder in the Cup Series solidified his status in Sunday's AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway. Lest any of his competitors happened to forget that Jimmie Johnson will be a factor in the Chase, Johnson gave them a smoky reminder Sunday afternoon as he rallied from last week's rocky start to the Chase at New Hampshire.

Sylvania 300 at Loudon, N.H.: Clint Bowyer

Clint Bowyer took advantage of Tony Stewart's fuel gamble to claim the opening race of the Chase and snap an 88-race winless drought. It was Bowyer's first victory since May 3, 2008 at Richmond.

AirGuard 400 at Richmond: Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin snagged his series-best sixth win of the season, winning at Richmond and claiming the top seed in the postseason Chase. Hamlin snapped a monthlong slump with a win at his hometown track and now holds a 10-point lead over Jimmie Johnson headed into NASCAR's 10-week postseason.

Emory Healthcare 500 at Atlanta: Tony Stewart

Tony Stewart raced to his first Sprint Cup victory of the year, pulling away from Carl Edwards off the final restart at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Stewart edged Edwards by 1.316 seconds in the 325-lap race to clinch a spot in the 12-man Chase for the Cup.

Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol: Kyle Busch

Kyle Busch became the first driver in NASCAR history to sweep all three major events in one week as he followed his Trucks and Nationwide series victories by dominating the field to win the Cup race at Bristol. It was his fourth career win at Thunder Valley in 12 starts.

Carfax 400 at Michigan: Kevin Harvick

Points leader Kevin Harvick added to his Chase resume, winning for the third time this season. It was his first non-restrictor plate victory since won at Phoenix in 2006.

Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips At The Glen: Juan Pablo Montoya

Juan Pablo Montoya ended a 113-race drought -- and a season full of frustrations -- beating Kurt Busch by 4.7 seconds with a win at The Glen. It was Montoya's second career Cup series victory as well as the second on a road course, with the other coming win at Sonoma in 2007.

Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono: Greg Biffle

For the first time in 65 races, Greg Biffle crossed the finish line first, snapping a lengthy winless streak and giving Ford its first win of the season. It was Biffle's first win since he won back-to-back races during the 2008 Chase for the Cup championship and it couldn't have come at a better time. A week ago, Roush Fenway owner Jack Roush was injured in an airplane crash and was forced to watch the Pocono race from the Mayo Clinic. But Biffle's victory -- which he dedicated to Roush -- gave the owner his first win of the year and a reason to smile.

Brickyard 400: Jamie McMurray

It was Juan Pablo Montoya's race to win, but for the second year in a row the driver's day at The Brickyard would end in defeat. Taking advantage of Montoya's falter was Jamie McMurray, who became the third driver in history to win the Daytona 500 and The Brickyard in the same season. With 18 laps to go, a yellow flag forced the drivers to pit road. Montoya -- in a controversial decision -- changed four tires while the three drivers in front of him replaced only two. McMurray restarted in first place with 18 laps to go and held off the competition to win.

Lifelock.com 400 At Chicagoland: David Reutimann

In one of the Sprint Cup's biggest upsets of the year, David Reutimann took the checkered flag at Chicagoland Speedway and won only the second race of his NASCAR career. In doing so, Reutimann beat out a host of NASCAR stars, including Carl Edwards (2nd) and Jeff Gordon (3rd). The victory was a career validation for Reutimann, whose only previous win came back in 2009 during the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte.

Coke Zero 400 At Daytona: Kevin Harvick

Sprint Cup's points leader Kevin Harvick cruised to his second win of the season at Daytona, winning the Coke Zero 400. With 18 leaders and 47 lead changes, it was anyone's race to win, but Harvick crossed the finish line first, beating out the likes of Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Lenox Industrial Tools 301 At Loudon: Jimmie Johnson

Kurt Busch tried to bump-and-run past Jimmie Johnson for a win. What he really did was anger the four-time Cup champion. "I thought, I don't care if I win this race or not," Johnson said. "I'm running into him and get by him one way or another." Johnson paid back Busch with a poke of his own in the final stretch to surge ahead with two laps left and win the Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday for his fifth victory of the season.

Toyota/Save Mart 350 At Sonoma: Jimmie Johnson

Jimmie Johnson inherited the lead late after Marcos Ambrose's own bizarre gaffe cost him the win. Ambrose stalled his engine while trying to conserve gas late in Sunday's race at Infineon Raceway, where his car came to a stop while leading with six laps remaining. He restarted and tried to re-claim his position at the front of the field, but NASCAR ordered him back to seventh place and Johnson took the lead.

Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 At Michigan: Denny Hamlin

Hamlin made it back-to-back wins, leading 123 laps for his first victory at Michigan and giving him five wins in a season for the first time in his career.

Gillette Fusion ProGlide 500 At Pocono: Denny Hamlin

Hamlin won again at Pocono, pulling away from teammate Kyle Busch following a late restart Sunday in the 500-mile race at the massive 2.5-mile oval. The victory was his fourth of the season and fourth in nine career starts at the "tricky triangle."

Coca-Cola 600 At Charlotte: Kurt Busch

Busch followed up his All-Star Race victory by making it two consecutive wins at Charlotte, leading 252 of the 400 laps. No one else led more than 36 laps.

All-Star Race: Kurt Busch

Kurt Busch went from 11th to first during the final 10-lap segment to win the All-Star Race and the $1 million payday. But like Busch's previous win in Atlanta, it was overshadowed as Denny Hamlin put teammate, and Kurt's brother Kyle, into the wall and caused damage that ended the No. 18's day.

Austism Speaks 400 At Dover -- Kyle Busch

Busch took advantage of Jimmie Johnson's speeding penalty on pit road to give Joe Gibbs Racing its third straight win and the fifth of 2010. Busch became the second driver to win the Cup and Nationwide races in the same weekend, joining Harry Gant (1991).

Southern 500 At Darlington -- Denny Hamlin

Hamlin won for the third time this season as he won at NASCAR's oldest superspeedway. In sweeping the Nationwide and Cup races, he became the first driver to pull off the feat since Mark Martin in 1993.

Crown Royal 400 At Richmond -- Kyle Busch

Kyle Busch passed Jeff Gordon on the final restart to snap a 21-race winless skid, Busch's longest since he joined Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008. It was Busch's first win under crew chief Dave Rogers.

Aaron's 499 At Talladega -- Kevin Harvick

Harvick beat out Jamie McMurray on a last-second slingshot pass to end a 115-race winless drought. Harvick's 0.011 margin of victory was the eighth-closest in NASCAR since it began using electronic scoring in 1993

Samsung Mobile 500 At Fort Worth -- Denny Hamlin

Three weeks after winning another rain-delayed race and days removed from knee surgery, Hamlin led the final 12 laps after a nine-car crash to earn his second victory of 2010.

Subway Fresh Fit 600 At Phoenix -- Ryan Newman

Newman broke a 77-race winless drought and scored the first win for the No. 39 as he won a two-lap shootout with Jeff Gordon. It was his Newman's first victory since the 2008 Daytona 500.

Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500 At Martinsville -- Denny Hamlin

Two days before undergoing surgery to repair a torn ACL, Hamlin weaved through traffic on the final restart to claim his second straight victory at Martinsville.

Food City 500 At Bristol -- Jimmie Johnson

Johnson earned his first career victory in 16 trips to Bristol, surging from sixth to third in three laps, then started a food fight with the bag of groceries supplied by sponsor Food City.

Kobalt Tools 500 At Atlanta -- Kurt Busch

The Carl Edwards-Brad Keselowski incident took center stage, but it was Kurt Busch who seized the checkered flag, delivering his first win since adding Steve Addington as his crew chief.

Shelby American At Las Vegas -- Jimmie Johnson

Teammate Jeff Gordon led 218 of 267 laps, but a decision to take two tires instead of four opened the door for Johnson to take over the lead with 17 laps remaining in earning back-to-back wins.

Auto Club 500 At Los Angeles -- Jimmie Johnson

Johnson barely emerged from pit road before being put a lap down en route to earning his fifth win at Fontana and the 48th of his career at the wheel of the No. 48.

Daytona 500 -- Jamie McMurray

McMurray withstood two pothole-induced delays, multiple wrecks and a late charge by Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win the season opener. It was his first race with Earnhardt Ganassi Racing after leaving Roush Fenway after four frustrating seasons.