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
Ryan Blaney
, who won his first NASCAR Cup Series championship in
2023
.
[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]
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
.
[9]
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
.
[10]