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CUP: Johnson The Decade’s Big Winner
Jimmie Johnson’s 47 Sprint Cup race victories ranks him 13th all-time...
Tom Jensen  |  Posted December 27, 2009   Charlotte, NC
Jimmie Johnson celebrates his fourth NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship in Victory Lane at Homestead. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

By now, the accolades have more than mounted up for Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Impala SS.

There was the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year honors, Driver of the Year and, of course, four consecutive Sprint Cup championships, a feat unrivaled in NASCAR history.

Less significant, perhaps, but still telling is the fact that Johnson has won more Sprint Cup races than anyone else in this decade, piling up 47 victories to 33 for Tony Stewart and 32 for Jeff Gordon.

In fact, Johnson margin of victory in terms of number of races won since 2000 is every bit as impressive as the 146-point margin he defeated teammate Mark Martin by during this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Here are the 10 most prolific race winners of the decade:

1. JIMMIE JOHNSON, 47 victories since 2000 — Johnson didn’t begin racing full time in the Sprint Cup Series until 2002, but already he ranks 13th in all-time series victories. His four championships have been eclipsed only by Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt.

Always at home on the big stage, Johnson has three Brickyard 400 and one Daytona 500 victory to his credit. And the fact that his closest pursuer trails Johnson by 14 victories yet had two more seasons of racing in the decade truly is impressive.

Johnson earned his 47 victories in 291 starts during the decade, a winning percentage of 16.52.

By contrast, second-place Stewart’s 33 race wins came in 358 starts, a winning percentage of 9.22.

2. TONY STEWART, 33 — The co-owner/driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet produced 29 victories and two championships this decade while at Joe Gibbs Racing. His biggest two unquestionably were his Brickyard 400 victories in 2005 and ’07, though his 2009 Sprint All-Star Race win was huge, too, as it was the first for SHR as a team.

3. JEFF GORDON, 32 — Although he’s won just won race in the last two seasons, Gordon had an impressive decade, winning his third and fourth Brickyard 400s in 2001 and ’04, respectively, as well as his third Daytona 500 in 2005. Like teammate Johnson, all of Gordon’s victories have come behind the wheel of Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets.

4. KURT BUSCH, 20 — It’s a sharp drop from Gordon to the 2004 Sprint Cup champ, but Busch has enjoyed considerable success, first with Roush Fenway Racing and, since 2006, with Roger Penske’s outfit. In 2009, Busch finished fourth in points, his best effort since his title season, and he was the highest non-Hendrick driver in points.


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