Johnson joins all-time racing greats with 50th career win

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 21, 2010) – Jimmie Johnson won his 50th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway, a rare accomplishment that further solidifies the four-time defending champion’s place among the all-time greats. Only 11 other drivers have reached the milestone. Three are NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees, six were Hall of Fame nominees, and the other two – Jeff Gordon and Rusty Wallace – likely will join the Hall of Fame nominee list in the future. Johnson needed only 296 starts to hit the 50 mark. Only three drivers have reached 50 victories quicker – Gordon (232), Darrell Waltrip (278) and David Pearson (293). All-Time NSCS Wins by Driver Richard Petty - 200 David Pearson -105 Bobby Allison - 84 Darrell Waltrip -84 Cale Yarborough - 83 Jeff Gordon - 82 Dale Earnhardt - 76 Rusty Wallace - 55 Lee Petty - 54 Ned Jarrett - 50 Junior Johnson - 50 Jimmie Johnson - 50 By the numbers Here are some of Johnson’s milestone and historic wins on his way to 50: 1 Johnson did not take long to nab his first victory. In only his 13th start, at his hometown track Auto Club Speedway on April 28, 2002, Johnson led 62 laps in the win. Among those in the top 10 of all-time victories, only Lee Petty needed fewer starts for his first win (five). 4 In what would become customary, Johnson won NASCAR’s longest race – the 600-mile event at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. He currently has three wins in the event. 10 In his 95th start, Johnson reached double digits. He won at Pocono for the second time in 2004, his third career season track sweep. Johnson currently has 11 career track sweeps. 14 In 2004, Johnson took home one of NASCAR’s crown jewels – the Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. 19 His biggest race win to date, Johnson became a Daytona 500 champion on Feb. 19, 2006. 20 Johnson won at Las Vegas for his 20th victory, but led only one lap – the last one. It was the only time in his series career that Johnson had only one lap led in a race win. 22 No big stage daunts Johnson. That, of course, includes the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He won the Indy race in 2006, the first of three Brickyard wins thus far. 25 Johnson hit the halfway point on March 18, 2007, in his 187th start. That means, statistically, he went on a winning rampage soon after. His last 25 wins took only 109 starts. 30 Johnson’s 30th coincided with the beginning of a streak of four consecutive wins in 2007. The first was at Martinsville, followed by Atlanta, Texas and Phoenix. 40 Win No. 40 came at Phoenix in race No. 35 of the 2008 season. He dominated, leading 217 of the 313 laps. Johnson’s victories have come at 17 different tracks. His most prolific: Charlotte Motor Speedway and Martinsville Speedway, where he has won six times apiece. Wins By Track Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway: 6 Martinsville (Va.) Speedway: 6 Auto Club Speedway: 5 Dover (Del.) International Speedway: 5 Las Vegas Motor Speedway: 4 Phoenix International Speedway: 4 Atlanta Motor Speedway: 3 Indianapolis Motor Speedway: 3 Richmond (Va.) International Raceway: 3 New Hampshire Motor Speedway: 2 Pocono Raceway: 2 Darlington (S.C.) Raceway: 2 Texas Motor Speedway: 1 Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway: 1 Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway: 1 Kansas Speedway: 1 Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway: 1