Hot Streak: Trend of different winners to start the season could reach eight

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin gave Toyota its first win of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season and in the process kept the streak of different winners to start the season alive making the 2022 season the sixth different year in the NASCAR Cup Series’ Modern Era (1972-2022) to start with seven different drivers in Victory Lane; joining 2021, 2014, 2003, 2000 and 1991.

Now the NASCAR Cup Series is heading to the historic Martinsville Speedway to see if the streak can make it to eight different winners. If the 2022 season sees an eighth different victor this weekend it will become just the third different season in the NASCAR Cup Series Modern Era (1972-Present) to start with eight different winners in the first eight races; joining 2003 and 2000. Last season, Martin Truex Jr. snapped the different winners streak to start the year by winning his second race of the 2021 season at Martinsville (Race No. 8).

 

2022 NASCAR Cup Series Season Recap:

	Location	Pole Winner	Race Winner	Points Leader	Pts Lead
1	Daytona	Kyle Larson	Austin Cindric	Austin Cindric	0
2	Auto Club	Austin Cindric	Kyle Larson	Austin Cindric	8
3	Las Vegas	Christopher Bell	Alex Bowman	Kyle Larson	6
4	Phoenix	Ryan Blaney	Chase Briscoe	Joey Logano	4
5	Atlanta	N/A - Weather	William Byron	Chase Elliott	7
6	COTA	Ryan Blaney	Ross Chastain	Chase Elliott	13
7	Richmond	Ryan Blaney	Denny Hamlin	Ryan Blaney	0

 

The Modern Era record of different winners to start a NASCAR Cup Series season is 10 set back in 2000. NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. snapped the different winners streak by winning his second race of the 2000 season at Richmond (Race No. 11).

 

Season	Race No.	Winners	Track	Date
2000	1	Dale Jarrett	Daytona	Sunday, February 20, 2000
2000	2	Bobby Labonte	Rockingham	Sunday, February 27, 2000
2000	3	Jeff Burton	Las Vegas	Sunday, March 5, 2000
2000	4	Dale Earnhardt	Atlanta	Sunday, March 12, 2000
2000	5	Ward Burton	Darlington	Sunday, March 19, 2000
2000	6	Rusty Wallace	Bristol	Sunday, March 26, 2000
2000	7	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Texas	Sunday, April 2, 2000
2000	8	Mark Martin	Martinsville	Sunday, April 9, 2000
2000	9	Jeff Gordon	Talladega	Sunday, April 16, 2000
2000	10	Jeremy Mayfield	Auto Club	Sunday, April 30, 2000

The next longest streak of different winners to start a season in the NASCAR Cup Series Modern Era belongs to 2003 with nine consecutive different winners. Kurt Busch snapped the streak of different winners by winning his second race of the 2003 season at Auto Club Speedway (Race No. 10).

 

Season	Race No.	Winners	Track	Date
2003	1	Michael Waltrip	Daytona	Sunday, February 16, 2003
2003	2	Dale Jarrett	Rockingham	Sunday, February 23, 2003
2003	3	Matt Kenseth	Las Vegas	Sunday, March 2, 2003
2003	4	Bobby Labonte	Atlanta	Sunday, March 9, 2003
2003	5	Ricky Craven	Darlington	Sunday, March 16, 2003
2003	6	Kurt Busch	Bristol	Sunday, March 23, 2003
2003	7	Ryan Newman	Texas	Sunday, March 30, 2003
2003	8	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Talladega	Sunday, April 6, 2003
2003	9	Jeff Gordon	Martinsville	Sunday, April 13, 2003

 

In the Modern Era (1972-2021), the record for the most different NASCAR Cup Series winners in a single season in its entirety is 19 set back in 2001. The series has also seen a total of 18 different winners (second-most) in a single season twice – in 2002 and 2011. Last season, the series produced 16 different winners.