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2007 NASCAR RCA Cup Series (Johnsonverse) | |||
Previous: | 2006 | Next: | 2008 |
The 2007 NASCAR RCA Cup Series was the 59th season of professional stock car racing in the United States and the 36th modern-era Cup series. Beginning on January 28 at Infineon Raceway with the Toyota/Save Mart 350, the season ended on November 18 at Ontario Motor Speedway with the Los Angeles Times 500. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won his third championship.
Chevrolet captured the NASCAR Manufacturers' Championship with 25 wins, over second-place Dodge who had 11 wins. Ford finished third with 9 wins, and Toyota, in their first RCA Cup season, finished out with no wins.
This was also the first season without Alan Kulwicki since 1984.
Top stories and controversies[]
Joe Gibbs Racing to Toyota[]
During the season rumors began to surface that Joe Gibbs Racing, owned by then-Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, would be switching to the new manufacturer Toyota for the 2008 season. This switch would be significant for several reasons, one of them being that JGR had been allied with General Motors since its inception in 1992, first with Chevrolet then beginning in 1997 with Pontiac, then switched back to Chevrolet in 2003, a year before Pontiac left NASCAR. The switch to Toyota would benefit the manufacturer itself, as they would be allied with a championship-caliber team. As JGR loans equipment to Hall of Fame Racing, the team confirmed that they would also switch to Toyota if JGR did so. On September 5, the rumors were confirmed.
Dale Jarrett announces retirement[]
During the race weekend for the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Joe Gibbs Racing held a press conference. During the announcement, it was revealed to the racing world that Dale Jarrett would retire from full-time driving following the end of the 2008 season. After 2008, Jarrett would hand over the #18 car to Matt Kenseth.
Goodyear strike and the return of Hoosier[]
In late 2006, Goodyear workers went on strike, putting tire production in jeopardy. NASCAR met with Hoosier and created a backup plan that called for Hoosier to produce tires for the 2007 season. The strike was not resolved in time for the season, and most of the season was run on Hoosier tires across all three national series and all regional series that had been running Goodyears; 2007 marked the first year Hoosiers ran in the Cup Series since 1994. Hoosier's return ended up being one of the top stories of Speedweeks, along with the various cheating scandals during qualifying. Goodyear tires finally returned in time for the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega in the fall. Hoosier, however, did not leave, and both tire makes remained in the Cup Series as insurance against potential future strikes. This had the unfortunate side-effect of sparking a third tire war between the two makes (due to the strike annulling Goodyear's contract as the exclusive tire supplier of NASCAR), a war that is still ongoing as of 2021 and expanded in 2015 when Firestone entered the fray.
Teams, drivers, and manufacturers[]
Each RCA Cup race had a field of 46 cars.
For the first five races of 2007, the top 35 teams in owners points (not drivers' points) in 2006 earned an exemption into each race. If a driver went to a new team, he did not have a guaranteed starting spot, but his old team did, except if that new team was an exempt team. If a past champion is not driving for an exempt team (outside the top 35 in owner points), he may be eligible to use a past champions' provisional to enter the race. The provisional guarantees a spot to the most recent champion not exempt, but those who are former champions will be limited to six for the entire 2007 season.
Teams not exempt must "race" their way in during qualifying – if 50 cars are attempting to make the race, and no one is using a provisional, then there are 12 cars racing for eight spots, and the eight fastest cars will make the race. (The Daytona 500, which uses a different qualifying procedure, is the only exception to this rule, though the top 35 are still locked in.)
Starting with the sixth race in 2007, the top 35 teams were awarded exemptions for the next race.
Manufacturers[]
Company | Marquee | Model | Status |
---|---|---|---|
General Motors | Chevrolet | Monte Carlo SS | FINAL YEAR, full factory support |
Impala SS | Full factory support | ||
Ford Motor Company | Ford-Cosworth | Fusion | Full factory support |
Mustang | Full factory support | ||
Roush Mustang | In-house variant | ||
Chrysler Corporation | Dodge | Charger | Full factory support |
Avenger | RETURNING, full factory support | ||
Stratus | Factory support ended after 2006 | ||
Toyota Motor Corporation (NEW) | Toyota (NEW) | Camry | NEW, full factory support |
Complete schedule[]
Manufacturer | Team | No. | Race driver | Crew chief | Model | Primary Sponsor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chevrolet | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | 98 | Jeremy Mayfield | 2007 Impala SS | General Electric | |
Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | 01 | Mark Martin | 2006 Monte Carlo SS | US Army | ||
8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Tony Eury | ACDelco | |||
38 | Kelley Earnhardt | Pennzoil | ||||
81 | Martin Truex Jr. | Bass Pro Shops | ||||
Furniture Row Racing | 78 | Kenny Wallace | Jay Guy | 2007 Impala SS | Furniture Row | |
Scott Wimmer | ||||||
Sterling Marlin | ||||||
Joe Nemechek | ||||||
David Gilliland | ||||||
Haas CNC Racing | 66 | Ward Burton | Harold Holly | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | Best Buy | |
Hall of Fame Racing | 96 | Jason Leffler | Brandon Thomas | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | DLP | |
Ron Fellows | ||||||
Hendrick Motorsports | 5 | Ricky Hendrick | Alan Gustafson | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | Kellogg's | |
24 | Jeff Gordon | Tommy Baldwin Jr. | DuPont | |||
25 | Shane Hmiel (R) | Lance McGrew | Lowe's | |||
52 | Casey Atwood | Chad Knaus | M&M's | |||
Joe Gibbs Racing | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Steve Addington | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | Interstate Batteries | |
19 | Kelly Watson | Circuit City | ||||
20 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx | ||||
80 | J. J. Yeley | Yahoo | ||||
Richard Childress Racing | 07 | Clint Bowyer | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | Jack Daniel's | ||
3 | Renee Walters | Kevin Hamlin | GM Goodwrench | |||
31 | Jeff Burton | Royce McGee | Sylvania | |||
SFS Racing | 4 | Kevin Harvick | 2007 Impala SS | Budweiser | ||
10 | Kyle Busch | Valvoline | ||||
14 | Tony Stewart | Greg Zipadelli | Home Depot | |||
Dodge | AK Racing | 7 | David Gilliland (R) | Chris Andrews | 2007 Avenger | Walmart |
11 | Jamie McMurray | Microsoft | ||||
BAM Racing | 49 | Sterling Marlin | Lee McCall | 2007 Avenger | unsponsored | |
Bill Davis Racing | 22 | Dave Blaney | Derrick Finley | 2007 Charger | Caterpillar | |
23 | Scott Wimmer | Slugger Labbe | unsponsored | |||
Chip Ganassi Racing | 1 | Jimmie Johnson | Lee McCall | 2007 Charger | UAW-Delphi | |
41 | Emily Senn | Jimmy Elledge | Target | |||
Elliott-Evernham Motorsports | 9 | Kasey Kahne | 2007 Charger | Coors Light | ||
13 | Jerry Nadeau | Nickelodeon | ||||
94 | Casey Elliott | Dodge Dealers | ||||
Moroso-Rudd Racing | 82 | Rob Moroso | 2007 Avenger | Mountain Dew | ||
83 | Michelle Basone | Tide | ||||
84 | Kenny Irwin Jr. | RCA | ||||
Penske Racing South | 02 | Ryan Newman | Matt Borland | 2007 Charger | Alltel | |
2 | Rusty Wallace | Bill Wilburn | Miller Lite | |||
12 | Tim Richmond | Peter Sospenzo | Mobil 1 | |||
Petty Enterprises | 43 | Adam Petty | Gary Putnam | 2007 Charger | STP | |
44 | Bobby Labonte | Georgia-Pacific | ||||
Team SABCO | 40 | Shawna Robinson | 2007 Charger | |||
42 | Blaise Alexander | |||||
45 | Patty Moise | |||||
Ford-Cosworth | Orr Motorsports | 37 | Rodney Orr | 2007 Mustang | Craftsman | |
Robby Gordon Motorsports | 70 | Robby Gordon | Greg Erwin
Gene Nead Peter Sospenzo |
2007 Fusion | Jim Beam | |
P. J. Jones | ||||||
Robert Yates Racing | 28 | Davey Allison | 2007 Mustang | Texaco/Havoline | ||
88 | Paul Menard (R) | Shawn Parker | Menards | |||
Roush Racing | 6 | David Ragan (R) | Pat Tryson | 2007 Roush Taurus | UPS | |
16 | Greg Biffle | Doug Richert | National Guard | |||
60 | Matt Kenseth | Robbie Reiser | DeWalt Tools | |||
99 | Carl Edwards | Paul Andrews | Office Depot | |||
Steele-Favre Racing | 15 | Tim Steele | 2007 Fusion | Nike/Sony | ||
90 | Katrina Goode | Folgers | ||||
Wood Brothers/JTG Racing | 21 | Elliott Sadler | Ernie Cope
Michael McSwain Gene Nead |
2007 Fusion | Little Debbie | |
Toyota | Michael Waltrip Racing | 00 | David Reutimann (R) | Frankie Kerr | 2007 Camry | Domino's |
P. J. Jones | ||||||
17 | Michael Waltrip | Scott Eggelston 7
Buddy Sisco 29 |
NAPA Auto Parts | |||
Team Red Bull | 85 | Brian Vickers | Doug Richert
Randy Cox |
2007 Camry | Red Bull | |
86 | A. J. Allmendinger (R) | Ricky Viers | Red Bull |
Limited schedule[]
Manufacturer | Team | No. | Race driver | Crew chief | Model |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chevrolet | CJM Racing | 72 | Brandon Whitt | Sammy Speaks | 2006 Monte Carlo SS |
Ginn Racing | 13 | Joe Nemechek | Peter Sospenzo | 2007 Impala SS | |
139 | Regan Smith | Doug Randolph | |||
Hylton Motorsports | 58 | James Hylton | James Hylton Jr. | 2005 Monte Carlo | |
Joe Gibbs Racing | 80 | Aric Almirola | Jason Ratcliff | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | |
Kirk Shelmerdine Racing | 27 | Kerk Shelmerdine | Phil Harris | 2006 Monte Carlo SS | |
Morgan-McClure Motorsports | 04 | Eric McClure | Robert Larkins | 2006 Impala SS | |
Phoenix Racing | 09 | Mike Wallace | Fred Wanke | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | |
Richard Childress Racing | 33 | Scott Wimmer | Bobby Leslie | 2007 Monte Carlo SS | |
Rick Ware Racing | 130 | Stanton Barrett | Cal Northrop | 2007 Impala SS | |
Dodge | Bill Davis Racing | 27 | Jacques Villeneuve | 2007 Charger | |
36 | Jeremy Mayfield | Derrick Finely | |||
Mike Skinner | |||||
Johnny Benson | |||||
123 | Mike Skinner | ||||
Butch Leitzinger | |||||
Brandon Ash Racing | 02 | Brandon Ash | Kenneth Wood | 2005 Charger | |
E&M Motorsports | 08 | Joe Nemechek | Mark Tutor | 2006 Stratus | |
Carl Long | |||||
Burney Lamar | |||||
Front Row Motorsports | 34 | Kevin Lepage | Randy Seals | 2007 Avenger | |
Stanton Barrett | |||||
137 | Kevin Lepage | Mark Tutor | |||
Brian Simo | |||||
Gillett Evernham Motorsports | 198 | Boris Said | Randy Seals | 2007 Charger | |
McGlynn Racing | 74 | Derrike Cope | Dom Turse | 2007 Avenger | |
Penske Racing South | 06 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Roy McCauley | 2007 Charger | |
Ford-Cosworth | Fast Track Racing | 71 | Frank Kimmel | Andy Hillenburg | 2005 Taurus |
Robby Gordon Motorsports | 77 | Marcos Ambrose | Ernie Cope | 2007 Fusion | |
Wood Brothers Racing/JTG Daugherty Racing | 47 | Ken Schrader | Gene Nead | 2007 Fusion | |
Jon Wood | |||||
Toyota | Riley D'Hondt Motorsports | 91 | Marc Goossens | Jerry Pitts | 2007 Camry |
Wyler Racing | 46 | Johnny Benson | Tony Furr | 2007 Camry |
Schedule[]
No. | Race title | Track | Date | TV |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Toyota/Save Mart 350 | Infineon Raceway, Sonoma | January 29 | WBC |
Budweiser Shootout | Daytona Internationa Speedway, Daytona Beach | February 10 | WBC | |
Gatorade 125's | February 15 | WBC | ||
2 | Daytona 500 by Toyota | February 18 | WBC | |
3 | Subway 400 | North Carolina Speedway, Rockingham | February 25 | WBC |
4 | San Jose 500 | San Jose Motorplex, Gilroy | March 4 | WBC |
5 | UAW-Dodge 400 | Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas | March 11 | ESPN |
6 | Kobalt Tools 500 | Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton | March 18 | ESPN |
7 | Food City 500 | Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol | March 25 | TNN |
8 | Goody's Cool Orange 500 | Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway | April 1 | TNN |
9 | Diet Coke 500 | Denver International Speedway, Denver | April 8 | WBC |
10 | Samsung 500 | Texas World Speedway, College Station | April 15 | WBC |
11 | TranSouth Financial 400 | Darlington Raceway, Darlington | April 21 | ESPN |
12 | Aaron's 499 | Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln | April 28 | WBC |
13 | Crown Royal Presents The Jim Stewart 400 | Richmond International Raceway, Richmond | May 6 | TNN |
14 | Auto Club 500 | California Speedway, Fontana | May 13 | WBC |
RCA Open | Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City, Mexico | May 19 | TNN | |
RCA All-Star Challenge XXIII | WBC | |||
15 | Coca-Cola 600 | Lowe's Motor Speedway, Concord | May 27 | WBC |
16 | Autism Society 400 presented by Visa * | Dover International Speedway, Dover | June 4 | TNN |
17 | Pabst Blue Ribbon 400 | The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis | June 10 | ESPN |
18 | Dodge Avenger 400 | Nazareth Speedway, Nazareth | June 17 | WBC |
19 | Budweiser 400 | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside | June 24 | WBC |
20 | Lenox Industrial Tools 300 | New Hampshire International Speedway, Loudon | July 1 | WBC |
21 | Pepsi 400 | Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach | July 7 | WBC |
22 | USG Sheetrock 400 | Chicagoland Speedway, Joliet | July 15 | ESPN |
23 | Music City USA 420 | Music City Motorplex, Nashville | July 22 | TNN |
24 | Allstate 400 at the Brickyard | Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway | July 29 | WBC |
25 | Pennsylvania 500 | Pocono Raceway, Long Pond | August 5 | ESPN |
26 | Centurion Boats at The Glen | Waktins Glen International, Watkins Glen | August 12 | ESPN |
27 | 3M Performance 400 | Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn | August 19 | TNN |
28 | Sharpie 500 | Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol | August 25 | TNN |
29 | Southern 500 | Darlington Raceway, Darlington | September 2 | WBC |
30 | Chevy Rock & Roll 400 | Richmond International Raceway, Richmond | September 9 | TNN |
31 | Tyson Holly Farms 400 | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro | September 16 | WBC |
32 | Dodge Dealers 400 | Dover International Speedway, Dover | September 23 | TNN |
33 | LifeLock 400 | Kansas Speedway, Kansas City | September 30 | ESPN |
34 | UAW-Ford 500 | Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln | October 7 | WBC |
35 | Bank of America 500 | Lowe's Motor Speedway, Concord | October 13 | WBC |
36 | Subway 500 | Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway | October 21 | WBC |
37 | Pep Boys Auto 500 | Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton | October 28 | ESPN |
38 | ACDelco 400 | Rockingham Speedway, Rockingham | November 4 | TNN |
39 | Checker Auto Parts 500 presented by Pennzoil | Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale | November 13 | TNN |
40 | Ford 400 | Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead | November 18 | WBC |
41 | Apple iPhone 500 | San Jose Motorplex, Gilroy | November 25 | WBC |
42 | Sprite 500 | Denver International Speedway, Denver | December 2 | WBC |
43 | Los Angeles Times 500 | Ontario Motor Speedway, Ontario | December 9 | WBC |
*-The Autism Society 400 was originally called the Autism Speaks 400. However, Tammy Jo Johnson, whose children Tim and Chloe both have autism, encouraged NASCAR to replace Autism Speaks with Autism Society due to her considering Autism Speaks "evil", and Autism Speaks sued for breach of contract, which was settled out of court.
Season summary[]
Results[]
No. | Race | Pole Position | Most Laps Led | Winner | Make/Model |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Toyota/Save Mart 350 | Denny Hamlin | Kevin Harvick | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
Budweiser Shootout | Dale Jarrett | Kyle Busch | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | |
Gatorade 125 1 | David Gilliland | Tony Stewart | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | |
Gatorade 125 2 | Ricky Rudd | Kyle Busch | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | |
2 | Daytona 500 | David Gilliland | Kurt Busch | Mark Martin | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
3 | Subway 400 | Jeff Gordon | Matt Kenseth | Matt Kenseth | Roush Mustang |
4 | San Jose 500 | Brian Vickers | Adam Petty | Adam Petty | Dodge Charger |
5 | UAW-Dodge 400 | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Gordon | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
6 | Kobalt Tools 500 | Ryan Newman | Jimmie Johnson | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
7 | Food City 500 | Jeff Gordon | Tony Stewart | Kyle Busch | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
8 | Goody's Cool Orange 500 | Denny Hamlin | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Adam Petty | Dodge Charger |
9 | Diet Coke 500 | Jimmie Johnson | Mark Martin | Mark Martin | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
10 | Samsung 500 | Jeff Gordon | Tony Stewart | Jeff Burton | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
11 | TranSouth Financial 400 | Jeff Gordon | Tony Stewart | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
12 | Aaron's 499 | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Gordon | Bobby Labonte | Dodge Charger |
13 | Crown Royal Presents The Jim Stewart 400 | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Gordon | Adam Petty | Dodge Charger |
14 | Auto Club 500 | Clint Bowyer | Denny Hamlin | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
RCA Open | Carl Edwards | Carl Edwards | Martin Truex Jr. | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | |
RCA All-Star Challenge XXIII | Matt Kenseth | Matt Kenseth | Bobby Labonte | Dodge Avenger | |
15 | Coca-Cola 600 | Ryan Newman | Kurt Busch | Casey Mears | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
16 | Autism Society 400 presented by Visa * | Ryan Newman | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
17 | Pabst Blue Ribbon 400 | Ryan Newman | Denny Hamlin | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
18 | Dodge Avenger 400 | Dale Jarrett | Carl Edwards | Carl Edwards | Roush Mustang |
19 | Budweiser 400 | Jamie McMurray | Robby Gordon | Juan Pablo Montoya | Dodge Charger |
20 | Lenox Industrial Tools 300 | Dave Blaney | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Denny Hamlin | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
21 | Pepsi 400 | Jeff Gordon | Clint Bowyer | Jamie McMurray | Roush Mustang |
22 | USG Sheetrock 400 | Casey Mears | Tony Stewart | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
23 | Music City USA 420 | Jeff Gordon | Adam Petty | John Andretti | Dodge Charger |
24 | Allstate 400 at the Brickyard | Reed Sorenson | Tony Stewart | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
25 | Pennsylvania 500 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Kurt Busch | Kurt Busch | Dodge Charger |
26 | Centurion Boats at The Glen | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Gordon | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
27 | 3M Performance 400 | Jeff Gordon | Kurt Busch | Kurt Busch | Dodge Charger |
28 | Sharpie 500 | Kasey Kahne | Kasey Kahne | Carl Edwards | Roush Mustang |
29 | Southern 500 | Kurt Busch | Kyle Busch | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
30 | Chevy Rock & Roll 400 | Jimmie Johnson | Jeff Gordon | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
31 | Tyson Holly Farms 400 | Clint Bowyer | Clint Bowyer | Clint Bowyer | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
32 | Dodge Dealers 400 | Jimmie Johnson | Matt Kenseth | Carl Edwards | Roush Mustang |
33 | LifeLock 400 | Jimmie Johnson | Kurt Busch | Clifford Allison | Ford Mustang |
34 | UAW-Ford 500 | Michael Waltrip | Denny Hamlin | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
35 | Bank of America 500 | Ryan Newman | Jimmie Johnson | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
36 | Subway 500 | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Gordon | Rob Moroso | Dodge Avenger |
37 | Pep Boys Auto 500 | Greg Biffle | Martin Truex Jr. | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
38 | ACDelco 400 | Martin Truex Jr. | Kyle Busch | Adam Petty | Dodge Charger |
39 | Checker Auto Parts 500 presented by Pennzoil | Carl Edwards | Matt Kenseth | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
40 | Ford 400 | Jimmie Johnson | Matt Kenseth | Matt Kenseth | Roush Mustang |
41 | Apple iPhone 500 | Rob Moroso | Jeff Gordon | Mark Martin | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS |
42 | Sprite 500 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Davey Allison | Davey Allison | Ford Fusion |
43 | Los Angeles Times 500 | Jeff Gordon | Mark Martin | Davey Allison | Ford Fusion |