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List of NASCAR Xfinity Series champions

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The trophy of 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Brad Keselowski

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Drivers' Championship is awarded by the chairman in NASCAR to the most successful Xfinity Series racing car driver over a season, as determined by a points system based on race results. The Drivers' Championship was first awarded in 1982, to Jack Ingram. The first driver to win multiple Championships was Sam Ard in 1983 and 1984. The current Drivers' Champion is Cole Custer who won his first NASCAR Xfinity Series championship in 2023.

As of the 2016 season, the Championship has been decided using NASCAR's "Playoff" system. 12 drivers qualify for the Playoffs; race winners are automatically locked in and the remainder is set by the highest non-winners in the points standings. Drivers can accumulate points that carry into the playoffs by winning a stage or the race itself (1 playoff point for a stage win, 5 playoff points for a race win). After qualifying for the Playoffs, drivers have their points reset to a significantly higher total than non-Playoff drivers, with bonus points added appropriately for stage and race wins. This method is also used for eliminating drivers who qualified for the Playoffs but didn't advance into the next round. The Xfinity Series Playoffs start with 12 drivers in the Round of 12, then cut off the lowest 4 non-winners in the points standings after 3 races. This process is repeated with the remaining drivers for the Round of 8, leaving 4 drivers still eligible to win the championship that season. Following the Round of 8, all previously accumulated playoff points are reset, leaving the "Championship 4" drivers all with an equal opportunity to win the championship in the 1-race final round at Homestead–Miami Speedway. Stage points also do not count for Playoff drivers in the final race. The highest-finishing driver out of the Championship 4 is then declared the champion.

Overall, Thirty-One different drivers have won the Championship, with Sam Ard, Jack Ingram, Larry Pearson, Randy LaJoie, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Tyler Reddick holding the record for most titles, at two. Ard, Pearson, LaJoie, Earnhardt Jr., Truex Jr., Stenhouse Jr., and Reddick all have the record for most consecutive Drivers' Championships, with two consecutive championships. Chase Elliott is the youngest Xfinity Series champion; he was 18 years, 11 months, and 11 days old when he won the 2014 title.[1] Jack Ingram is the oldest Xfinity Series champion; he was 48 years, 9 months, and 29 days when he won the championship in 1985.[2]

By season

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Year Driver Owner Team No Make St Ws TT P Pts Gap
1982 Jack Ingram Jack Ingram 11 Pontiac 29 7 24 1 4495 47
1983 Sam Ard Howard Thomas 00 Oldsmobile 35 10 30 10 5454 84
1984 Sam Ard (2) Howard Thomas (2) 00 Oldsmobile (2) 28 8 26 7 4552 426
1985 Jack Ingram (2) Jack Ingram (2) 11 Pontiac (2) 27 5 22 2 4106 29
1986 Larry Pearson David Pearson Pearson Racing 21 Pontiac (3) 31 1 24 1 4514 7
1987 Larry Pearson (2) David Pearson (2) Pearson Racing (2) 21 Chevrolet 27 6 20 3 3959 394
1988 Tommy Ellis John Jackson 99 Buick 30 3 20 5 4281 295
1989 Rob Moroso Dick Moroso Moroso Racing 25 Oldsmobile (3) 29 4 16 7 4001 55
1990 Chuck Bown Hubert Hensley 63 Pontiac (4) 31 6 18 4 4372 200
1991 Bobby Labonte Bobby Labonte Labonte Motorsports 44 Oldsmobile (4) 31 2 21 2 4264 74
1992 Joe Nemechek Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports 87 Chevrolet (2) 31 2 18 1 4275 3
1993 Steve Grissom Wayne Grissom Grissom Racing Enterprises 31 Chevrolet (3) 28 2 18 0 3846 253
1994 David Green Bobby Labonte (2) Labonte Motorsports (2) 44 Chevrolet (4) 28 1 14 9 3725 46
1995 Johnny Benson Jr. Bill Baumgardner BACE Motorsports 74 Chevrolet (5) 26 2 19 0 3688 404
1996 Randy LaJoie Bill Baumgardner (2) BACE Motorsports (2) 74 Chevrolet (6) 26 5 20 2 3714 29
1997 Randy LaJoie (2) Bill Baumgardner (3) BACE Motorsports (2) 74 Chevrolet (7) 30 5 21 2 4381 266
1998 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 3 Chevrolet (8) 31 7 22 3 4469 48
1999 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2) Dale Earnhardt (2) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (2) 3 Chevrolet (9) 32 6 22 3 4647 280
2000 Jeff Green Greg Pollex ppc Racing 10 Chevrolet (10) 32 6 27 7 5005 616
2001 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Richard Childress Racing 2 Chevrolet (11) 33 5 24 4 4813 124
2002 Greg Biffle Jack Roush Roush Racing 60 Ford 34 4 25 5 4924 280
2003 Brian Vickers Ricky Hendrick Hendrick Motorsports 5 Chevrolet (12) 34 3 21 1 4637 14
2004 Martin Truex Jr. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Teresa Earnhardt
Chance 2 Motorsports 8 Chevrolet (13) 34 6 26 7 5173 230
81
2005 Martin Truex Jr. (2) Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Teresa Earnhardt (2)
Chance 2 Motorsports (2) 8 Chevrolet (14) 35 6 22 3 4937 68
2006 Kevin Harvick (2) Richard Childress (2) Richard Childress Racing (2) 21 Chevrolet (15) 35 9 32 1 5648 824
29
Kevin Harvick Kevin Harvick Incorporated 33
2007 Carl Edwards Jack Roush (2) Roush Fenway Racing (2) 60 Ford (2) 35 4 21 0 4805 618
2008 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress (3) Richard Childress Racing (3) 2 Chevrolet (16) 35 1 29 0 5132 21
2009 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Joe Gibbs Racing 18 Toyota 35 9 30 3 5682 210
2010 Brad Keselowski Roger Penske Penske Racing 22 Dodge 35 6 29 5 5639 445
2011 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Jack Roush (3) Roush Fenway Racing (3) 6 Ford (3) 34 2 26 3 1222 45
2012 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (2) Jack Roush (4) Roush Fenway Racing (4) 6 Ford (4) 33 6 26 4 1251 23
2013 Austin Dillon Richard Childress (4) Richard Childress Racing (4) 3 Chevrolet (17) 33 0 22 7 1180 3
2014 Chase Elliott Dale Earnhardt Jr. (3) JR Motorsports 9 Chevrolet (18) 33 3 26 2 1213 42
2015 Chris Buescher Jack Roush (5) Roush Fenway Racing (5) 60 Ford (5) 33 2 20 0 1190 15
2016 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs (2) Joe Gibbs Racing (2) 19 Toyota (2) 33 3 27 2 4040 2
2017 William Byron Dale Earnhardt Jr. (4) JR Motorsports 9 Chevrolet (19) 33 4 22 2 4034 5
2018 Tyler Reddick Dale Earnhardt Jr. (5) JR Motorsports (3) 9 Chevrolet (20) 33 2 20 0 4040 5
2019 Tyler Reddick (2) Richard Childress (5) Richard Childress Racing (5) 2 Chevrolet (21) 33 6 27 5 4040 5
2020 Austin Cindric Roger Penske (2) Penske Racing 22 Ford (6) 33 6 25 3 4040 5
2021 Daniel Hemric Coy Gibbs Joe Gibbs Racing (3) 18 Toyota (3) 33 1 21 4 4040 5
2022 Ty Gibbs Coy Gibbs (2) Joe Gibbs Racing (4) 54 Toyota (4) 33 7 23 7 4040 5
2023 Cole Custer Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing 00 Ford (7) 33 3 21 6 4040 6

By driver

[edit]
Driver Total Seasons
Sam Ard 2 1983, 1984
Jack Ingram 1982, 1985
Larry Pearson 1986, 1987
Randy LaJoie 1996, 1997
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 1998, 1999
Martin Truex Jr. 2004, 2005
Kevin Harvick 2001, 2006
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 2011, 2012
Tyler Reddick 2018, 2019
Tommy Ellis 1 1988
Rob Moroso 1989
Chuck Bown 1990
Bobby Labonte 1991
Joe Nemechek 1992
Steve Grissom 1993
David Green 1994
Johnny Benson 1995
Jeff Green 2000
Greg Biffle 2002
Brian Vickers 2003
Carl Edwards 2007
Clint Bowyer 2008
Kyle Busch 2009
Brad Keselowski 2010
Austin Dillon 2013
Chase Elliott 2014
Chris Buescher 2015
Daniel Suárez 2016
William Byron 2017
Austin Cindric 2020
Daniel Hemric 2021
Ty Gibbs 2022
Cole Custer 2023

By Manufacturer

[edit]
Driver Total Seasons
Chevrolet 21 1987,1992–2001,2003–2006,2008,2013–2014,2017–2019
Ford 7 2002,2007,2011,2012,2015,2020,2023
Toyota 4 2009,2016,2021,2022
Oldsmobile 4 1983,1984,1989,1991
Pontiac 4 1982,1985,1986,1990
Buick 1 1988
Dodge 1 2010

Regular Season Champions

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Since 2018 NASCAR has awarded a championship to the driver in the series with the most points heading into the playoffs with 2017 being grandfathered in.[3]

Year Driver Owner(s)/Teams No.(s) Man.(s)
2017 Elliott Sadler Dale Earnhardt Jr. (JR Motorsports) 1 Chevrolet
2018 Justin Allgaier Kelley Earnhardt Miller (JR Motorsports) 7 Chevrolet
2019 Tyler Reddick Richard Childress (Richard Childress Racing) 2 Chevrolet
2020 Austin Cindric Roger Penske (Team Penske) 22 Ford
2021 A. J. Allmendinger (1) Matt Kaulig (Kaulig Racing) 16 Chevrolet
2022 A. J. Allmendinger (2) Matt Kaulig (Kaulig Racing) 16 Chevrolet
2023 Austin Hill Richard Childress (Richard Childress Racing) 21 Chevrolet
2024 Cole Custer Gene Haas (Stewart–Haas Racing) 00 Ford

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Museum Tour: #25 The Chase Elliott 2020 Season and Championship Exhibit: Championship". Georgia Racing Hall of Fame. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  2. ^ "Oldest – Youngest Race/Pole Winners". Jayski's Silly Season Site. August 1, 2016. Archived from the original on February 10, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  3. ^ "NASCAR unveils Regular Season Championship trophies". Official Site Of NASCAR. 2018-08-14. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
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