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History of Nascar

The History of NASCAR

To be a true fan, one needs to understand the roots of the genre. Winners Lane gives you the history of NASCAR through the years from its beginnings in the hills of the Carolinas and Virginia, to the international stage.
We provide the important data for each decade, and highlight the notable moments in each of these decades.
If you'd like to give us your comments and your input, please feel free to contact us.

1920-1933

NASCAR history can trace its roots back to 1794. Of course, that's a whole century before the invention of the automobile, but it was the year of the Whiskey Rebellion. This was a protest of a federal tax on whiskey by frontier farmers. Instead of being subject to the tax, many frontiersmen built secret stills, manufactured, and delivered their product in secret.
Not often mentioned, but this is the true origin of NASCAR history.
During the Prohibition era of the 1920's and early 30's, the undercover business of whiskey, or "moonshine" running began to boom. The biggest problem of the day, in fact more of a problem than the secret manufacture of moonshine, was the secret transportation of it. The common term for moonshine runners was "bootleggers". Bootleggers were men who illegally ran whiskey from hidden stills to hundreds of markets across the Southeast. These men were the real Dukes of Hazzard, only there was nothing funny about their business. Driving at high speeds at night, often with the police in pursuit, was dangerous. The penalty for losing the race was jail or loss of livelihood.
As bootlegging boomed, the drivers began to race among themselves to see who had the fastest cars. Bootleggers raced on Sunday afternoons and then would use the same car to haul moonshine on the Sunday night. Inevitably, people came to see the races, and racing moonshine cars became extremely popular in the backroads of the South. Bootlegging continued even after the end of the Prohibition era, because of the huge tax placed on whiskey upon repeal of the Volstead Act in 1933.

1947-1950

Founded more than 50 years ago, NASCAR has become one of the hottest spectator sports in the world. In the years following World War II, stock car racing began to grow. But there was very little organization and no consistency in the rules between tracks.
Bill France Sr. promoted racing events on the famous beach course at Daytona Beach, FL. France saw the sport needed organizing and so started the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) in 1947.
Under the direction of Bill France Sr. and later his son, Bill France Jr., NASCAR has become the fastest growing spectator sport in the 1990s. The first NASCAR-sanctioned race was held on the beach/road course at Daytona in February 1948. The following year NASCAR began the "Strictly Stock" division, which has became the racing division of NASCAR, known today as the Winston Cup Series.The first "Strictly Stock" event featured a $5,000 purse and was held on a two-mile circular course in southern Florida followed by a 150-mile race at the three-quarter-mile Charlotte Speedway. Eight "Strictly Stock" events in all were held in 1949.
In 1950, the first NASCAR event on the newly constructed Darlington International Speedway in South Carolina was held. This banked, paved track had 75 cars take the green flag for the 500-mile race. 50 cars finished. Nash became the first car manufacturer to enter NASCAR, posting money and backing some race entrants.

1954-1959

In 1954, France announced plans to construct a 2.5-mile high-banked speedway in Daytona Beach, headquarters of NASCAR. Construction started November 1957, and the track was completed in 1959. The first race at the new speedway was a 100-mile NASCAR Convertible Division race on February 20, 1959. The finish of the inaugural Daytona 500 was very, very close between Lee Petty and Johnny Beauchamp that the winner was not known for three days. Petty, driving a 1959 Oldsmobile, was ultimately declared the winner.

1960-1970

Throughout the 60s and 1970s, interest in NASCAR continued to grow. Richard Petty, son of the first Daytona 500 winner, won the first of his seven Winston Cup championships in 1964. Today, Petty "The King" is a Winston Cup team owner and his son, Kyle, is a Winston Cup driver who has started 550 races spanning a 20-year career. In 1969, France opened the Alabama International Motor Speedway, known today as the Talladega Superspeedway. In January 1972, France handed the reins of NASCAR to his son, when Bill Jr. was named president of NASCAR. France wasn't even two years old when his family moved to Daytona Beach.

1980-1989

The 80s saw the increase of sponsorship from Fortune 500 companies for teams and for individual NASCAR races events. Drivers such as seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt, perennial fan favorite Bill Elliott and Darrell Waltrip became the familiar names in NASCAR racing. Television coverage continued to increase, with every NASCAR Winston Cup race televised in 1989.

1990-2000

The 1990s began the decade in which NASCAR reached lots of new fans. Attendance at Winston Cup events rose to more than 6 million in 1998, up from 3.3 million in 1990 and 1.5 million in 1982. NASCAR licensed products topped $950 million in 1998, from $80 million in 1990. By 1999, there were 13 NASCAR Thunder stores in eleven states, selling NASCAR apparel and other licensed products.

Mike Helton, director of competition for NASCAR since 1994 and a former official at the Daytona and Talladega tracks, took over day-to-day operations of NASCAR as senior vice president and chief operating officer. France continues as president of NASCAR. France's son, Brian, is senior vice president of marketing and communications. From those humble beginnings more than 50 years ago, France turned his vision of what NASCAR could become into the brand of racing we know today . NASCAR's main series is the Winston Cup- with 34 points races across the country - starting at Daytona Beach Florida and ending in Atlanta. Winston Cup's "minor" league is the Busch Grand National Series where most of today's top Winston Cup drivers developed their skills.

2000-2005

The new millennium brought many changes to NASCAR racing. The opening events of the 2000 season showed that competitive racing was almost a thing of the past. The enhanced aerodynamic packages used by the teams made on-track passing difficult. In the Twin 125 races run during Speed Weeks, there was not a single lead change in either race. The Daytona 500, the pre-season opener, recorded only 9 changes which was a disappointing drop from the 50-60 lead changes common in the Daytona 500s of the late 1970s.
To increase on-track competition further, NASCAR required the installation of small blades attached to the roof of each Winston Cup car. These blades cause “dirty air” to flow over the top of the vehicles, which made the cars less stable and challenged drivers’ skills in maneuvering their cars on the track. The addition of the blades had an immediate impact with 49 lead changes in the 2000 Talladega race, ultimately won by Dale Earnhardt following a 20 position climb to the top in the final 10 laps of the race.
Several changes occurred in 2001. First, television coverage was streamlined. Prior to this time, each track sold its own television rights for each race. In an effort to elevate the status of NASCAR as a professional sport, the governing board struck a deal with FOX and NBC to televise all cup races. Under the new agreement, NASCAR would distribute television revenues on an individual event basis. Centralizing the television contract increased revenues by nearly 500 percent.
Another change that occurred during the 2001 season was the return of Dodge vehicles to Winston Cup racing in the form of a fleet of Dodge Intrepids. The Dodge nameplate had not been active in Winston Cup racing since 1985. The Kansas Speedway and the Chicagoland Speedway each hosted their first NASCAR race during the 2001 season.
The most memorable change in the 2001 season, however, was the requirement of all drivers to wear the HANS device- a safety collar designed to prevent head and neck injuries in the case of a head-on collision. The new ruling followed 4 deaths in a 9-month period in NASCAR’s top racing divisions, most notably that of racing legend, Dale Earnhardt.
The 2002 season saw the loss of the aerodynamic package used in 2001 due to safety concerns in the wake of the Earnhardt crash. The chase for the 2002 Winston Cup championship was one of the tightest in years, with any driver in September’s top 10 slots having a shot at the title. In addition, the list of contenders included 2 rookie drivers and one driver on probation.
The 2003 campaign was marked by major changes in NASCAR sponsorships and management. Title sponsor, T.J. Reynolds, bowed out of NASCAR after 33 years of sponsorship due to pressure from the public regarding tobacco companies’ involvement in sporting events. Nextel Communications signed on as sponsor in June 2003, changing the name of the Winston Cup Series to the Nextel Cup Series.
In September 2003, Chairman Bill France, Jr. turned over control of the organization to his son, Brian, who represents the third generation of the France family to preside over the sport.
In October 2003, Pontiac announced that it would not be returning to participate in the 2004 season, leaving Chevrolet as the only GM representative in the sport.
2004 brought the first change in the points system in nearly 30 years. The first 26 races of the season would carry the same point value. Total points would then be adjusted after these races and only the top 10 contenders in points would be eligible for the championship. The remaining 10 races of the season would determine the championship winner.
Another change in 2004 was the scheduling realignment which gave the Labor Day weekend Southern 500 to the California Speedway, ending its 54 year tradition in Darlington.
Changes for 2005 consisted of changes to Speed Weeks’ qualifying races. The Gatorade 125’s were increased to 150 miles and re-named the Dual 150’s. The change was made to create the necessity for a pit stop to increase on-track competition during these short, qualifying runs.
A second change in effect for the 2005 season was the impound of cars between qualifying runs and race time. Once drivers had qualified for a race, cars were impounded by NASCAR officials and no changes were to be made to the cars prior to the start of the race. This ensured that the engine used to qualify was the same as the engine used in competition.
Following these changes, NASCAR has undergone incremental changes that led the sport to where it is today.. The History of Nascar is truly a history of passion and drive, and as fans, we are all eternally grateful to those pioneers of the sport in the early days!!