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Good afternoon, Daily Downforce readers! I hope you’re enjoying your summer break! I know I am. But even with the time off, that itch is still there to watch some great on-track action. And though we won’t be getting any new on-track action for a couple of more weeks, the beauty of sports is that we can always go back and relive some of the greatest moments in our sports’ history. The same is true with NASCAR. With the NASCAR Classics page on NASCAR.com, any NASCAR fan can go back a relieve some of greatest races in history in their entirety. Here are 10 of some of the best races you can watch during this NASCAR Olympic break! This list, though presented as a countdown, is in no particular order.
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To start off this list, we’re going with one of the closest finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series history! In fact, until just this year, it was the closest finish in NASCAR history at a margin of only 0.002 seconds. The race took place on March 16, 2003, and Elliott Sadler started on the pole. It was the 100th race run in the history of Darlington Raceway, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (who assumed the lead on lap 91) led the most laps. But, in the closing stages of the race, it was Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch who would decide the race amongst themselves. And it is one of the greatest finishes in NASCAR history for a reason. Check it out in its entirety in the video below.
This race is memorable for me in particular because it was the closest championship battle I had never seen (at the time) since becoming a NASCAR fan. Largely, it is this race that is credited for the highly scrutinized winner-take-all championship format that we have today. Regardless of whether or not you love or loathe that format, this is still a great race with tons of excitement. Truthfully, this should have been a walk-off win for Carl Edwards. Like Matt Kenseth in 2003, he won only one race the whole 2011 season but was insanely consistent. On the flip side of that, Tony Stewart had an up and down year and just barely made the Chase. However, he was able to score four wins out of the last nine races leading up to the season finale.
This race was a nail-biter all the way through to the last laps. It would be a great one to relive over the break as SHR prepares to shut down shop at the end of the 2024 season.
Though things seemed to slow down (as they normally do during the summer months) in terms of excitement when it comes to NASCAR racing, this season started off with a bang. The Daytona 500 was a pretty good kick-off, but it was the spring Atlanta race that really got people talking. With their new superspeedway package, Atlanta has given us some of the most exciting races of the NextGen era. The 2024 Ambetter Health 400 is no exception, with one of the greatest finishes in NASCAR history (though Kyle Busch, considering the year he’s had, might not think so). Check it out!
The 2010 Subway Jalapeno 250 has a lot of nostalgia clinging to it. For one thing, it was the first race that saw the NASCAR Xfinity Series use the Car of Tomorrow bodies. Not to mention, it was a return to the track of the famous number 3 RCR Chevrolet with Dale Earnhardt Jr. behind the wheel. Anything but a win would be unacceptable. Was Little E able to pull it off as he honored his father’s induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame? You’ll have to watch to find out.
Like most, I was skeptical when it was announced that the fall Charlotte race would be converted to an infield road course race starting in 2018. But since this inaugural race on the Charlotte Roval configuration, I’d argue that it has become one of the better races of the year. This race is also somewhat considered the beginning of the end when it came to Jimmie Jonhson being competitive in the Cup Series. Johnson was running 2nd and could have finished there behind Martin Truex Jr. to advance to the next round of the NASCAR Playoffs. But Johnson wanted the win. With a daring move in the front stretch chicane, Johnson took Truex out as well as himself, leaving the door for Ryan Blaney to steal the victory.
You can relive this chaotic race in the video below.
This has to be the sentimental favorite for the best NASCAR race of all time. Just a few months after the death of NASCAR giant Dale Earnhardt, his son returned to the big banks of Daytona with his eyes planted firmly on the prize. With the help of his DEI teammate Michael Waltrip, Little E. performed his eulogy to his father at the track that claimed his life. That’s enough said about this. You need to watch this race again…and again…and again…
The most recent race to make this list is the 2024 Advent Health 400 at Kansas Speedway. How could I not include the closest finish in NASCAR history? And it happened ONLY THIS YEAR! For this race, Christopher Bell unsurprisingly scored the pole as he was on somewhat of a streak at the time. But it would be his teammate in veteran Denny Hamlin who won the first stage while Chris Buescher went on to win stage 2.
While the racing was good all race, and Kansas has been consistent in giving us the type of racing on the cookie-cutter ovals he had yearned after for so long, it’s really the finish that is this race’s biggest highlight. At a margin of only 0.001 seconds, Kyle Busch literally edged out Chris Buescher for the win here. It’s really something to behold and something to be relived time and time again.
Again, I’m letting my bias show. Give me a break! I’m a long-suffered member of Junior Nation! Let me have this! I really enjoyed the entirety of the Daytona 500. I thought it was the best plate race (at the time) that the Gen6 car had to offer. It came after the snoozefest of 2013, so there’s something to say about it.
Not only was it a huge improvement concerning the on-track product, it was also the race that kicked off Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s late-career resurgence and will always be a special race for me. For Junior Nation members, rewatch this race over the break. You won’t be sorry!
Prior to Atlanta getting a facelift and being turned into a superspeedway-style track, it was a cookie-cutter intermediate. The 2005 Golden Corral 500 is largely considered one of the best races in that particular configuration’s history. Rocket Man Ryan Newman scored the pole with, surprisingly, Bobby Hamilton Jr. starting second. The drivers that would make this race a showdown, however, started third and fourth, respectively. Those drivers were future 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and rookie Carl Edwards.
The two dominant cars of the day were actually Greg Biffle and Jimmie Johnson. The two swapped the lead for a race-high 11-times that day with Johnson leading 156 laps on the day while Biffle led 151 of the race’s 325 laps. But it was Biffle’s rookie teammate in Carl Edwards who would take it to Johnson in the closing laps. Edwards ultimately beat Johnson with a margin of 0.028 of a second.
You can relive this timeless classic in its entirety in the video below.
The finish of the 2000 Winston 500 at Talladega was truly a sight to behold. The restrictor plate racing product had seen something of a resurgence from the let-downs between 1997 and 1999. What makes this race so astonishing is that Dale Earnhardt went from 18th to 1st in only five laps to score his 76th and final victory of his hall-of-fame career. Finishing behind him were the cars owned by his former crew chief, Andy Petree (Kenny Wallace in the number 55 and Joe Nemechek in the flagship number 33).
This is a race that you just have to watch to believe. So I’ll get out of the way. Go on! This is a must-watch during this summer Olympic break!
What do you think of our list, Daily Downforce readers? Do you agree with our picks? Are there ones you would like to add? Let us know and give us some suggestions by commenting on all of our social media pages. Be sure to keep it right here at DailyDownforce.com. Just because NASCAR is on an industry break doesn’t mean that silly season has ceased! Tune back in here for all the latest news, stories, and rumors in the world of NASCAR!
