Top Five Non-Crash NASCAR Moments Of All-Time
NASCAR has given us countless adrenaline-packed life or death moments through the years, but believe it or not, there are also several amazing moments that didn’t result from crashes. We had no idea, but here’s the list of the top five non-crash moments in NASCAR history.
- Mario Andretti wins Daytona 500
Considered by many to be the best driver ever, winning the Daytona 500 made Andretti the only driver to win the Daytona 500, Indy 500, and Grand Prix of Monaco. While this was a very historically significant moment, it ultimately lacked that explosive experience everyone desires.
- Craven by a nose
Ricky Craven holds the record for the narrowest win in NASCAR history after winning by four inches or .002 seconds in the 2003 Carolina Dodge Dealers 400. This would have been an all-time moment for sure if Craven had simply crashed through another car and ignited a pretty sick ring of fire. But instead, he just won the race.
- Jimmie Johnson wins #7
No one thought it was possible for anyone to match “The King” and “The Intimidator” with seven cup championships, but at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2016 Jimmie Johnson did it. While it would have been more exciting if all the cars were scattered around the track engulfed in flames in some post-apocalyptic scene as Johnson battled the survivors Mad Max-style, it was a huge moment in the racing community.
- Petty wins 200th
President Reagan was on hand to witness Richard Petty win his 200th and final race. The two even shared a celebratory meal of fried chicken trackside following the race. It’s a good anecdote that would have been made great had Petty been in a big crash, and for a moment we didn’t know if he was okay, but then he popped out of the car engulfed in flames, extinguished them himself, gave the crowd a thumbs up and went on to win the race.
- Jeff Gordon retires
Fans of NASCAR agree, this was the single best moment in the history of the sport. The cherry on top would have been if he crashed his car as he drove away from the press conference, but not just any crash, one of those crashes where the car just keeps inexplicably exploding, and when they finally get the fire out two days later the investigation turns up no signs of human remains. Did he get away somehow? Is he still out there? But let’s not be greedy.
