The Complete Statistical History of Stock-Car Racing: Records, Streaks, Oddities, and Trivia

Everything you've ever wanted to know about NASCAR Winston Cup Racing--and more--is in this book. Author Richard Sowers has dissected and analyzed every aspect of NASCAR's history and compiled the most comprehensive collection of records ever assembled, uncovering a wealth of little-known facts along the way. For the first time, fans are given a single tool--the Performance Index--to settle the endless debate of who is NASCAR's all-time most successful driver or who has achieved the best performance on a given track. Was Fireball Roberts a better Superspeedway driver than Dale Earnhardt? The Performance Index uncovers surprising answers. Organized into three sections--a comprehensive year-by-year review, a statistical biography of more that 400 of the sport's all-time greatest drivers, and a complete listing of NASCAR's statistics and records, The Complete Statistical History of Stock Car Racing may provoke as many arguments as it settles. No other book offers this information. If you are going to buy only one book on NASCAR, this is the one.

Author's Letter to Auto Racing Fans

The Complete Statistical History of Stock-Car Racing: Records, Streaks, Oddities, and Trivia was intended to be the best reference book about stock-car racing ^ the one source that no fan of the sport can live without.

I think it succeeds and, in fact, it may be the best reference book about any sport. The book contains essays about history's greatest drivers and a host of other subjects, including the oldest and youngest drivers to accomplish numerous feats, car owners who've held the keys to success, minority drivers and significant speed milestones. Also helping make this book indispensable are each season's most memorable race, most significant wreck, and most important off-track development; statistical biographies of more than 400 of the greatest drivers in history, and a wealth of other statistical data, including an all-time ranking of the 1,968 drivers who have logged a top-20 finish in NASCAR Winston Cup racing. Every record imaginable is in the book, from most career victories on dirt to most consecutive seasons with multiple 500-mile victories.

The genesis of The Complete Statistical History of Stock-Car Racing: Records, Streaks, Oddities, and Trivia was a longtime curiosity about a sport I have loved for more than three decades and have been involved with as a sportswriter or publicist since 1973. Unlike most of the other sports I've been passionate about, I barely had been able to scratch the surface for the depth of information I craved about the world's premier stock-car racing circuit.

Although there is a host of statistical information in the book, don't let the title fool you. There is much, much more, and it's presented in a manner that fans will enjoy reading. And, like any good reference book, you'll refer to The Complete Statistical History of Stock-Car Racing: Records, Streaks, Oddities, and Trivia often. This book is stock-car racing's ultimate argument settler ^ and the ultimate argument starter.

Enjoy.

And to all who choose to add this book to your personal library, I offer a heartfelt thanks.