NASCAR (DAYTONA) - Top Performances In 2007

Top Performer of the Year

* Jimmie Johnson – Jimmie Johnson won his second consecutive NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series championship, becoming only the second driver in the past nine seasons to win back-to-back championships. He won a series-high 10 races, including four races in a row in the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. Johnson posted 20 top-five and 24 top-10 finishes on the year. His average finish in the Chase was 5.0, as he was truly dominant when it counted the most.

Top Rookie of the Year

* Juan Pablo Montoya – The former CART and Indianapolis 500 champion captured a pair of wins in his initial season of NASCAR racing. Montoya won the NASCAR Busch Series race at Mexico City and followed that up by winning the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series event at Infineon Raceway. Montoya finished 20th in championship points and posted three top-five and six top-10 finishes in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series.

Top Team Owner of the Year

* Rick Hendrick – Rick Hendrick won his seventh NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series championship, second only to Petty Enterprises (nine). Three of his drivers finished in the top 10 in drivers’ points in 2007: Jimmie Johnson (1st); Jeff Gordon (2nd); and Kyle Busch (5th). Hendrick Motorsports drivers accounted for 18 wins or half of the 36 points races in 2007. All four of the Hendrick drivers placed in the top 15 in the final championship point standings.

Top Breakthrough Performers of the Year

* Clint Bowyer – In just his second season of competing in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, Clint Bowyer finished third in the final championship standings. His first career victory came in the opening race of the Chase at New Hampshire on Sept. 16. Bowyer was steady throughout the season, with five top five’s, 17 top 10’s and zero DNFs on the year. * Joey Logano – Seventeen-year-old Joey Logano became the first rookie driver to win the NASCAR Busch East Series championship and set the record as the series’ youngest champion. Logano won six times during the Grand National regular season and capped off his rookie campaign by winning the Toyota All-Star Showdown at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway in October. Logano will begin competing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series next spring after he turns 18 years of age.

Comeback Driver of the Year

* Ron Hornaday, Jr. – Ron Hornaday, Jr. came on to win his third NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship, overtaking Mike Skinner in the points battle at the season finale at Homestead-Miami. Hornaday’s title is his first since 1998 and comes a year after he finished seventh in the 2006 standings. The 49-year-old Hornaday posted four wins, 13 top five’s and 22 top 10’s in 2007.

Most Dominating Performance

* Jimmie Johnson in the Chase – Jimmie Johnson’s clutch performance during the Chase is one for the record books. Johnson won four straight races in the Chase (Martinsville, Atlanta, Texas and Phoenix) to lay the gauntlet down as the man to beat for the championship. Johnson’s average finish in the Chase was 5.0 and he posted eight top 10’s and six top five’s in the 10-race Chase.

Most Exciting Finish

* Daytona 500 – The NASCAR racing season got off to a thrilling start at the Daytona 500, as Kevin Harvick nipped Mark Martin at the start/finish line to win by .020 seconds – the closest Daytona 500 finish since the advent of electronic timing and scoring in 1993.

Top 10 Races of the Year (in chronological order)

* Chevy Silverado HD 250 at Daytona International Speedway (2/16) – Jack Sprague takes the checkered flag in a three-wide finish in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ season-opener. Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway (2/18) – Kevin Harvick nips Mark Martin at the finish, winning by a mere 0.020 second. * Telcel-Motorola Mexico 200 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez (3/4) – Juan Pablo Montoya spins out teammate Scott Pruett in the closing laps to win his first NASCAR event before an enthusiastic crowd in Mexico City. * Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway (3/25) – Kyle Busch wins the first Car of Tomorrow race in a close battle over Jeff Burton. * Goody’s 500 at Martinsville Speedway (4/1) – In the second race with the new car, Jimmie Johnson holds off teammate Jeff Gordon, as the two race hard and bump hard down the stretch. * Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway (6/24) – Juan Pablo Montoya wins his first career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race. * Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway (7/7) – Jamie McMurray nips Kyle Busch at the wire. * NAPA Auto Parts 200 presented by Dodge at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve (8/4) – NASCAR makes history as the NASCAR Busch Series races north of the border in Montreal, Canada. Kevin Harvick wins in a thrilling finish. * Centurion Boats at The Glen at Watkins Glen International (8/12) – Tony Stewart gets the win after leader Jeff Gordon spins out in the closing laps. * Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway (11/4) – Jimmie Johnson lays it all on the line and outduels Matt Kenseth over the final closing laps to establish himself as the man to beat in the Chase.