Kenseth’s 33 Weeks At Top A New Record
Written by John Davison · November 20, 2003
Daytona Beach, Fla. – Newly crowned NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion Matt Kenseth was a showcase for consistency throughout his championship-winning season and that characteristic earned him an impressive series’ modern-era record in addition to the prestige and financial rewards that accompany the title. Kenseth spent 33 consecutive race weeks ranked No. 1 in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship race, which established a modern-era record and paces this month’s NASCAR Top 10 list.
The previous record was 30 consecutive weeks, established by seven-time NASCAR Winston Cup champ Dale Earnhardt during his first title-winning run in 1980. Kenseth tied Earnhardt’s mark following Atlanta on Oct. 26 and earned the record outright the following week (Nov. 2) at Phoenix. Kenseth’s streak began March 9 following a fourth-place finish at Atlanta that vaulted him past Michael Waltrip for the No. 1 ranking through four races of the season. The performance at Atlanta allowed Kenseth to improve one position from his previous ranking of No. 2 and open a 49-point advantage over No. 2 Tony Stewart. The rise to No. 1 also marked the first time in his career that he was the top-ranked driver at any stage of the season.
“Regarding the DeWalt team being at the top of the championship for 33 straight weeks is a direct compliment to the team we have in place,” said Kenseth, the 31-year-old Cambridge, Wisconsin native who completed his fourth full NASCAR Winston Cup season. “I owe all of the credit to [crew chief] Robbie [Reiser] and the rest of the guys for giving me great cars, which we turned into consistent contenders each week.”
The closest any of his pursuers came to threatening his No. 1 position during the streak occurred when Dale Earnhardt Jr. narrowed the gap to 20 points following Richmond, the 11th of 36 championship-points races. However, the following race at Charlotte was pivotal as Kenseth’s runnerup finish – coupled with a 41st-place finish by Earnhardt Jr. – increased the margin between the two to 160 points. Kenseth held a comfortable margin the remainder of the way and his largest lead of the season was 436 points over No. 2 Kevin Harvick following Dover on Sept. 21, race 28 of 36. He closed the season with a 90-point spread over series runner-up Jimmie Johnson.
Here’s a glance at the NASCAR Top 10 for most consecutive weeks at No. 1 in the championship:
1. Matt Kenseth, 33 weeks: Kenseth opened the 2003 season 19th in the NASCAR Winston Cup championship hunt following a 20th-place finish in the Daytona 500. A third-place effort at Rockingham moved him to sixth and a victory in Las Vegas improved him to second. A fourth-place performance at Atlanta allowed him to supplant Michael Waltrip at No. 1, marking the first time in his career that he held the No. 1 ranking. Kenseth tied the record of 30 weeks in a row that was held by Dale Earnhardt since 1980 following Atlanta on Oct. 26 and earned the record outright the following week (Nov. 2) at Phoenix.
2. Dale Earnhardt, 30 weeks: Earnhardt’s streak in 1980 was nearly wire-to-wire, the exception being the season-opening race at Riverside International Raceway. He finished second at Riverside in January for the No. 2 ranking in the championship, but a fourth-place effort in the ensuing Daytona 500 moved him into first, 39 points ahead of Terry Labonte. He held the No. 1 ranking for 30 weeks in a row and concluded the reign with a NASCAR Winston Cup championship. He closed the run in the seasonending race at Ontario Motor Speedway, taking the crown by 19 points over Cale Yarborough.
3. Richard Petty, 28 weeks: Petty’s reign in 1975 began after posting a win at the Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway – the third event of a 30-race season – that vaulted him from fourth in the championship to first. The win gave him a 46-point advantage over Benny Parsons at that juncture of the season and he dominated throughout the 28-week streak. At the conclusion of the final race at Ontario Motor Speedway, he had captured the championship by 722 points over runner-up Dave Marcis.
4. Earnhardt, 27 weeks: Earnhardt, like Petty’s 28-race week streak, got the run rolling with a victory at the Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, the third race of the 29-event season in 1987. The victory moved Earnhardt from second to first in the championship standings, and gave him a 20-point lead over Bill Elliott. He held the No. 1 ranking the remainder of the way and it culminated with a 489- point advantage over Elliott for the NASCAR Winston Cup championship.
5. Dale Jarrett, 26 weeks: Jarrett’s streak in his 1999 championship-winning season began with a victory at Richmond International Raceway. The win in the 11th race of the 34-event season moved him from second to first and gave him a 63-point lead over Jeff Burton. The streak was highlighted by his championship – a 201-point spread over Bobby Labonte – but it did not conclude at the close of the season. He opened the 2000 season with a victory in the Daytona 500 and held the No. 1 ranking in the championship for the first two races of the season. Despite a seventh-place finish at Las Vegas, Jarrett relinquished the No. 1 position to Bobby Labonte by just four points. Jarrett’s streak is one of only two among the NASCAR Top 10 list that was extended into the following season.
6. (tie) Bobby Labonte, 25 weeks: Labonte’s 25 consecutive race weeks at No. 1 in 2000 resulted in his first NASCAR Winston Cup championship. The run began following a runner-up finish at California Speedway, the 10th event of the 34-race season. The performance at California improved his championship standing from No. 2 to No. 1 as he built a 20-point lead over Mark Martin. Labonte closed out the streak at the season finale at Atlanta, capping it with a 265-point advantage over Dale Earnhardt and the title.
7. Sterling Marlin, 25 weeks: Marlin’s impressive 25-week run at No. 1 in 2002 did not result in a NASCAR Winston Cup championship, one of only two on the NASCAR Top 10 list that did not result in a championship. Marlin moved from fifth to first in the championship following a runner-up finish at Rockingham and led Ward Burton by 18 points through two races of the season. Marlin had the No. 1 ranking wrestled away from him following New Hampshire – the 27th race of the 36-event season – as he fell six points behind new No. 1 Mark Martin. Two races later, Marlin was injured during an accident at Kansas and it doused any title hopes. He missed the remainder of the season and finished 18th in the championship.
8. (tie) Earnhardt, 21 weeks (three times): Earnhardt held the No. 1 position for 21 consecutive weeks in 1986, ‘91 and ‘93, all of which resulted in NASCAR Winston Cup titles. The first of the three streaks began at Talladega – race nine of 29 – when he finished second in the race. The effort moved him from second to first in the championship, 109 points ahead of Darrell Waltrip. He closed out the season at No. 1, earning the title by a 288-point margin over Waltrip.The ‘91 streak also began in the ninth race of the season – at Talladega – and extended through the close of the 29-race season at Atlanta. A third-place finish at Talladega moved him up one position to No. 1, four points ahead of Ricky Rudd. He ended the season with a 195-point advantage over Rudd in the title battle. The second 21- week streak began at Sears Point – race 10 of the 30-race season – when a sixth-place effort moved him from second to first in the championship. He closed out the season by claiming the crown by 80 points over Rusty Wallace.
Bobby Allison, 21 weeks: Allison’s 21-week stretch at No. 1 in 1983 resulted in the lone NASCAR Winston Cup championship of his outstanding career. A victory at Dover in the 10th race of the 30-event season improved his position from No. 2 to No. 1 as he grabbed a 41-point advantage over Harry Gant. The run extended through the season finale at Riverside, where he claimed the championship by 47 points over Darrell Waltrip.
9. Bobby Allison, 20 weeks: Allison’s second streak in 1981 did not result in a championship, joining Sterling Marlin’s run as the only two that did not lead to a series crown. He moved into the No. 1 position from No. 2 following a fourth-place finish at Atlanta, the fifth race of the season. Allison held the No. 1 ranking through Richmond, but lost it the following race at Dover – the 25th race of the season – despite a third-place performance. He fell two points behind Darrell Waltrip, who went on to become the series champion as he edged Allison by 53 points.
10. Jeff Gordon, 19 weeks: Gordon joins Dale Jarrett among this NASCAR Top 10 group as the only drivers to have their consecutive runs extend over two seasons. Gordon earned the No. 1 ranking following his win at Sears Point, race 16 of 33 in the 1998 season. The streak was highlighted by the NASCAR Winston Cup championship – rolling to the title by a 364-point margin over Mark Martin – and continued briefly into the 1999 season. He began the season at No. 1 as a result of his triumph in the Daytona 500, but relinquished the ranking the following week at Rockingham. He finished 39th and fell to No. 11, ending his streak.
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Interesting…but what I’d like to know is…besides Benny Parsons (who also won a championship with only one race victory), who are the top 10 WC champs with least # of race wins in their championship seasons….did that question make sense?