The NASCAR Xfinity Series Drivers' Championship is awarded by the chairman in NASCAR to the most successful Xfinity Series racing car driver over a season, as determined by a points system based on race results. The Drivers' Championship was first awarded in 1982, to Jack Ingram. The first driver to win multiple Championships was Sam Ard in 1983 and 1984. The current Drivers' Champion is Chris Buescher who won his first NASCAR Xfinity Series championship in 2015.
NASCAR does not officially declare the Champion until the end of the season, but a driver is said to have "clinched" the Championship after it is no longer possible for another to obtain more points than he has, even if the former driver were to not compete in the remaining races of the season, and the latter to score the maximum number of points possible. The earliest in a season that the Drivers' Championship has been clinched was in 2006, when Kevin Harvick secured the title with four races remaining.
Overall, twenty-six different drivers have won the Championship, with Sam Ard, Jack Ingram, Larry Pearson, Randy LaJoie, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. holding the record for most titles, at two. Ard, Pearson, LaJoie, Earnhardt, Jr., Truex Jr., and Stenhouse Jr. all have the record for most consecutive Drivers' Championships, with two consecutive championships.
By season
| Year |
Driver |
Owner |
Team |
No |
Make |
St |
Ws |
TT |
P |
Pts |
Gap |
| 1982 |
Jack Ingram |
|
11 |
Pontiac |
29 |
7 |
24 |
1 |
4495 |
47 |
| 1983 |
Sam Ard |
Howard Thomas |
|
00 |
Oldsmobile |
35 |
10 |
30 |
10 |
5454 |
84 |
| 1984 |
28 |
8 |
26 |
7 |
4552 |
426 |
| 1985 |
Jack Ingram (2) |
|
11 |
Pontiac |
27 |
5 |
22 |
2 |
4106 |
29 |
| 1986 |
Larry Pearson |
David Pearson |
Pearson Racing |
21 |
31 |
1 |
24 |
1 |
4514 |
7 |
| 1987 |
Chevrolet |
27 |
6 |
20 |
3 |
3959 |
394 |
| 1988 |
Tommy Ellis |
John Jackson |
|
99 |
Buick |
30 |
3 |
20 |
5 |
4281 |
295 |
| 1989 |
Rob Moroso |
Dick Moroso |
Moroso Racing |
25 |
Oldsmobile |
29 |
4 |
16 |
7 |
4001 |
55 |
| 1990 |
Chuck Bown |
Hubert Hensley |
|
63 |
Pontiac (3) |
31 |
6 |
18 |
4 |
4372 |
200 |
| 1991 |
Bobby Labonte |
Labonte Motorsports |
44 |
Oldsmobile (3) |
31 |
2 |
21 |
2 |
4264 |
74 |
| 1992 |
Joe Nemechek |
NEMCO Motorsports |
87 |
Chevrolet |
31 |
2 |
18 |
1 |
4275 |
3 |
| 1993 |
Steve Grissom |
Wayne Grissom |
Grissom Racing Enterprises |
31 |
28 |
2 |
18 |
0 |
3846 |
253 |
| 1994 |
David Green |
Bobby Labonte |
Labonte Motorsports (2) |
44 |
28 |
1 |
14 |
9 |
3725 |
46 |
| 1995 |
Johnny Benson, Jr. |
Bill Baumgardner |
BACE Motorsports |
74 |
26 |
2 |
19 |
0 |
3688 |
404 |
| 1996 |
Randy LaJoie |
26 |
5 |
20 |
2 |
3714 |
29 |
| 1997 |
30 |
5 |
21 |
2 |
4381 |
266 |
| 1998 |
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. |
Dale Earnhardt |
Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |
3 |
31 |
7 |
22 |
3 |
4469 |
48 |
| 1999 |
32 |
6 |
22 |
3 |
4647 |
280 |
| 2000 |
Jeff Green |
Greg Pollex |
ppc Racing |
10 |
32 |
6 |
27 |
7 |
5005 |
616 |
| 2001 |
Kevin Harvick |
Richard Childress |
Richard Childress Racing |
2 |
33 |
5 |
24 |
4 |
4813 |
124 |
| 2002 |
Greg Biffle |
Jack Roush |
Roush Racing |
60 |
Ford |
34 |
4 |
25 |
5 |
4924 |
280 |
| 2003 |
Brian Vickers |
Ricky Hendrick |
Hendrick Motorsports |
5 |
Chevrolet |
34 |
3 |
21 |
1 |
4637 |
14 |
| 2004 |
Martin Truex, Jr. |
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (2) |
Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (2) |
8 |
34 |
6 |
26 |
7 |
5173 |
230 |
| 2005 |
35 |
6 |
22 |
3 |
4937 |
68 |
| 2006 |
Kevin Harvick (2) |
Richard Childress |
Richard Childress Racing |
21 |
35 |
9 |
32 |
1 |
5648 |
824 |
| 29 |
| Kevin Harvick[1] |
Kevin Harvick Incorporated |
33 |
| 2007 |
Carl Edwards |
Jack Roush |
Roush Fenway Racing |
60 |
Ford |
35 |
4 |
21 |
0 |
4805 |
618 |
| 2008 |
Clint Bowyer |
Richard Childress |
Richard Childress Racing |
2 |
Chevrolet |
35 |
1 |
29 |
0 |
5132 |
21 |
| 2009 |
Kyle Busch |
Joe Gibbs |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
18 |
Toyota |
35 |
9 |
30 |
3 |
5682 |
210 |
| 2010 |
Brad Keselowski |
Roger Penske |
Penske Racing |
22 |
Dodge |
35 |
6 |
29 |
5 |
5639 |
445 |
| 2011 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
Jack Roush |
Roush Fenway Racing |
6 |
Ford |
34 |
2 |
26 |
3 |
1,222 |
45 |
| 2012 |
33 |
6 |
26 |
4 |
1,251 |
23 |
| 2013 |
Austin Dillon |
Richard Childress (3) |
Richard Childress Racing (4) |
3 |
Chevrolet |
33 |
0 |
22 |
7 |
1,180 |
3 |
| 2014 |
Chase Elliott |
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. |
JR Motorsports |
9 |
Chevrolet (5) |
33 |
3 |
26 |
2 |
1,213 |
42 |
| 2015 |
Chris Buescher |
Jack Roush (4) |
Roush Fenway Racing (2) |
60 |
Ford (4) |
33 |
2 |
20 |
0 |
1190 |
15 |
| 2016 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By driver
| Driver |
Total |
Seasons |
| Sam Ard |
2 |
1983, 1984 |
| Jack Ingram |
1982, 1985 |
| Larry Pearson |
1986, 1987 |
| Randy LaJoie |
1996, 1997 |
| Dale Earnhardt, Jr. |
1998, 1999 |
| Martin Truex, Jr. |
2004, 2005 |
| Kevin Harvick |
2001, 2006 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
2011, 2012 |
| Tommy Ellis |
1 |
1988 |
| Rob Moroso |
1989 |
| Chuck Bown |
1990 |
| Bobby Labonte |
1991 |
| Joe Nemechek |
1992 |
| Steve Grissom |
1993 |
| David Green |
1994 |
| Johnny Benson |
1995 |
| Jeff Green |
2000 |
| Greg Biffle |
2002 |
| Brian Vickers |
2003 |
| Carl Edwards |
2007 |
| Clint Bowyer |
2008 |
| Kyle Busch |
2009 |
| Brad Keselowski |
2010 |
| Austin Dillon |
2013 |
| Chase Elliott |
2014 |
| Chris Buescher |
2015 |
See also
References
External links
|
Xfinity Series Drivers' Champions
|
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