Motorsports
Motorsports have been around for nearly as long as motors have been inside cars. Two of the most famous racing circuits are NASCAR in the United States and the intercontinental open-wheel F1, though motorsports also include off-road rally-car racing, drag racing, and motorcycle racing.
NASCAR was founded in 1948, began contesting races in 1949, and held its first Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious and famous events in North American racing, in 1959. NASCAR contests Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Camping World Truck Series races across the United States. Star drivers such as Cale Yarborough, David Pearson, Richard Petty, Jeff Gordon, Darrell Waltrip, Dale Earnhardt Sr., and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Year founded: 1948
President: Steve Phelps
Winningest driver, races: Richard Petty (200)
Winningest driver, cup titles: Richard Petty, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Sr. (7)
Formula 1 started racing in 1950 and has since become the premier racing series in the world. F1 contests more than 20 races on five continents each year, with the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) serving as the governing body. Renowned drivers such as Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, and Ayrton Senna starred on the F1 circuit.
Year founded: 1950
FIA President: Mohammed Ben Sulayem
Winningest driver, races: Lewis Hamilton
Winningest driver, championships: Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton (7)
Featured articles:
Read the latest news, rumors, and analysis on NASCAR and F1:
Barring road courses, most NASCAR races only feature left turns. Why do things only move counterclockwise around the track?
In a heartwarming scene one week after the death of Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr. essentially ended the outrage directed at Sterling Marlin.
Jimmie Johnson was a seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, but his winning ways started long before he started stock car racing.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets upset during his podcast while talking about his father with former crew chief Larry McReynolds and their struggles during the 1997 NASCAR season.
NASCAR’s Ricky Stenhouse once played a role in a fake engagement to his then-girlfriend Danica Patrick in 2017.
The theory that Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s 2004 Daytona 500 victory was rigged as it was the anniversary of his father’s win at “The Great American Race.”
Is NASCAR’s playoff system gimmicky and wholly unfair? Yes. Is it going away anytime soon? Probably not.
Before he got put to death, Joseph Mitchell Parsons used his final words to make a controversial reference to NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon.
NASCAR rivals have always suspected that Bobby Allison’s crew rigged the rear bumper of his car to fall off at the 1982 NASCAR Daytona 500. Allison won handily that year for his second Daytona crown.
Danica Patrick’s NASCAR career came to an end at the 2018 Daytona 500.
