A guide to NASCAR drivers including over 80 of the top drivers from the sport's inception to the present. Drivers are covered with photographs, year-by-year and track-by-track statistics.

Americans love heroes. And NASCAR 50 Greatest Drivers showcases NASCAR's exciting heroes through bold photography and interviews that deliver a unique insight into the lives of these legends of stock car racing. As part of its 50th anniversary celebration, NASCAR polled a group of motorsports experts to select the fifty drivers whose achievements both span and epitomize NASCAR's first half-century of accomplishment and growth. These are the top NASCAR drivers--selected as the best of all NASCAR divisions dating back to the first NASCAR-sanctioned races in 1948. From pioneer drivers racing on the Daytona Beach-Road Course and dirt ovals to today's era of flashy colors and screaming engines running on speedways across the nation--here is the lineage of NASCAR's very best. Some drivers had long and storied careers. Others had brief but spectacular ones. All are legends. "These are the drivers who made and make NASCAR fans stand on their feet and cheer. These are the drivers who made NASCAR history." -- NASCAR President, Bill France, Jr. Since its founding in 1947, the France family has built NASCAR (the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) from a small, family-run racing organization into a $2-billion-a-year industry--the leader in motorsports entertainment. Today, over 5.5 million people a year attend NASCAR Winston Cup Series races and nearly 150 million watch the action on television. "Looking back, I think the days of Petty and Pearson were very special for the sport. They became heroes to an awful lot of people, many of whom weren't car racing fans. They opened doors for the sport and welcomes the rest of us." -- Darrell Waltrip "These are the men who define the competition of our sporty." -- NASCAR President, Bill France, Jr. Their battles brought attention to NASCAR--their character and grit brought attention to themselves. Now, NASCAR 50 Greatest Drivers celebrated the men who set the standards and established the traditions: Pioneers, including Herb Thomas, Buck Baker, Tim Flock, Junior Johnson, Lee Petty, and NASCAR's first champion--Red Byron. Challengers like Cotton Owens, Ralph Earnhardt, and LeeRoy Yarbrough. Giants Richards Petty, David Pearson, Bobby Allison, and Ray Henrick. The New Generation--A.J. Foyt, Neil Bonnnett, Benny Parsons, and Darrell Waltrip. Future Legends, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Bill Elliott, and Rusty Wallace. And many more! All captures here, as NASCAR honors its past and present--the greatest drivers to ever strap themselves into a stock car!

What is it that makes a man strap himself into an automobile and drive it hundreds of laps around a track at speeds surpassing 200 miles per hour? Critically acclaimed journalist G. Wayne Miller decided to find out by spending a year on the NASCAR circuit with Roush Racing's legendary owner Jack Roush and his four title-contending Winston Cup drivers: Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, Matt Kenseth, and Kurt Busch. Miller plumbs the allure of speed and the exploding popularity of stock-car racing through the dramatic 2001 season, which opened with the most famous Daytona 500 in history, when NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt died as his car slammed into the wall on the final turn. Miller takes us inside the minds and behind the wheels of the of the hottest drivers of the past two seasons, as they cope with the thrills and the dangers along the way to the Cup. Miller also takes us inside Roush Racing, a $125 million business, showing a side of NASCAR that few fans ever get to see. For longtime fans and curious newcomers alike, Men and Speed takes you for a wild ride through the fastest sport in the land.

In The Wildest Ride, Joe Menzer gives us a timely, comprehensive look at the dramatic, rollicking history of stock-car racing in America, exploring both its inauspicious bootlegging beginnings and the billion-dollar industry that it has become. Menzer straps the reader into the driver's seat for a run through NASCAR's history, revealing the sport's remarkable rise from rogue outfit to corporate darling. Menzer also profiles the many superstar drivers who have dominated the sport, men as unpredictable as they are fearless, including "The Intimidator," Dale Earnhardt, whose ferocious driving made him NASCAR's signature personality -- and whose tragic death at the 2001 Daytona 500 was mourned by millions. Menzer expertly maneuvers through the tight corners and wide-open straightaways of NASCAR's history, examining the circuit's attempt to distance itself from its "redneck racin'" past without compromising its country roots. Simultaneously rowdy and insightful, The Wildest Ride is a thorough and unfailingly honest account of NASCAR's amazing rise to prominence and a sweeping account of a uniquely American phenomenon.

Known for his trademark celebratory backflips off of his car following victories, Carl Edwards is one of NASCAR’s biggest and most irrepressible personalities, and also one of its winningest drivers. Racing in all three of NASCARS’ race series, Edwards has racked up more than 30 wins and more than 160 Top 10 finishes in only six years of racing. He won two Rookie of the Year honors: in 2003 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck series and in 2005 in the NASCAR Busch series. In 2007, Edwards was named the NASCAR Busch series champion. Not yet 30 years old, Edwards should have a long and successful future ahead of him in racing. His life story is far from written, but what an adventure it has already been!

"Car and Driver's" Brock Yates's perspective on NASCAR spans nearly 50 years, and his wry observations are always sure to incite both cheers and jeers. "NASCAR Off the Record" is a pithy, opinionated, hilarious, and compelling collection of some of the greatest NASCAR stories of all time, as told by a man who was present at the scene. 0-7603-1726-7$24.95 / MBI Publishing

With more than 75 million fans, NASCAR® is one of the world's most popular sports. Racing Broadcaster John Roberts tracks down the answers to the pressing questions, such as: What are the fastest tracks on the circuit? Who had the longest winning streak? What were the longest races? Who are the best female drivers of all time? And many more. Each list has an introductory paragraph followed by a number of ranked entries, each featuring a brief explanation of ranking plus entertaining and informative background information. Also included are original lists contributed exclusive to this book by top personalities from the world of NASCAR®, including Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Jimmy Johnson, Greg Biffle, and more.