Name changes, legends and more from the history of the NASCAR Cup Series

The Cup Series is the highest level of racing in NASCAR. All season, racers participate in a variety of racing events, aimed at qualifying for the playoffs, and finally, the championship.

In NASCAR’s early days, races took place on dirt surfaced racetracks. Now, speedways are located throughout the country and bring in thousands of excited fans to watch the thrilling races unfold.

Below is a brief history of the NASCAR Cup Series.

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The first Strictly Stock race, now known as the NASCAR Cup Series, was at the Charlotte Fairgrounds Speedway on June 19, 1949. This particular race was won by Jim Romper. 

On October 16, 1949, Red Byron took home the first NASCAR Strictly Stock championship title. Byron was also the winner of NASCAR’s very first race, which took place at Daytona Beach on February 15, 1948. 

The NASCAR Cup Series has sported a variety of names over the years. When it first began in 1949, it was known as the Strictly Stock Division. Then, the name was changed in 1950 to the Grand National Series which remained the same until 1970.

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After its run as the Grand National Series, the series took on the name of sponsors. This is what led to the name the NASCAR Winston Cup Series from 1971 until 2003. 

Next, the name was changed to NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

Now, the series has kept the name of NASCAR Cup Series and multiple premier partners of the racing organization are involved. Busch Beer, Coca-Cola, GEICO and Xfinity are NASCAR’s premier partners as of 2023.

Currently, it is a three-way tie for those who hold the record for most NASCAR championships won. Each racer including Richard Petty, the late Dale Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson are tied for the most titles at seven each.

They lead the next in line by fairly wide margins. Jeff Gordon has won four titles. The late Lee Petty, the late David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip and Tony Stewart each maintain three NASCAR titles.

The NASCAR season kicks off in February, and races happen around the United States which takes the series into the end of the year, usually in November. 

Daytona International Speedway has been home to many series races, including the coveted Daytona 500. 

The first Daytona 500 was hosted on February 22, 1959, where more than 41,000 fans were in attendance. The winner of this race wasn’t decided until a full 61 hours after the race concluded because of the close ending resulting in a photo finish. Lee Petty was finally announced the winner after deliberation. The Coca-Cola 600 is another well-known race in the series.