2002 Winston Cup Series

2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Tony Stewart (pictured in 2015) was the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Champion
Duration	February 17, 2002 through November 17, 2002
TV	Fox/FX, NBC/TNT
Season Statistics
No. of races	36
First race	2002 Daytona 500
Last race	2002 Ford 400
Drivers' champion	Tony Stewart
Manufacturers' champion	Ford
Rookie of the Year	Ryan Newman
Most popular driver	Bill Elliott
Previous	2001
Next	2003

The 2002 Winston Cup Series was the 54^th season of the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. The season began on February 17 with the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway and ended with the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17.

Tony Stewart won his first NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship in his fourth full time season. He became the first (and so far only) driver to win a Cup and IndyCar championship. Joe Gibbs Racing won their second title in three seasons, and it was the final time the driver’s champion drove a Pontiac to the title.

From the second race through the 26^th race of the season, Sterling Marlin led the points standings. Marlin won early in the season at Las Vegas and Darlington, and his largest points lead was after the race in Fontana in April. However, Marlin cracked a vertebra during a crash in the Protection One 400, which ended his season early.

Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnson, and finally Stewart then cycled to the points lead, and by the season ending Ford 400, Stewart and Martin remained the only drivers in contention for the title. Stewart would finish 18^th while Martin finished 5^th, and Stewart held on to win the title.

The season was known for a spirited Rookie of the Year battle between Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Newman. Johnson would finish 5^th in points with 3 wins and Newman would finish 6^th in points with 1 win, but Newman would win enough Rookie points to win the Rookie of the Year title.

Jamie McMurray would substitute for Sterling Marlin in 6 of the final 7 races of the season, and stunned the NASCAR world by winning in just his second Cup Series start at Charlotte. Rusty Wallace’s 16-year streak of winning at least one race per season would come to an end in 2002, and Dave Marcis retired following the Daytona 500, ending a career that began in 1968.

Teams Competing (Full Time)

Car No.	Driver	Sponsor	Make	Team
1	Kenny Wallace (4) Steve Park (32)	Pennzoil	Chevrolet	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
2	Rusty Wallace	Miller Lite	Ford	Penske Racing
4	Mike Skinner	Kodak MAX	Chevrolet	Morgan-McClure Motorsports
5	Terry Labonte	Kellogg's	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports
6	Mark Martin	Viagra	Ford	Roush Racing
7	Casey Atwood (34) Jason Leffler (2)	Sirius Satellite Radio	Dodge	Jim Smith
8	Dale Earnhardt, Jr	Budweiser	Chevrolet	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
9	Bill Elliott	Dodge Dealers	Dodge	Evernham Motorsports
10	Johnny Benson, Jr. (31) Joe Nemechek (1) Jerry Nadeau (3) Mike Wallace (1)	Valvoline	Pontiac	MBV Motorsports
11	Brett Bodine	Hooters / Wells Fargo	Ford	Brett Bodine
12	Ryan Newman*	Alltel	Ford	Penske Racing
14	Stacy Compton (18) Mike Wallace (16)	Conseco	Pontiac	AJ Foyt
15	Michael Waltrip	NAPA	Chevrolet	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
17	Matt Kenseth	DeWalt	Ford	Roush Racing
18	Bobby Labonte	Interstate Batteries	Pontiac	Joe Gibbs Racing
19	Jeremy Mayfield	Dodge Dealers	Dodge	Evernham Motorsports
20	Tony Stewart	Home Depot	Pontiac	Joe Gibbs Racing
21	Elliott Sadler	Motorcraft	Ford	Wood Brothers Racing
22	Ward Burton	Caterpillar	Dodge	Bill Davis Racing
23	Hut Stricklin (23) Kenny Wallace (10)	Hills Bros Coffee	Dodge	Bill Davis Racing
24	Jeff Gordon	DuPont	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports
25	Jerry Nadeau (11) Joe Nemechek (25)	UAW/Delphi	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports
26	Joe Nemechek (7) Todd Bodine (22) Geoffrey Bodine (3)	Kmart / Discover Card	Ford	Travis Carter Enterprises
28	Ricky Rudd	Texaco Havoline	Ford	Robert Yates Racing
29	Kevin Harvick (35) Kenny Wallace (1)	GM Goodwrench	Chevrolet	Richard Childress Racing
30	Jeff Green	AOL	Chevrolet	Richard Childress Racing
31	Robby Gordon	Cingular Wireless	Chevrolet	Richard Childress Racing
32	Ricky Craven	Tide	Ford	PPI Motorsports
36	Ken Schrader	M&M's	Pontiac	MB2 Motorsports
40	Sterling Marlin (29) Jamie McMurray (6) Mike Bliss (1)	Coors Light	Dodge	Chip Ganassi Racing
41	Jimmy Spencer	Target	Dodge	Chip Ganassi Racing
43	John Andretti	Cheerios	Dodge	Petty Enterprises
44	Buckshot Jones (8) Steve Grissom (11) Jerry Nadeau (13) Christian Fittipaldi (1) Greg Biffle (2) Ted Musgrave (1)	Georgia Pacific	Dodge	Petty Enterprises
45	Kyle Petty	Sprint PCS	Dodge	Petty Enterprises
48	Jimmie Johnson*	Lowe's	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports
49	Shawna Robinson (8) Stacy Compton (2) Kevin Lepage (1) Derrike Cope (5)		Dodge	BAM Racing
55	Bobby Hamilton (31) Greg Biffle (4) Ron Hornaday, Jr. (1)	Schneider Electric	Chevrolet	Andy Petree Racing
57	Derrike Cope (1) Stewart Kirby (2)	CLR	Ford	Ted Campbell
77	Dave Blaney	Jasper Engines	Ford	Jasper Motorsports
88	Dale Jarrett	UPS	Ford	Robert Yates Racing
90	Rick Mast	Duke's Mayonnaise	Ford	Junie Donlavey Racing
97	Kurt Busch	Sharpie/Rubbermaid	Ford	Roush Racing
99	Jeff Burton	Citgo	Ford	Roush Racing

Schedule

Round	Date	Race Name	Track	TV
	February 10, 2002	Budweiser Shootout	Daytona International Speedway	TNT
	February 14, 2002	Gatorade 125s	Daytona International Speedway	TNT
1	February 17, 2002	Daytona 500	Daytona International Speedway	NBC
2	February 24, 2002	Subway 400	North Carolina Speedway	FOX
3	March 3, 2002	UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400 #	Las Vegas Motor Speedway	FOX
4	March 10, 2002	MBNA America 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway	FOX
5	March 17, 2002	Carolina Dodge Dealers 400	Darlington Raceway	FOX
6	March 24, 2002	Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway	FOX
7	April 8, 2002	Samsung / Radio Shack 500	Texas Motor Speedway	FX
8	April 14, 2002	Virginia 500	Martinsville Speedway	FOX
9	April 21, 2002	Aaron's 499	Talladega Superspeedway	FOX
10	April 28, 2002	NAPA Auto Parts 500	California Speedway	FOX
11	May 5, 2002	Pontiac Excitement 400	Richmond International Raceway	FX
	May 18, 2002	The Winston	Lowe's Motor Speedway	FX
12	May 26, 2002	Coca-Cola Racing Family 600 #	Lowe's Motor Speedway	FOX
13	June 2, 2002	MBNA Platinum 400	Dover International Speedway	FX
14	June 9, 2002	Pocono 500	Pocono Raceway	FOX
15	June 16, 2002	Sirius Satellite Radio 400	Michigan Speedway	FOX
16	June 23, 2002	Dodge / Save Mart 350	Infineon Raceway	FOX
17	July 6, 2002	Pepsi 400 #	Daytona International Speedway	FOX
18	July 14, 2002	Tropicana 400	Chicagoland Speedway	NBC
19	July 21, 2002	New England 300	New Hampshire International Speedway	TNT
20	July 28, 2002	Pennsylvania 500	Pocono Raceway	TNT
21	August 4, 2002	Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	NBC
22	August 11, 2002	Sirius Satellite Radio at the Glen	Watkins Glen International	NBC
23	August 18, 2002	Pepsi 400 Presented by Farmer Jack	Michigan Speedway	TNT
24	August 24, 2002	Sharpie 500	Bristol Motor Speedway	TNT
25	September 1, 2002	Mountain Dew Southern 500	Darlington Raceway	TNT
26	September 7, 2002	Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 #	Richmond International Raceway	TNT
27	September 15, 2002	New Hampshire 300	New Hampshire International Speedway	NBC
28	September 22, 2002	MBNA All-American Heroes 400	Dover International Speedway	TNT
29	September 29, 2002	Protection One 400	Kansas Speedway	NBC
30	October 6, 2002	EA Sports 500 #	Talladega Superspeedway	NBC
31	October 13, 2002	UAW-GM Quality 500	Lowe's Motor Speedway	NBC
32	October 20, 2002	Old Dominion 500	Martinsville Speedway	NBC
33	October 27, 2002	NAPA 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway	NBC
34	November 3, 2002	Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400	North Carolina Speedway	TNT
35	November 10, 2002	Checker Auto Parts 500 Presented by Pennzoil	Phoenix International Raceway	NBC
36	November 17, 2002	Ford 400	Homestead-Miami Speedway	NBC

# indicates a Winston No Bull 5 Race.

Results

Round	Race	Pole Winner	Winner	Make	Cautions	Caution Laps	Average Speed	Number of Lead Changes
	2002 Budweiser Shootout	Kurt Busch	Tony Stewart	Pontiac	0	0	181.295	6
	2002 Gatorade 125 (Race #1)	Jimmie Johnson	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	0	0	183.674	1
	2002 Gatorade 125 (Race #2)	Kevin Harvick	Michael Waltrip	Chevrolet	2	13	131.965	3
1	2002 Daytona 500	Jimmie Johnson	Ward Burton	Dodge	9	38	142.971	20
2	2002 Subway 400	Ricky Craven	Matt Kenseth	Ford	10	57	115.478	17
3	2002 UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400	Todd Bodine	Sterling Marlin	Dodge	6	25	136.754	22
4	2002 MBNA America 500	Bill Elliott	Tony Stewart	Pontiac	7	37	148.443	34
5	2002 Carolina Dodge Dealers 400	Ricky Craven	Sterling Marlin	Dodge	5	40	126.070	11
6	2002 Food City 500	Jeff Gordon	Kurt Busch	Ford	14	101	82.281	14
7	2002 Samsung / Radio Shack 500	Bill Elliott	Matt Kenseth	Ford	7	41	142.453	24
8	2002 Virginia 500	Jeff Gordon	Bobby Labonte	Pontiac	14	104	73.951	19
9	2002 Aaron's 499	Jimmie Johnson	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Chevrolet	3	19	159.022	26
10	2002 NAPA Auto Parts 500	Ryan Newman	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	5	24	150.088	20
11	2002 Pontiac Excitement 400	Ward Burton	Tony Stewart	Pontiac	14	103	86.824	13
	2002 The Winston	Matt Kenseth	Ryan Newman	Ford	4	23	110.005	8
12	2002 Coca-Cola Racing Family 600	Jimmie Johnson	Mark Martin	Ford	9	48	137.729	21
13	2002 MBNA Platinum 400	Matt Kenseth	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	7	40	117.551	14
14	2002 Pocono 500	N/A	Dale Jarrett	Ford	5	17	143.426	17
15	2002 Sirius Satellite Radio 400	Dale Jarrett	Matt Kenseth	Ford	4	16	154.822	15
16	2002 Dodge/Save Mart 350	Tony Stewart	Ricky Rudd	Ford	3	9	81.007	10
17	2002 Pepsi 400	Kevin Harvick	Michael Waltrip	Chevrolet	9	39	135.952	6
18	2002 Tropicana 400	Ryan Newman	Kevin Harvick	Chevrolet	7	35	136.832	19
19	2002 New England 300	Bill Elliott	Ward Burton	Dodge	14	77	92.342	23
20	2002 Pennsylvania 500	Bill Elliott	Bill Elliott	Dodge	5	29	125.809	17
21	2002 Brickyard 400	Tony Stewart	Bill Elliott	Dodge	8	36	125.033	16
22	2002 Sirius Satellite Radio at the Glen	Ricky Rudd	Tony Stewart	Pontiac	7	18	82.208	12
23	2002 Pepsi 400 Presented by Farmer Jack	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Dale Jarrett	Ford	7	30	140.556	23
24	2002 Sharpie 500	Jeff Gordon	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	15	118	77.097	10
25	2002 Mountain Dew Southern 500	N/A	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	9	63	118.617	14
26	2002 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400	Jimmie Johnson	Matt Kenseth	Ford	10	65	94.787	14
27	2002 New Hampshire 300	Ryan Newman	Ryan Newman	Ford	3	24	105.081	7
28	2002 MBNA All-American Heroes 400	Rusty Wallace	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	6	37	120.805	15
29	2002 Protection One 400	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	11	52	119.394	13
30	2002 EA Sports 500	N/A	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Chevrolet	0	0	183.665	35
31	2002 UAW-GM Quality 500	N/A	Jamie McMurray	Dodge	5	33	141.481	23
32	2002 Old Dominion 500	Ryan Newman	Kurt Busch	Ford	12	65	74.651	12
33	2002 NAPA 500	N/A	Kurt Busch	Ford	5	50	127.519	19
34	2002 Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400	Ryan Newman	Johnny Benson, Jr.	Pontiac	4	22	128.526	22
35	2002 Checker Auto Parts 500 Presented By Pennzoil	Ryan Newman	Matt Kenseth	Ford	4	18	113.857	14
36	2002 Ford 400	Kurt Busch	Kurt Busch	Ford	6	41	116.462	12

Final Points Standings

Pos.	Driver	Races	Wins	Top 5s	Top 10s	Poles	Points	Difference
1	Tony Stewart	36	3	15	21	2	4800
2	Mark Martin	36	1	12	22	0	4762	-38
3	Kurt Busch	36	4	12	20	1	4641	-159
4	Jeff Gordon	36	3	13	20	3	4607	-193
5	Jimmie Johnson	36	3	6	21	4	4600	-200
6	Ryan Newman	36	1	14	22	6	4593	-207
7	Rusty Wallace	36	0	7	17	1	4574	-226
8	Matt Kenseth	36	5	11	19	1	4432	-368
9	Dale Jarrett	36	2	10	18	1	4415	-385
10	Ricky Rudd	36	1	8	12	1	4323	-477
11	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	36	2	11	16	2	4270	-530
12	Jeff Burton	36	0	5	14	0	4259	-541
13	Bill Elliott	36	2	6	13	4	4158	-642
14	Michael Waltrip	36	1	4	10	0	3985	-815
15	Ricky Craven	36	0	3	9	2	3888	-912
16	Bobby Labonte	36	1	5	7	0	3810	-990
17	Jeff Green	36	0	4	6	0	3704	-1,096
18	Sterling Marlin	29	2	8	14	0	3703	-1,097
19	Dave Blaney	36	0	0	5	0	3670	-1,130
20	Robby Gordon	36	0	1	5	0	3632	-1,168
21	Kevin Harvick	35	1	5	8	1	3501	-1,299
22	Kyle Petty	36	0	0	1	0	3501	-1,299
23	Elliott Sadler	36	0	2	7	0	3418	-1,382
24	Terry Labonte	36	0	1	4	0	3417	-1,383
25	Ward Burton	36	2	3	8	1	3362	-1,438
26	Jeremy Mayfield	36	0	2	4	0	3309	-1,491
27	Jimmy Spencer	34	0	2	6	0	3187	-1,613
28	John Andretti	36	0	0	1	0	3161	-1,639
29	Johnny Benson, Jr.	31	1	3	7	0	3132	-1,668
30	Ken Schrader	36	0	0	0	0	2954	-1,846
31	Mike Skinner	36	0	0	1	0	2886	-1,914
32	Bobby Hamilton	31	0	0	3	0	2832	-1,968
33	Steve Park	32	0	0	2	0	2694	-2,106
34	Joe Nemechek	33	0	3	3	0	2682	-2,118
35	Casey Atwood	35	0	0	0	0	2621	-2,179
36	Brett Bodine	32	0	0	0	0	2276	-2,524
37	Jerry Nadeau	28	0	0	1	0	2250	-2,550
38	Todd Bodine	24	0	1	4	1	1987	-2,813
39	Kenny Wallace	21	0	0	1	0	1868	-2,932
40	Hut Stricklin	22	0	0	0	0	1781	-3,019
41	Mike Wallace	21	0	0	1	0	1551	-3,249
42	Stacy Compton	21	0	0	0	0	1527	-3,273
43	Geoffrey Bodine	10	0	1	2	0	803	-3,997
44	Steve Grissom	10	0	0	1	0	769	-4,031
45	Hermie Sadler	10	0	0	0	0	688	-4,112
46	Jamie McMurray	6	1	1	2	0	679	-4,121
47	Rick Mast	9	0	0	0	0	576	-4,224
48	Greg Biffle	7	0	0	0	0	570	-4,230
49	Buckshot Jones	7	0	0	0	0	559	-4,241
50	Ted Musgrave	5	0	0	0	0	452	-4,348

Complete statistics can be found at Racing-Reference.info.

Rookie of the Year

Ryan Newman won the Raybestos Rookie of the Year award in 2002.

Rookie of the Year Standings

Position	Driver	Points	Race Wins
1	Ryan Newman	344	1
2	Jimmie Johnson	321	3
3	Shawna Robinson	81	0
4	Carl Long	46	0

Manufacturer Championship

With 14 wins, Ford won the manufacturer's championship.

Position	Make	Points	Race Wins
1	Ford	245	14
2	Chevrolet	211	10
3	Dodge	169	7
4	Pontiac	167	5

Other Season Awards

• Grands! Biscuits National Motorsports Press Association Most Popular Driver: Bill Elliott
• True Value Person-Of-The-Year Award: Kyle Petty
• Gatorade Front Runner Award: Jeff Gordon
• Clevite Engine Builder of the Year Award: Mark Cronquist, Joe Gibbs Racing
• 76 Oil Contingency Award: Jeff Green
• 76 Gasoline Contingency Award: Tony Stewart
• Outback Steakhouse "Bloomin' Favorite" Driver of the Race Award: Kurt Busch
• Waste Management Pickin' Up Places Award: Matt Kenseth
• Bud Pole Award: Ryan Newman
• Goodyear Tire Award: Tony Stewart
• Union-76 World Pit Crew Championship: #17 Roush Racing Ford Pit Crew, led by Robbie Reiser
• Mechanix Wear Pit Crew Award: #40 Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge Pit Crew, led by Lee McCall

References

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