Skip navigation
Site powered by
Latest news:
msnbc.com: Top msnbc.com headlines: Riots spread as Greek lawmakers OK debt bill

Johnson is NASCAR's Athlete of the Decade

With three straight cup championships, Johnson edges Stewart for honor

Image: Jimmie JohnsonGetty Images for NASCAR
Since beginning to race full-time in the Sprint Cup Series in 2002, Jimmie Johnson has 44 wins and 172 top-10 finishes.

Our choices for seven athletes of the decade - one in each sport we cover - sparked some intense debate. But three consecutive Cup championships form a pretty good basis for arguing Jimmie Johnson over two-time champ Tony Stewart.

We say ...
If it's true that some drivers were put on this earth to rally the Southern masses, then Johnson was born to race — and win. With the looks, smarts and skill to be as popular as he wants to be, Johnson has quietly focused on checkered flags and championships and taken more of both than anybody this decade.

You don't have to love him, but you have to acknowledge his standing among the best of all time.

The numbers say ...
Johnson
* 44 Cup wins
* 112 top fives
* 173 top 10s
* Three titles

Stewart
* 33 Cup wins
* 130 top fives
* 205 top 10s
* Two titles

You say ... SportingNews.com voting
Jimmie Johnson: 51 percent
Tony Stewart: 49 percent

They say ...
Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s case for Johnson: "Jimmie would be my pick. He has won more championships, and three in a row is pretty impressive. The No. 48 has been the dominant team. Jimmie's an all-American, and he's a good role model for everyone. He seems to have it all together."

Johnson says ...
Our pick's memory of the decade: "One of the things that comes to my mind most often is my first Cup win (at California in 2002). I had a lack of confidence coming to the Cup level. ... I didn't know if I was going to make it. So to win that first race — I knew if I didn't put up a good year that first (full) season, I wasn't going to have a job. When you go to a big team and don't make it, you have a tendency to fall down quite a few levels before anybody catches you. With that first win, the weight of the world was off my shoulders. That was really a special moment."

SN DRIVERS OF THE YEAR
2000: None*
2001: Jeff Gordon
2002: Tony Stewart
2003: Matt Kenseth
2004: Jimmie Johnson
2005: Tony Stewart
2006: Jimmie Johnson
2007: Jimmie Johnson
2008: Jimmie Johnson
*SN began covering NASCAR in 2001

© 2012 Sporting News

advertisement
Slideshow
Ford 400
  2009 winners
Take a look at every NASCAR driver who has claimed a checkered flag this season.

NBCSports.com

Slideshow
Kobalt Tools 500
  Earning a trip to victory lane
Take a look at every NASCAR driver who has claimed a checkered flag this racing season.

NBCSports.com

Slideshow
SUBWAY Fresh Fit 600
  Revved up for racing
Take a look at how some NASCAR fans express their dedication to the drivers and to the sport.

NBCSports.com

Slideshow
Danica Patrick,  Helio Castroneves
  Danica Daze
Danica Patrick is expanding her repertoire from the IRL to NASCAR.

more photos

Slideshow
Coca-Cola 600
  Celebs at the track
Take a look at the stars who have attended NASCAR races.

NBCSports.com

Slideshow
Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, Brian Vickers
  NASCAR crashes
Sparks fly and cars spin out wildly when NASCAR drivers get into accidents.

NBCSports.com

INTERACTIVE
"Taxi" Film Premiere
NASCAR wives and girlfriends
They're fixtures in pit row, but they don't drive on the track or work on the cars. Take a look at some notable NASCAR wives and girlfriends.