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NASCAR'S Biggest Stories Of 2008

The Associated Press

Jimmie Johnson and his wife, Chandra, displays three fingers after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship for the third consecutive year.

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By TONY FABRIZIO | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 19, 2008

FINANCIAL WOES HIT SPORT HARD

With the economy in the tank, this was a tough year for NASCAR.

Attendance was way down - there's no quantifiable number - and with fewer companies able to spend millions on racing sponsorships, several teams had to take drastic measures to survive.

Most notably, storied Petty Enterprises sold majority ownership to the private equity firm Boston Ventures, and Chip Ganassi Racing, which had to scuttle defending Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti's team in July, merged with reeling Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Cutbacks and mass layoffs were expected in all three of NASCAR's national divisions this week, as racing organizations react to the economic crisis.

AGAIN AND AGAIN AND ...

Is it too early to rank 33-year-old Jimmie Johnson among the all-time greats? Probably, but Johnson earned his place in history this year by becoming only the second driver in NASCAR's 60 years to win three consecutive championships.

To think, Hendrick Motorsports struggled with the Car of Tomorrow early in the season and Johnson ranked 13th after five races.

As in his previous championships, Johnson went on a tear when it counted most. Five of his seven victories came in the final 12 races.

BUT FOR A LATE SLUMP

In the end, the 2008 season belonged to championship combatants Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards.

But the first two-thirds of the season belonged to Kyle Busch.

Busch, 23, established in his first year with Joe Gibbs Racing that he gives up nothing in talent to anyone.

He won 21 races in NASCAR's three national divisions, including eight in the Sprint Cup Series and a record-tying 10 in the Nationwide Series.

Moreover, Busch gave NASCAR something it desperately needed: somebody willing to embrace the role of antihero.

DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE

Drug scandals are for other sports. But not this year.

Aaron Fike created a firestorm when he admitted in April that he competed in at least one Craftsman Truck Series race with heroin in his system before his 2007 drug arrest. Several drivers, citing the danger of racing against a competitor under the influence, lobbied for tougher testing.

In September, NASCAR strengthened its drug policy by adding random testing for 2009. Previously, officials could test drivers when there was suspicion.

DISCRIMINATION CHARGES DENIED

Former Nationwide Series official Mauricia Grant sued NASCAR for $225 million in June, alleging 23 incidents of sexual harassment and 34 incidents of racial discrimination while saying she was unlawfully fired.

NASCAR filed a response in August, saying Grant was repeatedly reprimanded for tardiness and that she was fired for cause and not as an act of discrimination or retaliation.

Earlier this month, NASCAR's request to have the suit moved from New York, where it was filed, to North Carolina or Florida, was denied.

NOT A GOOD YEAR FOR TIRE SUPPLIER

Goodyear's reputation in NASCAR took a hit with a couple of embarrassing races.

First, two-time champion Tony Stewart blasted the exclusive tire supplier in March at Atlanta after Goodyear came with a tire compound that was clearly too hard for the Car or Tomorrow and track conditions.

Among other things, Stewart said he wouldn't "bolt" Goodyear tires on anything he owns and that Hoosier or Firestone or another tire company could do a better job.

Stewart's rant seemed prophetic in July when Goodyear showed up for one of the biggest races of the year - the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard - with a terrible tire.

NASCAR took the unprecedented step of ordering caution flags every 10-12 laps so teams could change their blistering tires. Even that couldn't prevent numerous blowouts.

MOVING ON TO DO HIS OWN THING

After 10 years, two championships and 33 victories, Tony Stewart bid goodbye to Joe Gibbs Racing after Sunday's finale at Homestead.

Stewart announced in July that he was leaving to become a driver and 50 percent owner of Haas CNC Racing - renamed Stewart-Haas Racing - in 2009. He's bringing 2008 Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman with him, and the two will drive Chevrolets numbered 14 and 39 next year.

Teenager Joey Logano will replace Stewart at Gibbs despite his unimpressive showings in three late-season Sprint Cup starts.

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