Legends Don't Come Cheap
NASCAR is the second-most watched sport in the US, holding its own behind football. As such, the sport's drivers, that is, the good ones, get to enjoy hefty sponsorship deals in addition to the already generous salaries they receive from their teams and the prize money they get from winning. The better they perform on the grid, the more money they can demand, and given the kind of viewership NASCAR receives, the sky is the limit. Here are 20 of NASCAR's most successful drivers and their earnings.
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1. Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch's NASCAR career is flanked by accolades. He holds the record for the most wins in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the Truck Series. As such an accomplished driver, he surely has a salary to match, earning around $17 million a year from a combination of salary and endorsements.
2. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Winning the Most Popular Driver Award 15 consecutive times, Dale Earnhardt Jr. brought a whole new generation of fans to the sport with his popularity. He was the face of NASCAR for many years and his charisma and media presence was a powerful force that was certainly worth a lot of money. His career winnings earned him around $71 million as of 2016 while his endorsements brought in a whopping $184 million.
3. Jeff Gordon
Jeff Gordon is a four-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion, a three-time Daytona 500 winner, and places third on the all-time wins list. You better believe that kind of success on the track translates to finances too. Though he's no longer a driver, he earned up to $30 million annually in his peak driving years.
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4. Carl Edwards
Carl Edwards won 28 Cup Series before retiring in 2016, despite being a fan favorite with a lot of promise. Despite his relatively short racing career, he amassed over $130 million from wins and annual earnings, not including endorsements.
5. Jimmie Johnson
Widely considered one of the greatest drivers of all time, Jimmie Johnson is a seven-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion, holding the record along with two other drivers. When he was a full-time driver, his earnings were as high as $16 million a year, with race winnings alone totaling $150 million,
6. Tony Stewart
Tony Stewart, or "Smoke," is one of the most versatile drivers on the grid, finding success in IndyCar, NASCAR, and dirt racing. He's won on every type of track on the NASCAR circuit, amassing 49 wins. His yearly earnings from salary and endorsements are estimated at around $18 to $20 million, and he has won around $130 million in prizes.
7. Kasey Kahne
Kasey Kahne has spent his racing career straddling the two worlds of NASCAR and dirt racing. In his NASCAR career, he amassed 18 wins in the Cup Series along with 27 pole positions. He earned an estimated $12 million annually from a combination of salary, prize money, and endorsements as of 2018 but has since switched his focus to dirt racing.
8. Matt Kenseth
Matt Kenseth was known for his smooth driving style that brought him a total of 39 NASCAR Cup Series wins, two Daytona 500 wins, and a second-place Xfinity Series. His peak annual earnings have been estimated at around $12 million from salary and endorsements.
9. Richard Petty
"The King," Richard Petty, is arguably the most iconic NASCAR driver of all time. He set the record for the most NASCAR Cup Series Championship titles (seven), the most wins in NASCAR history at 200 (95 more than the second-place driver), and the most pole positions at 123, records that may never be broken. He made around @2.5 million annually in today's money which may not sound like a lot compared to modern drivers, but he was certainly the highest paid on the grid in the 1970s.
10. Benny Parsons
Benny Parsons was one of the most significant drivers on the grid in the 70s and 80s and had an impressive driving career spanning 25 years. His annual earnings in 1988 are estimated at around $4 million or $10.5 million in today's money.
11. Bobby Allison
Like Parsons, Bobby Allison's driving career spanned over 25 years, during which he amassed 85 career wins. He accumulated over $4 million ($22 million in today's money) over his driving career.
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12. Cale Yarborough
Cale Yarborough had a successful career in NASCAR spanning several decades from 1957 to 1988. He was the first driver to win three consecutive NASCAR Cup Series championships. His career earnings were nowhere near what modern drivers make, peaking at around $3 million annually in today's money, but that placed him among the highest-paid drivers of his era.
13. David Pearson
Nicknamed "The Silver Fox," David Pearson was certainly one of NASCAR's most iconic drivers. He was a three-time Cup Series Champion and amassed 105 career wins (second only to Richard Petty). Earning around $2 million annually in today's money, Pearson was one of the highest-paid drivers on the grid in his day.
14. Chase Elliot
Chase Elliot won the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020, has 19 career wins so far, and was voted Most Popular Driver from 2018 to 2024. His salary, including track earnings and endorsements, was reportedly around $10 million in 2020.
15. Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya was a driver with a raw talent for all things racing, finding success in Formula One and IndyCar as well as NASCAR. His salary in NASCAR was rumored to be around $3 million annually, but with endorsements and prize money added on, that figure would be at least $10 million.
16. Denny Hamlin
Denny Hamlin has been one of the most consistent and competitive drivers on the track ever since he started in NASCAR in 2005, amassing 56 career wins and finishing second in the Cup Series championship. His estimated annual earnings are around $13 million as of this year.
17. Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick was a prominent driver during NASCAR's heyday in the late 90s and early 2000s, winning the Daytona 500 in 2007 and the Cup Series Championship in 2014. He was earning around $13 million annually at his peak.
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18. Joey Logano
At 19, Joey Logano was the youngest winner in the sport when he won in 2009. He's gone on to win three Series Cup Championships. His total annual earnings are estimated to be around $9 million as of this year.
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19. Terry Labonte
Terry Labonte is a two-time Cup Series Champion who drove in NASCAR from 1978 to the mid-2000s. His total annual earnings towards the end of his career were around $6.5 million in today's money.
20. Dale Earnhardt Sr.
Despite being a more successful driver, Dale Earnhardt Sr.'s career earnings were only a fraction of what his son made due to the relatively small size of the sport during his era. With seven Series Cup Championship titles under his belt, he shares the record with Richard Petty and Jimmie Johnson. He earned about $3 million annually in the mid-90s, that's over $6 million in today's money.
