Photo by Patrick Haney

NASCAR began in the late 1940’s with a modest race on Daytona Beach with little fanfare. During the decades that followed, interest in the sport of stock car racing grew well beyond its regional boundaries as it began to penetrate mainstream America. Today, NASCAR stands as one of the country’s biggest sports leagues with television audiences exceed only by the NFL.

So just how big has NASCAR become after all these years? Here are the more interesting NASCAR statistics and fun facts I was able to dig up. As always, I will be adding more and updating these periodically as I find new stuff. Be sure to check back regularly.

Please note that some of these numbers are easier to find than others, so some of these are based on news reports and not official company tallies. All stats are linked to their source unless it was sent to me directly from the company. No stat listed on DMR should be considered in making any type of investment decision. In other words: This is the best I can find, but I don’t guarantee anything.

NASCAR Statistics

Year NASCAR was founded:

1948

Location of first NASCAR race:

Daytona Beach

Winner of first NASCAR race:

Red Byron

First NASCAR Champion:

Red Byron

Year of first Daytona 500:

1959

Number of races NASCAR sanctions:

more than 1,200

Last updated 3/20/16

Number of US states/countries NASCAR has sanctioned races in:

30

Last updated 3/20/16

Amount NASCAR is reportedly seeking to be title sponsor of their Cup Series:

$1 billion over 10 years

Last updated 3/3/15

Amount Nextel paid NASCAR in 2004  to be title sponsor of their Cup Series:

$750 million over 10 years

Number of television viewers NASCAR drew in 2003:

7,326,000

Number of television viewers NASCAR drew in 2014:

5,223,000

Highest-paid NASCAR driver of 2015:

Dale Earnhardt Jr (est $23.5 million)

Highest-valued NASCAR team of 2016:

Hendrick Motorsports (est $375 million value)

Richest NASCAR driver of All-Time:

Dale Earnhardt Jr

Last updated 7/10/14

Amount NASCAR spent on tires in 2015:

$35 million

NASCAR driver with the most career starts:

Richard Petty (1,185)

NASCAR driver with the most wins:

Richard Petty (200)

NASCAR driver with most last place finishes:

Joe Nemecheck

 Last updated 11/15/15

Percentage of sponsor money that accounts for a NASCAR team’s revenue:

60-80%

Last updated 10/8/15

Value of the current 10-year NBC/Fox/NASCAR TV deal:

$8 billion

Last updated 2/19/16