The thrill of the chase is one of the most exciting things about NASCAR. When two highly competitive racers go head to head, trading the lead and battling for supremacy over hundreds of laps, it’s not just the first place finisher that wins – that’s a big win for the fans, too! We’ve put together all of NASCAR’s closest finishes in this infographic, Take a look at how close of a photo finish these races were – it’s often just milliseconds that separates victory from defeat!
Ironically, there’s currently a tie for the closest NASCAR finish in the Sprint Cup at 0.002 seconds. Blink and you would have missed it … literally! A blink usually takes 300 milliseconds, and this race was decided by only two milliseconds. Even the largest margins of victory on the list of the top 20 closest NASCAR races would’ve been missed in the blink of an eye. And remember, this isn’t the nose of a horse; these cars are often going somewhere between 110 and 160 mph!
The Two Closest NASCAR Finishes in the Sprint Cup
The first-ever race to end that closely was between Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch at Darlington Raceway in 2003. The next was in 2011 at Talladega Superspeedway, where Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer were literally inches apart, despite traveling at more than 150 miles per hour.
Would you like to embed this infographic on your site?
NASCAR’s Famous Photo Finishes
The Closest NASCAR Sprint Cup Finishes in History
2003 Carolina Dodge Dealers 400
Margin
0.002 Seconds
Track
Darlington Raceway
Date
March 16, 2003
Winner
Ricky Craven
Average Speed
126.21 mph
Lead Changes
15
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Ricky Craven
Kurt Busch
Car Number
32
97
Car Make
Pontiac
Ford
Laps Led/Laps Completed
1 / 293
23 / 293
2011 Aaron’s 499
Margin
0.002 Seconds
Track
Talladega Superspeedway
Date
April 17, 2011
Winner
Jimmie Johnson
Average Speed
156.26 mph
Lead Changes
88
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Jimmie Johnson
Clint Bowyer
Car Number
48
33
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
14 / 188
38 / 188
2007 Pepsi 400
Margin
0.005 Seconds
Track
Daytona International Speedway
Date
July 7, 2007
Winner
Jamie McMurray
Average Speed
138.98 mph
Lead Changes
28
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Jamie McMurray
Kyle Busch
Car Number
26
5
Car Make
Ford
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
3 / 160
20 / 160
1993 DieHard 500
Margin
0.005 Seconds
Track
Talladega Superspeedway
Date
July 25, 1993
Winner
Dale Earnhardt
Average Speed
153.86 mph
Lead Changes
26
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Dale Earnhardt
Ernie Irvan
Car Number
3
4
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
59 / 188
56 / 188
2001 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500
Margin
0.006 Seconds
Track
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Date
March 11, 2001
Winner
Kevin Harvick
Average Speed
143.27 mph
Lead Changes
25
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Kevin Harvick
Jeff Gordon
Car Number
29
24
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
18 / 325
118 / 325
1994 Pepsi 400
Margin
0.008 Seconds
Track
Daytona International Speedway
Date
July 2, 1994
Winner
Jimmy Spencer
Average Speed
155.56 mph
Lead Changes
18
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Jimmy Spencer
Ernie Irvan
Car Number
27
28
Car Make
Ford
Ford
Laps Led/Laps Completed
1 / 160
86 / 160
2004 Subway 400
Margin
0.010 Seconds
Track
North Carolina Speedway
Date
February 22, 2004
Winner
Matt Kenseth
Average Speed
112.02 mph
Lead Changes
15
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Matt Kenseth
Kasey Kahne
Car Number
17
9
Car Make
Ford
Dodge
Laps Led/Laps Completed
259 / 393
0 / 393
2000 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500
Margin
0.010 Seconds
Track
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Date
March 12, 2000
Winner
Dale Earnhardt
Average Speed
131.76 mph
Lead Changes
30
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Dale Earnhardt
Bobby Labonte
Car Number
3
18
Car Make
Chevrolet
Pontiac
Laps Led/Laps Completed
34 / 325
46 / 325
2016 Good Sam 500
Margin
0.010 Seconds
Track
Phoenix International Raceway
Date
March 13, 2016
Winner
Kevin Harvick
Average Speed
113.21 mph
Lead Changes
7
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Kevin Harvick
Carl Edwards
Car Number
4
19
Car Make
Chevrolet
Toyota
Laps Led/Laps Completed
139 / 313
65 / 313
2016 Daytona 500
Margin
0.010 Seconds
Track
Daytona International Speedway
Date
February 21, 2016
Winner
Denny Hamlin
Average Speed
157.55 mph
Lead Changes
20
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Denny Hamlin
Martin Truex Jr.
Car Number
11
78
Car Make
Toyota
Toyota
Laps Led/Laps Completed
95 / 200
2 / 200
2010 Aaron’s 499
Margin
0.011 Seconds
Track
Talladega Superspeedway
Date
April 25, 2010
Winner
Kevin Harvick
Average Speed
150.59 mph
Lead Changes
88
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Kevin Harvick
Jamie McMurray
Car Number
29
1
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
2 / 200
27 / 200
2005 Ford 400
Margin
0.017 Seconds
Track
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Date
November 20, 2005
Winner
Greg Biffle
Average Speed
131.43 mph
Lead Changes
21
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Greg Biffle
Mark Martin
Car Number
16
6
Car Make
Ford
Ford
Laps Led/Laps Completed
9 / 267
2 / 267
2011 Good Sam Club 500
Margin
0.018 Seconds
Track
Talladega Superspeedway
Date
October 23, 2011
Winner
Clint Bowyer
Average Speed
143.40 mph
Lead Changes
72
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Clint Bowyer
Jeff Burton
Car Number
33
31
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
25 / 188
26 / 188
2007 Daytona 500
Margin
0.020 Seconds
Track
Daytona International Speedway
Date
February 18, 2007
Winner
Kevin Harvick
Average Speed
149.33 mph
Lead Changes
14
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Kevin Harvick
Mark Martin
Car Number
29
01
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
4 / 202
26 / 202
1994 Diehard 500
Margin
0.025 Seconds
Track
Talladega Superspeedway
Date
July 24, 1994
Winner
Jimmy Spencer
Average Speed
163.22 mph
Lead Changes
24
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Jimmy Spencer
Bill Elliott
Car Number
27
11
Car Make
Ford
Ford
Laps Led/Laps Completed
21 / 188
14 / 188
2005 Coca-Cola 600
Margin
0.027 Seconds
Track
Lowe’s Motor Speedway
Date
May 29, 2005
Winner
Jimmie Johnson
Average Speed
114.70 mph
Lead Changes
37
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Jimmie Johnson
Bobby Labonte
Car Number
48
18
Car Make
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
11 / 400
10 / 400
2005 Golden Corral 500
Margin
0.028 Seconds
Track
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Date
March 20, 2005
Winner
Carl Edwards
Average Speed
143.48 mph
Lead Changes
27
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Carl Edwards
Jimmie Johnson
Car Number
99
48
Car Make
Ford
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
9 / 325
156 / 325
2004 Samsung/Radio Shack 500
Margin
0.028 Seconds
Track
Texas Motor Speedway
Date
April 4, 2004
Winner
Elliott Sadler
Average Speed
138.85 mph
Lead Changes
24
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Elliott Sadler
Kasey Kahne
Car Number
38
9
Car Make
Ford
Dodge
Laps Led/Laps Completed
48 / 334
148 / 334
1997 Pepsi 400
Margin
0.029 Seconds
Track
Daytona International Speedway
Date
July 5, 1997
Winner
John Andretti
Average Speed
157.79 mph
Lead Changes
16
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
John Andretti
Terry Labonte
Car Number
98
5
Car Make
Ford
Chevrolet
Laps Led/Laps Completed
113 / 160
0 / 160
2006 UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400
Margin
0.045 Seconds
Track
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Date
March 12, 2006
Winner
Jimmie Johnson
Average Speed
133.36 mph
Lead Changes
22
Info
Winner
2nd Place
Name
Jimmie Johnson
Matt Kenseth
Car Number
48
17
Car Make
Chevrolet
Ford
Laps Led/Laps Completed
1 / 270
146 / 270
The Closest Race in NASCAR’s History
But NASCAR gets even closer than that. In a much lower division, there was a NASCAR photo finish at Colorado National Speedway with a difference of only 0.001 second. It happened in 1995, and it remains the closest finish in the top three divisions. Butch Miller and Mike Skinner weren’t going nearly as fast as those on the big tracks, however, at a pole speed of about 79 mph.
A Legacy of Close Races
It’s nearly impossible to have a tie since NASCAR’s electronic scoring was put into place, but these races are as close as one can possibly get to a NASCAR tie. Before 1993, though, hand-held stopwatches were used. In the earliest days of the sport, problems would occasionally occur. The first-ever Daytona 500 winner, Lee Petty, had to wait three days to be declared the victor over the close second, Johnny Beauchamp, who also believed that Petty had won.
The First Official Tie
Naturally, before 1993, the lack of an electronic scoring system and high-quality cameras meant that there were occasionally ties. One happened between Buddy Baker and Cale Yarborough in the 1974 Firecracker 400. They were so close together across the finish line that they tied for third and it was declared a dead heat.
High-Speed Cameras
Today, it’s much easier for officials and viewers to tell a thumb-sized difference between the two cars due to powerful ultra-slo-mo cameras, which record at an incredible 1,000 frames per second. If we had these in 1974, perhaps we would’ve known who really won third place!
NASCAR Photo Finish Pros
A few racers have frequented the list of closest NASCAR finishes several times. Out of the top ten fastest NASCAR finishes, Kevin Harvick, Ernie Irvan, Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, and Kyle Busch have been in a neck-and-neck finish twice. Increase that list to the top 20 and the fast and sneaky Kevin Harvick has been in that category the most, appearing in five of the tightest races of all time out of the 20. He won four out of the five times!
A Speedy Racetrack
One racetrack is especially known for these photo finishes: Daytona International Speedway. It hosted ten of the top 20 closest NASCAR finishes. In second place is Talladega, which hosted four out of the top 20.
The closest and best NASCAR finishes of all time have made a big impression on us, but who knows? Perhaps we’ll get an even closer finish in the upcoming races!