2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

Jimmie Johnson, the 2016 Sprint Cup Series champion, his record-tying seventh title
Joey Logano, finished 4 points behind Jimmie Johnson in second place
Kyle Busch, the defending champion, finished 5 points behind Jimmie Johnson in third place
Carl Edwards, finished 33 points behind Jimmie Johnson in fourth place in the final season of his career
Chase Elliott, the 2016 NASCAR Rookie of the Year.
Toyota won their first manufacturer's championship with 14 wins and 1477 points.

The 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series was the 68th season of professional stock car racing in the United States and the 45th modern-era Cup series season. The season began at Daytona International Speedway with the Sprint Unlimited, the Can-Am Duel and the Daytona 500. The season ended with the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports won his seventh drivers' championship, tying Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt for most all-time. Toyota won the manufacturer's championship, becoming the first manufacturer to win the manufacturer's championship other than Chevrolet since 2002.

The season also marked the second season of a new television contract. During the season, races were broadcast in the United States by Fox Sports and NBC Sports.

2016 marked the final full season for three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart,[1] 2000 season champion Bobby Labonte (at the time he was a restrictor plate ringer), 28-time race winner Carl Edwards, and 19-time race winner Greg Biffle, and the final Cup race starts for Brian Scott, Josh Wise, Brian Vickers, Michael Annett, Patrick Carpentier, Eddie MacDonald, Robert Richardson Jr., and Alex Kennedy. Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon also came out of retirement mid-season as a relief driver for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who sat out the second half of the season with a concussion. Gordon made his final start at Martinsville Speedway in October, sharing driving duties with Alex Bowman. 2016 also marked the first season that Joe Nemechek did not start a Cup race since his career began in 1993, as well as Sam Hornish Jr., who did not make any starts for the first time since 2006.

The season also marked the final season with Sprint as the series sponsor as Monster Energy took over the title sponsorship starting in 2017.[2]

  1. ^ "Tony Stewart planning retirement after one more season". ESPN News Services. ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. September 30, 2015. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
  2. ^ "Monster Energy replaces Sprint as title sponsor for NASCAR's top series". USA Today. December 1, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.