The 2004 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series was the 56th season of NASCAR Nextel Cup Series in the United States and the 33rd modern-era Cup series season. The season began on Saturday, February 7, and ended on Sunday, November 21. Kurt Busch, who drove a Ford for Roush Racing, was the Nextel Cup champion.
This was the first season that NASCAR utilized the Chase for the Nextel Cup format that began with the Sylvania 300 on Sunday, September 19. Under the format rules, the top 10 drivers (and any additional drivers within 400 points of the leader) by the end of the 26th race would be eligible to compete in a final 10-race playoff to determine the NASCAR Nextel Cup champion. Following the 26th race, the eligible drivers would have their points reset to bring the drivers closer together in the standings, with only five points separating each driver. The season would then continue as normal, with the driver with the most points at the end of the season becoming the champion.
The NASCAR Manufacturers' Championship was won by Chevrolet when they captured 26 wins and 266 points. Ford finished in second place with 10 wins, and 224 points, while Dodge followed in third with 4 wins and 194 points.
This was the first year for the new series sponsorship. Mobile phone provider Nextel assumed sponsorship of the NASCAR championship series from cigarette brand Winston. Winston was the title sponsor of the Cup Series for 33 seasons, from 1971 to 2003. Nextel would become only the second title sponsor in Cup Series history. This was also the first year for Sunoco as it replaced Unocal 76 Brand as the official fuel of NASCAR. Sunoco would become only the second gas company to be NASCAR's official fuel since Unocal had been the official fuel since the sport's inception in 1948.
The season was also marked by tragedy. On October 24, a charter airplane owned by Hendrick Motorsports crashed at Bull Mountain in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, near Martinsville Speedway. Ten people aboard the plane died, including four relatives of team owner Rick Hendrick, as well as Randy Dorton, Hendrick's chief engine builder. Jimmie Johnson, a Hendrick driver, had won the race, but the post-race victory ceremony was canceled as words spread of the incident.
Teams and drivers
Full-time schedule ManufacturerTeamDriverCrew chief Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Tony Eury 15 Michael WaltripSlugger LabbeHaas CNC Racing0 Ward Burton Bootie Barker Mike Bliss Hendrick Motorsports 5 Terry Labonte Jim Long 24 Jeff Gordon Robbie Loomis 25 Brian Vickers (R) Peter Sospenzo 48 Jimmie Johnson Chad Knaus Joe Gibbs Racing 18 Bobby Labonte Michael McSwain Brandon Thomas 20 Tony Stewart Greg Zipadelli MBV Motorsports 01 Joe Nemechek Ryan Pemberton 10 Scott Riggs (R) Doug RandolphMorgan-McClure Motorsports4 Kevin Lepage Chris Carrier Jimmy Spencer Mike Wallace PPI Motorsports32 Ricky Craven Harold Holly Bobby Hamilton Jr. Richard Childress Racing 29 Kevin Harvick Todd Berrier30 Johnny Sauter Kevin Hamlin Dave Blaney Jim Inglebright Jeff Burton 31 Robby Gordon Chris Andrews Dodge BAM Racing 49 Ken Schrader David Hyder Bill Davis Racing 22 Scott Wimmer (R) Frank Stoddard Chip Ganassi Racing 40 Sterling MarlinTony Glover 41 Casey Mears Jimmy Elledge 42 Jamie McMurrayDonnie Wingo Evernham Motorsports 9 Kasey Kahne (R)Tommy Baldwin Jr. 19 Jeremy MayfieldKenny Francis Penske-Jasper Racing 2 Rusty Wallace Larry Carter 12 Ryan Newman Matt Borland 77 Brendan Gaughan (R) Shane Wilson Petty Enterprises 43 Jeff Green Greg Steadman 45 Kyle Petty Bill Henderson FordKirk Shelmerdine Racing72 Kirk Shelmerdine Phil Harris Tom Hubert Ted Christopher Brad Teague Robert Yates Racing 38 Elliott SadlerTodd Parrott 88 Dale JarrettMike Ford Roush Racing 6 Mark MartinPat Tryson 16 Greg BiffleDoug Richert 17 Matt KensethRobbie Reiser 97 Kurt BuschJimmy Fennig99 Jeff Burton Bob Osbourne Carl Edwards (R) Dave Blaney Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ricky Rudd Ben Leslie Michael McSwain
Limited schedule ManufacturerTeamDriverCrew ChiefRounds Chevrolet Bill McAnally Racing 61 Austin Cameron Doug George Brewco Motorsports 27 David Green Competitive Edge Motorsports51 Kevin Lepage Tony Raines Conely Racing 79 Stan Boyd Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 1 John Andretti Pete Rondeau Ron Fellows Martin Truex Jr. Kenny Wallace Gary Keller Racing35 Mike Wallace Kenny Hendrick GIC-Mixon Motorsports 93 Geoff Bodine Haas CNC Racing 60 Jason Leffler Hendrick Motorsports 84 Kyle Busch Gary DeHart Hollenbeck Motorsports 62 Larry Hollenbeck Joe Gibbs Racing11 J. J. Yeley Doug Hewitt Ricky Craven 80 Mike Bliss Richard Childress Racing33 Mike SkinnerGil Martin Bobby Leslie Kerry Earnhardt Johnny Sauter MB2 Motorsports 36 Boris Said Michael Waltrip Racing00 Kenny Wallace McGlynn Racing Carl Long Ryan McGlynn 08 Ryan McGlynn Carl Long Morgan-McClure Motorsports 04 Eric McClure DodgeArnold Motorsports50 Derrike Cope Mike Hillman Mike Wallace P. J. Jones Todd Bodine Jeff Fuller BAM Racing59 Klaus GrafLarry Foyt 70Bill Davis Racing23 Dave Blaney Tony Raines Shane Hmiel Evernham Motorsports 91 Bill Elliott Sammy Johns Chip Ganassi Racing 39 Scott Pruett Gary Trout Autosports 34 Geoff Bodine Glenn Racing 46 Carl Long Haefele Racing 75 Mike Garvey Penske-Jasper Racing06 Chad Blount Roy McCauley Travis Kvapil Phoenix Racing09 Johnny Benson Jerry Pitts Joe Ruttman Bobby Hamilton Jr. Tony Raines Scott Pruett Mike Wallace Johnny Sauter R&J Racing37 Todd Bodine Billy Poindexter Chad Blount Kevin Lepage Andy Hillenburg Stanton Barrett Sacks Motorsports 13 Greg Sacks Shepherd Racing Ventures 89 Morgan Shepherd Troy Kelly Darin Kummrow Terry Allen Ultra Motorsports7 Jimmy SpencerBob Temple Dave Blaney Steve Park Ware Racing Enterprises 52 Stanton Barrett A. J. Foyt Enterprises14 Larry Foyt Keith Koppenal Dave Charpentier Ford ppc Racing John Andretti Donlavey Racing90 Andy HillenburgJunie Donlavey Kevin Ray A. J. Henriksen Front Row Motorsports92 Brad Teague Tony Raines Stanton Barrett Harrah Racing 78 Jeff Fultz Hover Motorsports80 Andy HillenburgStan Hover Randy LaJoie Carl Long Tony Ave Ted Christopher Derrike Cope Mario Gosselin Andy Belmont Pontiac Andy Belmont Racing 59 Andy Belmont DodgeFordMach 1 Motorsports96 Larry Gunselman Mike Steurer Derrike Cope Randy LaJoie 98 Larry GunselmanMike Steurer Sammy Johns Todd Bodine Geoff Bodine Bill Elliott Derrike Cope Chad Chaffin Randy LaJoie ChevroletFordPontiacSCORE Motorsports02 Carl Long Ernie Cope Ed Ash Jeff Buckner Andy Belmont Hermie Sadler Derrike Cope Brandon Ash Jason Jarrett ChevroletDodgeFordW. W. Motorsports94 Stanton BarrettTerry Allen Derrike Cope Brad Teague
Schedule No. Race title Track DateBudweiser ShootoutDaytona International Speedway, Daytona BeachFebruary 7Gatorade DuelsFebruary 121Daytona 500February 152Subway 400North Carolina Speedway, RockinghamFebruary 223UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las VegasMarch 74Golden Corral 500Atlanta Motor Speedway, HamptonMarch 145Carolina Dodge Dealers 400Darlington Raceway, DarlingtonMarch 216Food City 500Bristol Motor Speedway, BristolMarch 287Samsung / RadioShack 500Texas Motor Speedway, Fort WorthApril 48Advance Auto Parts 500Martinsville Speedway, RidgewayApril 189Aaron's 499Talladega Superspeedway, TalladegaApril 2510Auto Club 500California Speedway, FontanaMay 211Chevy American Revolution 400Richmond International Raceway, RichmondMay 15Nextel OpenLowe's Motor Speedway, ConcordMay 22Nextel All-Star Challenge12Coca-Cola 600May 3013MBNA America 400 "A Salute to Heroes"Dover International Speedway, DoverJune 614Pocono 500Pocono Raceway, Long PondJune 1315DHL 400Michigan International Speedway, BrooklynJune 2016Dodge/Save Mart 350Infineon Raceway, SonomaJune 2717Pepsi 400Daytona International Speedway, Daytona BeachJuly 318Tropicana 400 presented by MeijerChicagoland Speedway, JolietJuly 1119Siemens 300New Hampshire International Speedway, LoudonJuly 2520Pennsylvania 500Pocono Raceway, Long PondAugust 121Brickyard 400Indianapolis Motor Speedway, SpeedwayAugust 822Sirius Satellite Radio at The GlenWatkins Glen International, Watkins GlenAugust 1523GFS Marketplace 400Michigan International Speedway, BrooklynAugust 2224Sharpie 500Bristol Motor Speedway, BristolAugust 2825Pop Secret 500California Speedway, FontanaSeptember 526Chevy Rock & Roll 400Richmond International Raceway, RichmondSeptember 11 Chase for the Nextel Cup27Sylvania 300New Hampshire International Speedway, LoudonSeptember 1928MBNA America 400Dover International Speedway, DoverSeptember 2629EA Sports 500Talladega Superspeedway, TalladegaOctober 330Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra FoodsKansas Speedway, Kansas CityOctober 1031UAW-GM Quality 500Lowe's Motor Speedway, ConcordOctober 1632Subway 500Martinsville Speedway, RidgewayOctober 2433Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500Atlanta Motor Speedway, HamptonOctober 3134Checker Auto Parts 500Phoenix International Raceway, PhoenixNovember 735Mountain Dew Southern 500Darlington Raceway, DarlingtonNovember 1436Ford 400Homestead–Miami Speedway, HomesteadNovember 21
Races No.RacePole positionMost laps ledWinning driverBudweiser ShootoutJeremy MayfieldTerry LabonteDale JarrettFordGatorade 125 #1Greg BiffleGreg BiffleDale Earnhardt Jr.ChevroletGatorade 125 #2Elliott SadlerElliott SadlerElliott SadlerFord1Daytona 500Greg BiffleTony StewartDale Earnhardt Jr.Chevrolet2Subway 400Ryan NewmanMatt KensethMatt KensethFord3UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400Kasey KahneMatt KensethMatt KensethFord4Golden Corral 500Ryan NewmanTony StewartDale Earnhardt Jr.Chevrolet5Carolina Dodge Dealers 400Kasey KahneKurt BuschJimmie JohnsonChevrolet6Food City 500Ryan NewmanKurt BuschKurt BuschFord7Samsung/Radio Shack 500Bobby LabonteKasey KahneElliott SadlerFord8Advance Auto Parts 500Jeff GordonJeff GordonRusty WallaceDodge9Aaron's 499Ricky RuddDale Earnhardt Jr.Jeff GordonChevrolet10Auto Club 500Kasey KahneJeff GordonJeff GordonChevrolet11Chevy American Revolution 400Brian VickersDale Earnhardt Jr.Dale Earnhardt Jr.ChevroletNextel OpenDave BlaneyJamie McMurraySterling MarlinDodgeNextel All-Star ChallengeRusty WallaceRyan NewmanMatt KensethFord12Coca-Cola 600Jimmie JohnsonJimmie JohnsonJimmie JohnsonChevrolet13MBNA America 400 "A Salute to Heroes"Jeremy MayfieldTony StewartMark MartinFord14Pocono 500Kasey KahneJimmie JohnsonJimmie JohnsonChevrolet15DHL 400Jeff GordonJeff GordonRyan NewmanDodge16Dodge/Save Mart 350Jeff GordonJeff GordonJeff GordonChevrolet17Pepsi 400Jeff GordonJeff GordonJeff GordonChevrolet18Tropicana 400 presented by MeijerJeff GordonTony StewartTony StewartChevrolet19Siemens 300Ryan NewmanRyan NewmanKurt BuschFord20Pennsylvania 500Casey MearsJimmie JohnsonJimmie JohnsonChevrolet21Brickyard 400Casey MearsJeff GordonJeff GordonChevrolet22Sirius Satellite Radio at The GlenJimmie JohnsonTony StewartTony StewartChevrolet23GFS Marketplace 400Jimmie JohnsonGreg BiffleGreg BiffleFord24Sharpie 500Jeff GordonDale Earnhardt Jr.Dale Earnhardt Jr.Chevrolet25Pop Secret 500Brian VickersMark MartinElliott SadlerFord26Chevy Rock & Roll 400Ryan NewmanJeremy MayfieldJeremy MayfieldDodge27Sylvania 300Jeff GordonKurt BuschKurt BuschFord28MBNA America 400Jeremy MayfieldRyan NewmanRyan NewmanDodge29EA Sports 500Joe NemechekDale Earnhardt Jr.Dale Earnhardt Jr.Chevrolet30Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra FoodsJoe NemechekJeremy MayfieldJoe NemechekChevrolet31UAW-GM Quality 500Ryan NewmanKasey KahneJimmie JohnsonChevrolet32Subway 500Ryan NewmanKurt BuschJimmie JohnsonChevrolet33Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500Ryan NewmanMark MartinJimmie JohnsonChevrolet34Checker Auto Parts 500Ryan NewmanDale Earnhardt Jr.Dale Earnhardt Jr.Chevrolet35Mountain Dew Southern 500Kurt BuschJeff GordonJimmie JohnsonChevrolet36Ford 400Kurt BuschGreg BiffleGreg BiffleFord
Budweiser Shootout
The exhibition Budweiser Shootout was held on February 7 at Daytona International Speedway. The starting lineup was decided by a random draw. Jeremy Mayfield drew the pole.
Top ten results #88 - Dale Jarrett #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr.