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One-hit wonders in the NASCAR Cup Series
By Steve Luvender | Published: September 25, 2020 20
Jonathan Ferrey | NASCAR via Getty Images
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September 25 is National One-Hit Wonder Day! Really -- that's a thing. Finally, a holiday where Chumbawamba can be properly recognized. We celebrate the day all year round in the NASCAR world, too, by running down the list of inactive or non-full-time drivers who have won just one single race in the modern era -- you know, the Lou Begas of auto racing. Put on some Tommy Tutone and take a walk down memory lane.
September 25 is National One-Hit Wonder Day! Really -- that's a thing. Finally, a holiday where Chumbawamba can be properly recognized. We celebrate the day all year round in the NASCAR world, too, by running down the list of inactive or non-full-time drivers who have won just one single race in the modern era -- you know, the Lou Begas of auto racing. Put on some Tommy Tutone and take a walk down memory lane.
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Jonathan Ferrey | NASCAR via Getty Images
AJ Allmendinger, Watkins Glen 2014:The road-course ace took advantage of his prowess by winning at the New York road course, picking up his lone NASCAR Cup Series victory, as well as JTG Daugherty Racing's first win.
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Regan Smith, Darlington 2011:Before Furniture Row Racing was a weekly contender for race wins, they were a true underdog single-car organization. In the 2011 Showtime Southern 500, Regan Smith held off Carl Edwards -- who had a faster car on newer tires -- in a sprint to the finish, to claim his only victory (though some Smith fans considered it his second win after a controversial finish at Talladega three years earlier).
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Trevor Bayne, Daytona 2011: Making just his second start in the NASCAR Cup Series, Trevor Bayne shocked the world by winning on NASCAR's biggest stage, the Daytona 500, just a day after his 20th birthday.
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Casey Mears, Charlotte 2007: Casey Mears scored one victory in his NASCAR Cup Series career in the longest race of the 2007 season, the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race came down to fuel mileage, and Mears had just enough to take the checkered flag ahead of JJ Yeley, Kyle Petty, and Reed Sorenson.
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Johnny Benson, Rockingham 2002: The 1995 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion won only one race in his NASCAR Cup Series career -- holding off a trio of Roush Racing teammates (Benson's former team) at Rockingham in 2002 driving for MB2 Motorsports.
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Jerry Nadeau, Atlanta 2000: Racing for Hendrick Motorsports, Jerry Nadeau's lone victory came in the 2000 series finale, where Nadeau held off Dale Earnhardt. Nadeau's racing career ended in a crash at Richmond in 2003.
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Brett Bodine, North Wilkesboro 1990: Brett Bodine's lone victory, North Wilkesboro in 1990, came amidst controversy. In a time before electronic scoring, the pace car mistakenly picked up Bodine as the leader of the race. Bodine showed he could contend afterward, though, leading the most laps and finishing first.
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Phil Parsons, Talladega 1988: Racer-gone-announcer Phil Parsons scored one victory in his career: the 1988 Winston 500. Parsons led 52 laps on his way to victory, driving an Oldsmobile for the Jackson brothers.
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Lake Speed, Darlington 1988: Despite his fast-sounding name, Lake Speed won just one race in his 402-race career when he won at Darlington in 1988.
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Bobby Hillin Jr., Talladega 1986: At just 22 years old, Bobby Hillin Jr. became the youngest-ever winner at the time of his lone victory at Talladega in 1986 driving for the Stavola Brothers.
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Greg Sacks, Daytona 1985:Greg Sacks, driving an R&D car in a one-off start, pulled off an upset victory -- the only of his career -- in the 1985 Firecracker 400 at Daytona, passing Bill Elliott late.
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Ron Bouchard, Talladega 1981: In his rookie season, Ron Bouchard famously passed Darrell Waltrip and Terry Labonte in the final inches at Talladega in 1981 to steal a victory -- his only in the NASCAR Cup Series. Bouchard died in 2015.
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Jody Ridley, Dover 1981:Georgia's Jody Ridley won just one race in his 140-race career: the 1981 Mason-Dixon 500 at Dover, after contenders Neil Bonnett and Cale Yarborough retired with engine failures. Ridley's victory, driving for Junie Donlavey, was the team's only victory in its longtime NASCAR history.
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Lennie Pond, Talladega 1978:In a race featuring 67 lead changes, Lennie Pond found Victory Lane once in his NASCAR career, at Talladega in 1978. Pond died in 2016.
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Earl Ross, Martinsville 1974:Winning by a lap over Buddy Baker at Martinsville in 1974, the victory by the late Earl Ross is still the only one scored by a Canadian driver in the NASCAR Cup Series.
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Dick Brooks, Talladega 1973:In a bizarre race in 1973 at Talladega -- one in which Bobby Isaac retired from the race when voices inside his head told him to get out of the car -- Dick Brooks scored his only NASCAR victory. The win was the only top-15 finish for his race team, the Crawford Brothers. Brooks died in 2006.
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Mark Donohue, Riverside 1973:Racer Mark Donohue made just six starts in what's now the NASCAR Cup Series, but scored a victory in the 1973 race at Riverside International Raceway, driving Roger Penske's AMC Matador -- Penske's first NASCAR victory, and still the most recent series victory for a part-time road-course ringer. Donohue died two years later from a head injury sustained in practice for a Formula 1 race in Austria.
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BONUS: Mario Andretti, Daytona 1967:While it's difficult to call one of the most famous and successful racers of all time a one-hit wonder, technically, Mario Andretti won just one race in his brief time racing NASCAR: the 1967 Daytona 500, driving a Ford for Holman-Moody Racing.
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Jonathan Daniel | Getty Images
Current Active Full-Time Drivers with One Win: While it's unlikely these drivers hang up their helmets with these stats, four current full-time drivers have scored just one victory at the time of writing: Chris Buescher, Pocono 2016; Justin Haley, Daytona 2019; Cole Custer, Kentucky 2020; William Byron, Daytona 2020.