In the most recent issue of Sporting News magazine, SN named seven athletes of the decade -- one in each sport it covers. The winner in NASCAR is three-time defending Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, who gets the nod over two-time champion Tony Stewart.
Past winners
SN Driver of the Year
Year Driver
2001 Jeff Gordon
2002 Tony Stewart
2003 Matt Kenseth
2004 Jimmie Johnson
2005 Tony Stewart
2006 Jimmie Johnson
2007 Jimmie Johnson
2008 Jimmie Johnson
Note: Sporting News began covering NASCAR in 2001 Johnson picked up his 44th Cup Series win Sunday at Dover, tying him with Bill Elliott for 14th on the all-time list. Johnson's 44th win -- all this decade -- came in his 283rd start, giving him a winning percentage of 15.6, eighth-best all time and third best in NASCAR's modern era (since 1972). It is easily the best of the decade: Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are tied for second at 9.4 percent.
We say ...
• If it's true that some drivers were put on this earth to rally the Southern masses, then Johnson was born to race?and win. With the looks, smarts and skill to be as popular as he wants to be, Johnson has quietly focused on checkered flags and championships and taken more of both than anybody this decade. You don't have to love him, but you have to acknowledge his standing among the best of all time.
The numbers say ...
• Johnson -- 44 wins, 112 top-five finishes, 173 top-10s, three titles
• Stewart -- 33 wins, 130 top-fives, 205 top-10s, two titles
You say ...
SportingNews.com voting:
• Jimmie Johnson -- 51 percent• Tony Stewart -- 49 percent
They say ...
• Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s case for Johnson: "Jimmie would be my pick. He has won more championships, and three in a row is pretty impressive. The No. 48 has been the dominant team. Jimmie's an all-American, and he's a good role model for everyone. He seems to have it all together."
Johnson says ...
• Memory of the decade: "One of the things that comes to my mind most often is my first Cup win [at California in 2002]. I had a lack of confidence coming to the Cup level. ... I didn't know if I was going to make it. So to win that first race -- I knew if I didn't put up a good year that first [full] season, I wasn't going to have a job. When you go to a big team and don't make it, you have a tendency to fall down quite a few levels before anybody catches you. With that first win, the weight of the world was off my shoulders. That was really a special moment."
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