The NASCAR Winston Cup Era

Most modern-day NASCAR fans know the top level series, as the Winston Cup Series. NASCAR fields 3 levels of racing; the Monster Energy Cup Series, the Xfinity Series, and the Truck Series. Back in old times, the Cup series was known as the Winston Cup Series. Back then there were some great races.

In 1981, the Talladega 500 ended with Ron Bouchard edging Darrell Waltrip by half a second, at the line. In 1984, Richard Petty won his 200th Cup win by narrowly beating Cale Yarborough by a foot. In 1987, Dale Earnhardt Sr. made his famous "pass in the grass" to win the All-Star Race.

There were also some tragedies. JD McDuffie, an independent owner/driver, crashed into a tire barrier at Watkins Glen and died instantly. In 2000, three race drivers, Kenny Irwin, Adam Petty, and Tony Roper died. Then Dale Earnhardt died during the 2001 Daytona 500. The Winston Cup era ended in 2003 with Matt Kenseth's championship. A new sponsor; Nextel-Sprint sponsored for about 12 years, before Monster Energy took over as the premier sponsor.