Jimmie Johnson may have stepped away from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition after the 2020 season, but his name still tops several lists. His seven championships, tying the iconic totals of Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Richard Petty, remain the most significant of them all. Yet several other metrics underline just how thoroughly he commanded the sport.
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This includes the number of seasons in which he led the most laps. According to NASCAR Insights, Johnson topped the laps-led category in six different seasons across his 20 full-time Cup campaigns.
Johnson first paced the field in 2004, leading 1,312 laps. Four years later, he led 1,959 laps in 2008.
The ex-Hendrick Motorsports driver dominated again in 2009 with 2,238 laps led, then repeated the feat in 2010 with 1,315 laps. In 2012, he reached his highest total of the span with 1,744 laps led, and in 2013, he tallied 1,985. Of those seasons, he captured championships in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2013.
The next driver on the list is Kevin Harvick, who led most laps in four seasons: 2014, 2015, 2018, and 2020. Behind him, Kyle Larson and Jeff Gordon each led the category in three seasons.
Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., and Tony Stewart accomplished it twice, while William Byron, Chase Elliott, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Rusty Wallace each led most laps once and hence are atop the stat once.
Driver who led the most laps each season since 2000
Count by driver:
Jimmie Johnson – 6 times
Kevin Harvick – 4
Kyle Larson – 3
Jeff Gordon – 3
Kyle Busch – 2
Martin Truex Jr – 2
Tony Stewart – 2
William Byron – 1
Chase Elliott – 1
Dale Earnhardt Jr – 1
Rusty Wallace – 1 pic.twitter.com/m8ztzGseWm— NASCAR Insights (@NASCARInsights) November 29, 2025
Notably, Hendrick Motorsports has continued its stranglehold on the most laps led category in the modern era, dominating the last five seasons from 2021 through 2025. Larson led the field in 2021, Elliott in 2022, Larson again in both 2023 and 2024, and Byron took the honor in 2025.
Over the last 25 years, an HMS driver has led the most laps in 14 seasons overall, backing that no matter which generation of cars rolls into NASCAR, Rick Hendrick’s stable finds a way to stay at the tip of the spear.
Even so, while Hendrick Motorsports has owned the laps-led statistic in the last half-decade, Team Penske has ruled the championship table. Penske captured three straight titles from 2022 to 2024, while Larson secured the crown in 2021 and again this year.
The scoreboard is currently a tug-of-war between pace and postseason execution, but Johnson’s long-standing dominance still towers above them all.
