Throughout the history of NASCAR, there have been several talented drivers who have won a plethora of races but not a single Championship. Mark Martin, Ricky Rudd, Junior Johnson; the list goes on and on. However, one name among the others falls under the “what could have been the reason” category. And it is Carl Edwards.
Advertisement
When Edwards scored four wins and made it to the top 3 in points at the end of the Sprint Cup season of 2005, his first year as a full-time Cup Series driver, the entire community viewed him as a future champion. But alas, that elusive title kept running away from his craving hands.
After completing third in 2005, Edwards finished second to 7X Cup winner Jimmie Johnson and in 2011, he finished seconds behind Tony Stewart. Many would argue that Edwards was the closest to the win in 2011, the year when NASCAR resorted to a tiebreaker for the first time to decide the champion due to a points tie between Smoke and Edwards.
According to Edwards himself, he was the closest to securing the title during those three years. But he also said that he probably wouldn’t have appreciated it enough if he had won in his debut full-time NASCAR Cup season. Throughout his illustrious career, he won 28 Sprint Cup races but every year, he somehow failed to bag the coveted banner.
Edwards left the whole community in shock with unexpected news
In 2016, the now 44-year-old speedster lost the championship again at the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway due to a late-race crash. And quite abruptly after that, he announced that he was stepping away from his day job at NASCAR. He was just 37 back then.
“I’m not planning on doing any (NASCAR) driving. This is the tip of the spear. These guys are so good that I would be terribly slow, and I would have to prep a lot. Seriously, that’s the truth,” said the Missouri native.
“For me, racing is a risky sport. There’s risk involved and if I’m not committed 100 percent, I just don’t feel it’s the right thing for me to go do for fun. I’ve been paying attention. The hits are hard. They still are. That’s one of the reasons I’m not racing is because I’m aware of that,” he added.
However, he did make an appearance at Darlington Raceway last year, when he joined the broadcast booth for Fox Sports. “To be able to come back and be received the way I have, it shocked me. It really is just a great feeling,” he admitted. Despite being away from the wheel of a stock car, it is clear that this ex-driver garners a profound love for the sport.
