JANUARY 17: Stewart Heats Up For Chili Bowl Victory

Amid an ice storm that left Oklahoma in a state of emergency, Tony Stewart was the class of the field in the 21st annual Chili Bowl in Tulsa. It was the second Chili Bowl score for the former USAC Triple Crown winner.

JANUARY 21: Harvick Takes Daytona 500 By .020 Second

In one of the most controversial finishes in Daytona 500 history, Kevin Harvick got a push from Matt Kenseth and blasted around Mark Martin to take the checkered flag by inches while a crash occurred behind them.

MARCH 7: Montoya Punts Pruett For Mexico City Win

Not only did Juan Pablo Montoya post his first NASCAR stock-car victory before an international crowd in Mexico City, he did it in spectacular fashion, pushing his teammate, Scott Pruett, out of the way.

MARCH 28: Busch Scores First Car of Tomorrow Victory

After years of planning, NASCAR’s much-anticipated Car of Tomorrow made its debut on the concrete at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Kyle Busch triumphed and bad-mouthed the CoT from victory lane.

MAY 30: Franchitti Takes Rain-Shortened Indy 500

Dario Franchitti was in the right place at the right time to win the Indy 500. The Scotsman was leading when the second major rain storm of the day drenched the speedway, handing him the Borg-Warner trophy.

JUNE 6: NASCAR Mourns Loss  Of Bill France, Jr.

NASCAR was racing on a Monday following a rainout at Dover, Del., when word came of the death of longtime NASCAR Chairman Bill France, Jr. The 74-year-old France helped NASCAR grow out of its Southern roots.

JUNE 13: Hamilton Claims First Formula One Triumph

Lewis Hamilton became the first black racing driver to win a Formula One World Championship event, topping the Canadian Grand Prix. The rookie driver won again at Indianapolis the following weekend.

AUGUST 15: Schatz Goes Back To Back At Knoxville

Donny Schatz continued his summer tear through the sprint-car racing world with a victory in the sport’s most prestigious event. Schatz banked $150,000 for winning his second-straight Knoxville Nationals.

SEPTEMBER 19: Bowyer Gets No. 1; McLaren Fined $100M

The McLaren Formula One team was fined $100 million for its part in a spying scandal, which saw it receive proprietary information regarding Ferrari’s Formula One car. The largest previous fine was $5 million.

SEPTEMBER 26: Funny Car Legend Force Injured In Crash

The most successful professional drag racer in the history of the sport, John Force, was seriously injured in a violent accident at the Texas Motorplex. Force was hospitalized nearly a month and hasn’t raced since.

OCTOBER 3: NHRA Founder Wally Parks Dies

Wally Parks, the man who made drag racing what it is today, died at 94. Parks, the one-time editor of Hot Rod magazine, founded NHRA in 1951 and oversaw its expansion from street racing to the corporate board room.

OCTOBER 24: Raikkonen Takes F-1 Title By One Point

With a victory in the season finale in Brazil, Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen claimed his first Formula One championship by one point over rookie   Lewis Hamilton.

NOVEMBER 7: NHRA, WoO Crown Champs; SMI Buys NHIS

Tony Pedregon, Tony Schumacher, Jeg Coughlin, Donny Schatz and Steve Francis took home the hardware while Speedway Motorsports, Inc. added the 1.058-mile oval to its collection of facilities.

NOVEMBER 21: Johnson Claims Second-Straight Cup

Jimmie Johnson capped off a dominant season by winning his second-consecutive NASCAR Nextel Cup title over Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon by 77 points.