NASCAR Cup Series St. Patrick’s Day winners

NASCAR isn’t racing on Saint Patrick’s Day this year, but the Cup Series has had held 10 races across its 78-year history.

The first St. Patrick’s Day race was in March 1957, when Ralph Moody — the racer and engine builder who later paired with John Holman to form Holman-Moody — picked up his fifth and final career win at Wilson Speedway in North Carolina.

The most recent St. Patrick’s Day race came in 2024 when Denny Hamlin outdueled teammate Martin Truex Jr. at Bristol Motor Speedway.

All 10 races have featured 10 different winners, which includes NASCAR Hall-of-Famers and past champions.

HISTORY
St. Patrick’s Day, observed on March 17, is celebrated mainly by the Irish as a day to remember the saint who ministered Christianity to the Island.

The saint is said to have died on March 17, 493, according to TimeAndDate.

Celebrations of the day in the United States date back to at least 1601.

Over 100 parades are held on the day across the United States, according to History.com.

Since NASCAR’s inception in 1949, the unofficial holiday has been observed on March 17th every year except 2008. According to BBC, the Catholic Church moved St. Patrick’s day to March 15th so that the day would not coincide with Holy Monday.

NASCAR CUP SERIES WINNERS ON ST. PATRICK’S DAY
1957 Ralph Moody at Wilson Speedway
1962 Jack Smith at Savannah Speedway
1963 Fred Lorenzen at Atlanta Motor Speedway
1968 David Pearson at Bristol Motor Speedway
1974 Cale Yarborough at Bristol Motor Speedway
1985 Bill Elliott at Atlanta Motor Speedway
2002 Sterling Marlin at Darlington Raceway
2013 Kasey Kahne at Bristol Motor Speedway
2019 Kyle Busch at Auto Club Speedway
2024 Denny Hamlin at Bristol Motor Speedway

Matt Courson and Dominic Aragon contributed to this report.