The history of NASCAR racing on Father’s Day

For the first time in NASCAR’s modern-era, there are no races scheduled for Father’s Day weekend.

Last year, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series ran at Knoxville Speedway the night before Father’s Day. Todd Gilliland won.

In 2021, the NASCAR Cup Series ran on Father’s Day at Nashville Superspeedway. Kyle Larson led 264 of 300 laps and won.

Larson also won the 2017 FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Before the 2021 race, that was the most recent Cup Series race run on Father’s Day.

Back in 2020, the NASCAR Cup Series was going to run the GEICO 500 on Father’s Day at Talladega Superspeedway. However, rain pushed the race to that Monday.

HISTORY
Father’s Day became a national holiday in the United States on April 24, 1972, when President Richard Nixon signed into law the holiday to be observed on the third Sunday of June.

The first time NASCAR raced on the officially recognized holiday was at Riverside International Raceway on June 18, 1972.

Road course ringer Ray Elder picked up his second and final career win in the Cup Series driving for his father’s team.

The tradition continued for another 27 seasons with a majority of the races held at Michigan International Speedway. Riverside International Raceway and Pocono Raceway also held a Father’s Day race.

In 2000, the streak then ended, as inclement weather postponed the Pocono 500—originally scheduled for Father’s Day—to the Monday after.

The last Father’s Day race at Pocono to date was held the following year in 2001.

Michigan held races on the holiday thereafter through 2014, with the exception of 2009 and 2010 races at Sonoma Raceway.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series even got a chance to host a Father’s Day race in 2015-16 and 2018-19.

In 2015, Erik Jones led 94 of 200 laps and won at Chicagoland Speedway.

Then in 2016, Sam Hornish Jr. led 183 of 250 laps and won at Iowa Speedway. When Xfinity Series racing on Father’s Day returned to Iowa in 2018-19, Justin Allgaier and Christopher Bell won.

OVERALL

Thirty drivers have a win on Father’s Day in 43 total points-awarding Cup Series races.

Three-time series champion Cale Yarborough won a record four Father’s Day races. 1988 champion Bill Elliott has three Father’s Day wins, which is the second-most.

Three Father’s Day winners went on to win the title in the same year—Richard Petty (1974); Cale Yarborough (1977, 1978); and Jimmie Johnson (2010).

Michigan has held 30 Father’s Day races. Pocono has also held eight races, Riverside has held three and Sonoma Raceway has held two. 

FATHER’S DAY WINNERS

YEAR	DRIVER	TRACK
1972	Ray Elder	Riverside International Raceway
1973	Bobby Allison	Riverside International Raceway
1974	Richard Petty	Michigan International Speedway
1975	David Pearson	Michigan International Speedway
1976	David Pearson	Michigan International Speedway
1977	Cale Yarborough	Michigan International Speedway
1978	Cale Yarborough	Michigan International Speedway
1979	Buddy Baker	Michigan International Speedway
1980	Benny Parsons	Michigan International Speedway
1981	Bobby Allison	Michigan International Speedway
1982	Cale Yarborough	Michigan International Speedway
1983	Cale Yarborough	Michigan International Speedway
1984	Bill Elliott	Michigan International Speedway
1985	Bill Elliott	Michigan International Speedway
1986	Bill Elliott	Michigan International Speedway
1987	Tim Richmond	Riverside International Raceway
1988	Geoff Bodine	Pocono Raceway
1989	Terry Labonte	Pocono Raceway
1990	Harry Gant	Pocono Raceway
1991	Darrell Waltrip	Pocono Raceway
1992	Davey Allison	Michigan International Speedway
1993	Ricky Rudd	Michigan International Speedway
1994	Rusty Wallace	Michigan International Speedway
1995	Bobby Labonte	Michigan International Speedway
1996	Jeff Gordon	Pocono Raceway
1997	Ernie Irvan	Michigan International Speedway
1998	Jeremy Mayfield	Pocono Raceway
1999	Bobby Labonte	Pocono Raceway
2001	Ricky Rudd	Pocono Raceway
2002	Matt Kenseth	Michigan International Speedway
2003	Kurt Busch	Michigan International Speedway
2004	Ryan Newman	Michigan International Speedway
2005	Greg Biffle	Michigan International Speedway
2006	Kasey Kahne	Michigan International Speedway
2007	Carl Edwards	Michigan International Speedway
2008	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Michigan International Speedway
2009	Kasey Kahne	Sonoma Raceway
2010	Jimmie Johnson	Sonoma Raceway
2011	Denny Hamlin	Michigan International Speedway
2012	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Michigan International Speedway
2013	Greg Biffle	Michigan International Speedway
2014	Jimmie Johnson	Michigan International Speedway
2015	Erik Jones (Xfinity)	Chicagoland Speedway
2016	Sam Hornish Jr.	Iowa Speedway
2017	Kyle Larson	Michigan International Speedway
2018	Justin Allgaier	Iowa Speedway
2019	Christopher Bell	Iowa Speedway
2021	Kyle Larson	Nashville Superspeedway

SOURCES
Dummies.com
Racing-Reference.info
TimeandDate.com