By Zane Miller
On Sunday, November 20th, 2016, the 2016 NASCAR Cup Series season concluded with Jimmie Johnson defeating Joey Logano by 3 points to win the 68th championship in Cup Series history. It was the seventh (and, as of this writing, most recent) Cup Series championship for Johnson, tying records set by Richard Petty in 1979 and Dale Earnhardt in 1994. Kevin Harvick claimed the regular season championship.
The 2016 Daytona 500 was won by Denny Hamlin, who also led the most laps with 95. Hamlin defeated runner-up Martin Truex Jr. by .010 seconds, the closest finish in Daytona 500 history.
2016 playoff results
Out in Round 1
#14 Tony Stewart
#42 Kyle Larson
#1 Jamie McMurray
#34 Chris Buescher
Out in Round 2
#78 Martin Truex Jr.
#2 Brad Keselowski
#3 Austin Dillon
#24 Chase Elliott
Out in Round 3
#20 Matt Kenseth
#11 Denny Hamlin
#41 Kurt Busch
#4 Kevin Harvick
Final Four
4. #19 Carl Edwards (-33 points, Finished 34th in final race)
Edwards claimed the fourth spot with three wins, nine top-fives and 18 top-10s for an average finish of 13.9 while leading the most laps in two races.
3. #18 Kyle Busch (-5, Finished 6th in final race)
Busch earned third as he had four victories, 17 top-fives and 25 top-10s, getting an average finish of 11.5. Busch also led the most laps in four races.
2. #22 Joey Logano (-3, Finished 4th in final race)
Logano took second with three wins, 16 top-fives and 26 top-10s for an average finish of 10.5, while leading the most laps in three races as well.
1. #48 Jimmie Johnson (Won final race)
Johnson scored the championship with five wins, 11 top-fives and 16 top-10s, taking an average finish of 14.0 while leading the most laps in three races.
Race Winners (left) & Lap Leaders (right)
Link to stats database: https://www.racing-reference.info/yeardet/2016/W
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