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The2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series was the 59th season of professionalstock car racing in the United States and the 36th modern-era Cup series. Beginning on February 10 atDaytona International Speedway with theBudweiser Shootout, the season ended on November 18 atHomestead-Miami Speedway with theFord 400. TheChase for the Nextel Cup started with theSylvania 300 atNew Hampshire International Speedway and was contested over the final ten races.

The season was the final year that the NASCAR Cup Series was known as theNextel Cup Series. As a result of the 2005 merger ofNextel Communications withSprint Corporation, and the subsequent decision by the newly namedSprint Corporation, the name of the series was changed to theSprint Cup Series for2008. The 2007 season was the first year in NASCAR history in which noNorth Carolina drivers found victory lane. This was also the final year for theChevrolet Monte Carlo which was replaced by theChevrolet Impala during theCar of Tomorrow races and full time in 2008. This 2007 season marks the first season in the Nextel Cup Series to featureToyota, using theCamry model.

Jimmie Johnson ofHendrick Motorsports won his second consecutive championship, with teammateJeff Gordon finishing second. Chevrolet captured theNASCAR Manufacturers' Championship with 26 wins, and 290 points over second-placeFord who had 7 wins and 208 points. Dodge finished third with 3 wins and 178 points and Toyota, in their first NEXTEL Cup season, finished out with no wins and 116 points.^[1]

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It was officially announced on January 22 at the annual NASCAR Media Tour inCharlotte, North Carolina that two changes were made for the2007 Chase for the Nextel Cup.

The first is that wins became more important. The driver who finishes first now received 185 points instead of 180. Including the five bonus points for leading a lap and the possible five bonus points for leading the most laps, a driver could now get a maximum of 195 points for winning a race.

The other changes involved the actual Chase. The Top 12 drivers after theChevy Rock & Roll 400 automatically qualified for the 2007 Chase. Additionally, each driver had their points reset to 5,000, plus ten for each win during the first 26 races. However, when the season ended, only the Top 10 drivers would be honored at the annual banquet in New York City at theWaldorf-Astoria.

NASCAR introduced a new car style known as the"Car of Tomorrow" for use in sixteen races in 2007. This car was the result of a design program that started after thedeath of Dale Earnhardt in the2001 Daytona 500. It was intended to offer improvements in safety, performance, competition, and cost efficiency. Plans for a partial schedule in 2008 were expanded to full usage after race results and owner feedback led to acceptance of the new car. Some drivers, however, offered criticism over the decision, thinking that the new design led to boring, uncompetitive races.

AT&T andBellSouth'sCingular brand, sponsor ofRichard Childress Racing's No. 31 car, was legally renamedAT&T upon BellSouth acquisition by AT&T, and has been phased out. This is not allowed under the grandfather clause in the original sponsorship agreement between the former Nextel Communications (nowSprint Nextel) with NASCAR and on March 16, it was announced that AT&T had filed suit in Atlanta Federal Court seeking to overturn said grandfather clause because of this and allow AT&T decals on the car. A judge ruled that RCR was allowed to put AT&T decals on the car on May 18, and the decals made their debut the following night in the Nextel All-Star Challenge. NASCAR originally had a say when the judge ruled in RCR's favor, but that was later rescinded.

The legal wrangling continued as on June 17, NASCAR countersued AT&T for $100 million (US). NASCAR won the appeal on August 13, and eleven days later at theBristol Motor Speedway, NASCAR ordered AT&T logos removed from the No. 31 car, and AT&T filed for an injunction to get the decals back on. Sprint Nextel, AT&T, and NASCAR settled their differences on September 7, and the AT&T logos were placed back on Burton's ride in time for theChevy Rock & Roll 400. These features would remain on the car's body for the rest of the season and into2008, but RCR afterwards found a new sponsor to replace AT&T. WhenCaterpillar signed on for the2009 season, the team agreed to have them as the No. 31's main sponsor.

Motorola is an associate sponsor onRobby Gordon's No. 7 car. Whenhis self-owned team, however, tried to put a Motorola decal on the car for theKobalt Tools 500 atAtlanta Motor Speedway on March 18, NASCAR ruled that this was in breach of the exclusivity clause with Sprint Nextel (even though Nextel uses Motorola phones) because NASCAR noticed this deal was part ofCellco Partnership (a joint partnership ofVerizon andVodafone better known as the trade nameVerizon Wireless), which (legally) sponsored his Busch Series car. NASCAR and Sprint later relented as it was decided to allow Motorola's Audio Products Division to be the main sponsor.

Another controversy surroundedShell andSunoco. Sunocodoes exclusively supply gasoline to NASCAR, yetRCR signedShell and theirPennzoil brand to the No. 29 car driven byDaytona 500 winnerKevin Harvick. During the 500, the car had large Shell decals and large Shell logos on uniforms worn by Harvick and his team. Shell logos were ordered to be smaller for thefollowing week's race at Auto Club. This was likely done at Sunoco's request since a rival gasoline company sponsored a car winning NASCAR's premier event, having taken away publicity from an official sponsor.^[2]

The other concerned the part-time schedule being undertaken byMark Martin. Through the spring Atlanta race, Martin held the points lead. Because he had planned a part-time schedule in the No. 01Ginn RacingU.S. Army ride, Martin reiterated that he would not run in all 36 races on the circuit despite finishing second in the Daytona 500. He relinquished the lead by passing on the spring races at Bristol and Martinsville. Rookie driversRegan Smith andAric Almirola drove the No. 01 car in those races, as owner points had that car an exempt team for Bristol (from 2006) and Martinsville. However, Martin extended his schedule to include a few more points races, but did not race the full season.

On May 10, it was announced thatDale Earnhardt Jr. would be leaving the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet following the conclusion of the season as he could not get a contract extension withDale Earnhardt, Inc., the driving teamhis father founded and run by his stepmother,Teresa Earnhardt. Speculation according toWFXT in Boston had him going toRichard Childress Racing where the "unretirement" of the No. 3 car that his father drove to seven then-Winston Cup championships and the1998 Daytona 500 would have happened. Other rumors had him going toJoe Gibbs Racing, or had him starting a Nextel Cup team with the organization he owns that fieldsBusch Series cars,JR Motorsports. However, at a press conference on June 13, Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced a five-year deal to joinHendrick Motorsports. He replacedKyle Busch, who at the time drove the No. 5 Chevrolet; he subsequently joinedJoe Gibbs Racing to replaceJ. J. Yeley in the No. 18Toyota. Busch was replaced in the No. 5 byCasey Mears. On September 19, it was announced that Jr. had signed on to drive Hendrick's new No. 88Mountain Dew AMP/National Guard Chevrolet.^[3] Junior's crew chief at DEI,Tony Eury Jr. will make the move with him, leaving his position after thefall race at Talladega.

Before the season-openingDaytona 500, NASCAR team ownerJack Roush announced the selloff of 50% of his team, Roush Racing to theFenway Sports Group, who owns theBoston Red SoxMajor League Baseball team. The newly formed alliance between two differing sports markets involved the team name to change toRoush Fenway Racing. However, this was only the beginning of what was referred to as "Merger mania".

The week before theAllstate 400 at The Brickyard became the week NASCAR was all shaken up in the ownership boxes. On July 24, Dale Earnhardt, Inc. merged with Ginn Racing, inheriting the No. 01 US Army ride of Mark Martin and Aric Almirola, putting the points earned by the No. 14 team points earned toPaul Menard's No. 15 team and the closure of the No. 13 team while releasingSterling Marlin andJoe Nemechek. The next day, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, a regular in theChamp Car World Series, returned after a prolonged absence by buying Robert Yates Racing NASCAR team, and renamed the combined operationYates/Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. With the announced retirement of Robert Yates, however, the merger was called off and the team was namedYates Racing with Robert's son Doug Yates at the helm. Another merger was announced on August 6 when former crew chiefRay Evernham announced the merger of his team, Evernham Motorsports, withGeorge N. Gillett Jr., owner of theNational Hockey League team theMontreal Canadiens and co-owner of theEnglish Premier League soccer teamLiverpool. The merger was similar to the Roush Fenway merger as the new team was calledGillett Evernham Motorsports. During the weekend of theSharp AQUOS 500,Hall of Fame Racing ownersTroy Aikman andRoger Staubach, former football players for theDallas Cowboys, announced their merger withMajor League Baseball'sArizona Diamondbacks CEOJeff Moorad and COOTom Garfinkel.^[4]Michael Waltrip Racing Holdings LLC, a company created as a 50–50 partnership betweenRobert Kauffman andMichael Waltrip, was announced the weekend of theBank of America 500 atLowe's Motor Speedway. Waltrip, a two-timeDaytona 500 winner, originally formed MWR in 1996.Cal Wells, himself a former owner in NASCAR was named the team's chief executive officer.

During the season rumors began to surface thatJoe Gibbs Racing, owned by then-Washington Redskins coachJoe Gibbs, would be switching to the new manufacturerToyota for the 2008 season. This switch would be significant for several reasons, one of them being that JGR had been allied withGeneral Motors since its inception in 1992, first withChevrolet then beginning in 1997 withPontiac, then switched back toChevrolet in 2003, a year beforePontiac leftNASCAR. The switch to Toyota would benefit the manufacturer itself, as they would be allied with a championship-caliber team. As JGR loans equipment to Hall of Fame Racing, the team confirmed that they would also switch to Toyota if JGR did so. On September 5, the rumors were confirmed.

During the race weekend for the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Michael Waltrip Racing held a press conference. During the announcement, besides the announcement of a new part-owner on Robert Kaufmann and Cal Wells being named CEO, it was revealed to the racing world that1999 Cup champion and three-timeDaytona 500 winnerDale Jarrett would retire from full-time driving following the end of the 2007 season. In2008, Jarrett drove in the first five points races, then handed the No. 44Toyota to David Reutimann for theGoody's Cool Orange 500. As Jarrett was the 1999 champion, entering the first five races, regardless of his previous standings, guaranteed his No. 44 in the field, as well as driving in theBudweiser Shootout and theNASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

Each Nextel Cup race had a field of 43 cars.

For the first five races of 2007, the top 35 teams in owners points (not drivers' points) in 2006 earned an exemption into each race. If a driver went to a new team, he did not have a guaranteed starting spot, but his old team did, except if that new team was an exempt team. If a past champion is not driving for an exempt team (outside the top 35 in owner points), he may be eligible to use a past champions' provisional to enter the race. The provisional guarantees a spot to the most recent champion not exempt, but those who are former champions will be limited to six for the entire 2007 season.

Teams not exempt must "race" their way in during qualifying – if 47 cars are attempting to make the race, and no one is using a provisional, then there are 12 cars racing for eight spots, and the eight fastest cars will make the race. (TheDaytona 500, which uses adifferent qualifying procedure, is the only exception to this rule, though the top 35 are still locked in.)

Starting with the sixth race in 2007, the top 35 teams were awarded exemptions for the next race.

List of the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series teams in 2007 (45 full-time).

• The 36 team usually driven by Jeremy Mayfield ran Infineon as the 23 with Butch Leitzinger behind the wheel. Mayfield's sponsor, 360 OTC, had an agreement with Bill Davis Racing andCaterpillar Inc. for the 36 to run as 23 with Leitzinger, because California is the home state of Caterpillar. The 36 would return the following race.

This non-points race, which involves the previous season's pole winners and pastShootout winners, was held on Saturday, February 10, atDaytona International Speedway officially kicking off Speedweeks. Two-time series championTony Stewart took the checkered flag, but as he did so,Dale Earnhardt Jr. made contact with the back bumper ofElliott Sadler, causing a five-car wreck less than 1000 feet from the start/finish line.

One of the biggest headlines for the Shootout was that it would be the first Nextel Cup race to featureToyota, and in the draw for starting spots,Dale Jarrett, a Toyota driver, drew the pole position. However, he slid to the back within four laps of the start, and stayed there for most of the race.Brian Vickers, the other Toyota driver in the event, started fourth, and though he went back-and-forth through the field, finished eighth.

Qualifying for the front row of the 2007Daytona 500 took place on February 11. Robert Yates Racing swept the front row with the No. 38 Ford Fusion of David Gilliland winning the pole and the No. 88 of teammate Ricky Rudd finishing second.

Rule-breaking tactics, however, swirled around the qualifying. Five teams were slapped withsuspensions, fines and points deductions for illegal modifications. The hardest hit was Michael Waltrip, whose No. 55 team was the most harshly punished, having their race director and crew chief suspended indefinitely, fined $100,000 (US) and the docking of 100 owners and drivers points for agelatin-like substance found in theintake manifold during inspections before the qualifying, and in a replacement manifold after qualifying. The substance was revealed by NASCAR, during the announcement of the penalties, to be an unspecifiedoxygenate compound that was blended with the fuel, possibly in an attempt to defeat the effect of therestrictor plate. Waltrip fired said crew chief for the unauthorized change that neither he or anyone else authorized. The No. 17 Matt Kenseth team of Roush Racing and the No. 9 Kasey Kahne team from Evernham Motorsports had their crew chiefs suspended for the first four races, fined $50,000 and had 50 driver and owner points taken away for illegal modifications discovered in post-qualifying inspections. All three teams also had their qualifying times for the pole positions disqualified, and Waltrip's original car was impounded by NASCAR, forcing him to go to a back-up auto for the first qualifying race.

Additionally, two other Evernham teams – the No. 10 ofScott Riggs and the No. 19 ofElliott Sadler – had their crew chiefs suspended for the first two races of the season, slapped with $25,000 fines and deductions of 25 owner and driver points. Unlike the other three teams, their times were allowed to stand and kept their starting positions for the qualifying doubleheader as those violations were found in pre-qualifying inspections.

Another story during Speedweeks was that 1966 Rookie of the YearJames Hylton would attempt to make his first cup race since 1993 in a car prepared byRichard Childress Racing.

Gilliland sat on the pole for the first of theGatorade Duel races on February 15, which establishes the starting order for the Super Bowl of NASCAR Racing, while Rudd was on the point for the second race, which both aired onSpeed as part of the new NASCAR TV package.

The race was hotly contested by many, with many stories abound. From Toyota attempting to emotionally rebound after Michael Waltrip's loss of not only his crew chief and VP of Competition, but also losing 100 driver and owner points. Other stories were Jeff Gordon's disqualification after winning his Gatorade Duel, and Tony Stewart's Speedweeks domination, attempting to win the Bud Shootout, the Duel, and the Daytona 500. The first few laps were incident free except for a spin by road racing veteran Boris Said. The race was dominated byTony Stewart andKurt Busch. Both combined for a total of 130 of 200 laps. However, with just under a quarter of the laps to go, Tony got loose in Turn 4 while Busch was unable to avoid Stewart and turned him into the wall in a crash that looked like the one that killedDale Earnhardt in 2001, exactly six years to that date. From that point on, it was a game of survival of the fastest as defending race winnerJimmie Johnson, outside polesitterRicky Rudd, and fan favoriteDale Earnhardt Jr. were taken out in incidents throughout the day. A red flag was brought out in a crash involving Jamie McMurray, Rudd, and Junior. At the time of the flag, Mark Martin, who had not won the Great American Race in 22 tries, was in the lead with his ex-teammates behind him. On the restart, everyone attempted to pass Mark on the low line, but he successfully blocked. However, charging up the outside wasKevin Harvick who came from 8th with half a lap to go to take the lead heading into the fourth turn. However, the Big One would finally occur on the last lap as Kyle Busch hit the apron and spun, causing a chain reaction crash. Despite the incidents, NASCAR officials did not freeze the field and let Harvick and Martin duke it out in the last hundred yards. In one of the closest 500s since the inaugural in 1959, Kevin Harvick passed Mark Martin to the stripe by 0.020 seconds, becoming the 31st different winner of the Great American Race.

TheAuto Club 500, NASCAR's second points race of the season, and what many people consider "the first real race of the season" (without therestrictor plates run at Daytona) was held atCalifornia Speedway on February 25. This race was the first run in Nextel Cup series history with unleaded gasoline, as all three major series began runningSunoco 260 GT Plus, a 104-octane (R+M/2) unleaded racing fuel, starting with this race.Jeff Gordon won his first pole of the season.Matt Kenseth swept the Busch and Cup Series races at Fontana, andToyota gained its first top-10 in the Nextel Cup Series.

TheUAW-DaimlerChrysler 400, NASCAR's third race of the season, was held at the newly refurbishedLas Vegas Motor Speedway on March 11.Kasey Kahne won the pole. This would be the final race with the UAW-DaimlerChrysler name; starting in 2008 after Daimler Benz sold off Chrysler, the race would be renamed the UAW-Dodge 400. This race marked the first time since the 1965 Firecracker 400 that the top 10 starters finished outside the top 10.

The fourth race of the season, theKobalt Tools 500, was held atAtlanta Motor Speedway on March 18.Ryan Newman won the pole, his seventh at Atlanta, but started 43rd after blowing an engine in Saturday practice.

The fifth race of the season, theFood City 500, was held atBristol Motor Speedway on March 25. the last before the fabled high banks were repaved with new concrete for the August race under the lights with progressive banking.

Jeff Gordon won the first CoT Pole Position in NASCAR history, but this race was the first race withoutJoe Nemechek participating in five years as he failed to qualify on speed as his No. 13Ginn Racing team missed the show. However,Jeremy Mayfield (Bill Davis Racing No. 36) andA. J. Allmendinger (Team Red Bull No. 84) both started their first race of the season.

TheGoody's Cool Orange 500, the sixth race of the season was held atMartinsville Speedway on April 1, as this race was the second race to feature the Car of Tomorrow and the first of the season to use the 2007 owners' points to lock in the top 35 teams for qualification.Denny Hamlin won the pole for this race, andJimmie Johnson was the race winner.

TheSamsung 500, the seventh race of the season was held atTexas Motor Speedway on April 15. Qualifying was cancelled due to a wild tornado outbreak and the field was set by current owners' points, as a resultJeff Gordon started from the pole. He finished a respectable fourth place, but the race was won on turn 2 of the final lap byJeff Burton, who overtookMatt Kenseth for the lead in a classy finish.

The eighth race of the season, theSubway Fresh Fit 500, was held atPhoenix International Raceway on April 21. This was the third race to feature the Car of Tomorrow, as well as the season's first night race.Jeff Gordon captured his third pole of the season, tying him for fourth on the all-time poles list withDarrell Waltrip. Near the end of the race, he pulled away fromTony Stewart, winning the race and tyingDale Earnhardt's 76 wins. In the eyes ofhis son, Jeff Gordon pulled a class act and drove a "Polish Victory Lap" with the flag of his father's famous No. 3, but fans of "The Intimidator" threw cans and bottles of beer on the track (mainly Earnhardt Jr.'s sponsor Budweiser), and were criticized by the driver of the No. 8 car in the post-race news conference.Tony Stewart, who was leading when Jeff Gordon passed him following a caution was so irate about the outcome (even going as far to criticize that NASCAR "fixed" races much likeprofessional wrestling on his satellite radio show later that week) blew off the mandatory appearance at the post-race media session, and was fined $10,000 (US) for doing so.

TheAaron's 499, the ninth race of the season, was held atTalladega Superspeedway on April 29.

The tenth race of the season, theCrown Royal presents the Jim Stewart 400, was scheduled to be held atRichmond International Raceway on May 5. This was the fourth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow. The race was named after Jim Stewart ofHouma, Louisiana who won an essay contest during the festivities leading up to the Daytona 500 sponsored byCrown Royal. The contest was so popular, it was repeated for the next four races at the track.Jeff Gordon captured his third straight pole by .01-second over second-place qualifierCarl Edwards.Dale Jarrett failed to qualify and missed his first Nextel Cup Race since the 1994fall race atNorth Wilkesboro Speedway.

TheDodge Avenger 500, NASCAR's eleventh race of the season, was held atDarlington Raceway on May 13. This was the fifth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow.Clint Bowyer won his first career pole when he earned the pole position in qualifying.

The race marked the 50th anniversary of the first Rebel 300, run onConfederate Memorial Day weekend. Ironically, like the inaugural Rebel exactly 50 years to the date of the rescheduled date, the 51st running of the "Rebel" was postponed because of rain itself. Unlike 1957, when Darlington Raceway president Bob Colvin was fined for racing on Sunday, a violation of South CarolinaBlue laws at that time, current regulations permit Sunday racing provided (1) the race was scheduled for greater than 250 miles or (2) if the race start was later than 1:30 pm. The 501.367-mile distance made the race legal on Sunday.

(The September 1983 Busch Series race at Darlington, held on a Sunday as the Southern 500 was held on Monday, was 250 miles because of the law. All other races at the track have been 200 miles on Friday or Saturday.)

Despite radiator problems, Jeff Gordon won his second Rebel, his first since 1996, when it was a 400-mile race.

This was also the first daytime race at Darlington since theCarolina Dodge Dealers 400 in March 2004.

The 23rd annualNextel Open and All-Star Challenge, the second and final non-points event of the season, was held atLowe's Motor Speedway on May 19. in the first rule changes since the "Survivor" theme was eliminated from the event (then known as The Winston) after the 2003 season.Matt Kenseth earned the pole for the main event, whileMartin Truex Jr. andJohnny Sauter overtook a fading pole sitterCarl Edwards to win the Nextel Open, andKenny Wallace (a/k/a "Herman the German") voted in by the fans, but it wasKevin Harvick in the end winning the final quarter over defending championJimmie Johnson and the $1 million first prize.

TheCoca-Cola 600, NASCAR's twelfth Nextel Cup race of the season, was held at Lowe's Motor Speedway on May 27. This is the longest race run by the Cup Series (600 miles) and marks the official one-third mark of the season.Penske Racing South teammatesRyan Newman andKurt Busch led a group of three Dodges to the green flag. One of the main factors of the 600 is not only the physical condition of the drivers, but the legend that Lowe's has of being an ever changing racetrack.

The "first phase" of the 600 was wild and crazy, with two cautions involving 21 cars in all. Fox commentatorDarrell Waltrip even said that the race had a higher attrition rate thanBristol. The first wreck saw five-time Lowe's winnerJimmie Johnson lose his tire tread and start a multi-car pileup behind him. The second crash was more spectacular. The car ofTony Raines got loose and turned the car ofJeff Gordon into the grass. As Gordon came back across the track, the oncoming car ofA. J. Allmendinger hit the right side door, jacking Gordon's car off the ground. Penske's dominance of the day would end in the night with a crash by Kurt Busch and a blown engine from Newman.Toyota, who had been struggling through the first third of the season, had only led a total of 15 laps. However, not only did both ofTeam Red Bull's cars make the race, butBrian Vickers carried the day for the manufacturer, leading 72 laps before power steering problems hit, but rallied for the marquee's first top five in Nextel Cup competition. Somehow, in the end, the longest race of the season would come down to who could go the longest on18+3⁄4 gallons of fuel.Casey Mears, who had not won in 154 previous attempts, snapped his losing streak and joined teammateJeff Gordon as well asMatt Kenseth,Bobby Labonte andDavid Pearson on the list of drivers who earned their first Cup win in the Coke 600. Mears went straight to Victory Lane after running out of fuel after crossing the finish line. The race also sawKyle Petty earn his first top 5 since theMBNA 400 atDover in 1997.

TheAutism Speaks 400 presented by Visa, the thirteenth race of the season, was held atDover International Speedway on June 4.Ryan Newman won his second consecutive pole. This was the sixth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow, as well as the last race broadcast byFox in 2007. The race also served as the halfway mark for the battle for entry into the 2007 Chase for the Nextel Cup. This race also marked the first time sinceDaytona thatMichael Waltrip raced on Sunday, or because of the rainout, a Monday. In a twist of irony, Waltrip's teammate,David Reutimann, who had out-qualified or bumped his boss from the field many times before, failed to qualify for his second consecutive race.Martin Truex Jr. won his first NASCAR Nextel Cup race, leading 216 of the 400 laps.

ThePocono 500, the fourteenth race of the season, was held atPocono Raceway on June 10.Ryan Newman earned his third consecutiveBudweiser Pole Award. In a delayed and postponed at lap 106 race,Jeff Gordon won his third Pocono 500.

TheCitizens Bank 400, the fifteenth race of the season, was held atMichigan International Speedway on June 17.J. J. Yeley won his first career pole, andCarl Edwards won his first race in 52 races. The race also sawMichael Waltrip, who has had a bad year since the Daytona qualifying fiasco, finish tenth in his No. 55Toyota.

TheToyota/Save Mart 350, NASCAR's sixteenth race of the season was held atInfineon Raceway on June 24. This was the seventh race to feature the Car of Tomorrow, and the first road course race of 2007. For the first time in two years,Jamie McMurray won the pole position.

Much of the race was dominated by road course expertRobby Gordon, whose self-owned No. 7 Ford dominated the field, leading 48 laps. Robby hoped to win his first race since 2003 (also on a road course). However, through all the twists and turns, fuel mileage came into play afterJoe Nemechek spun. Gordon's hopes were dashed when he was forced to make a pit stop for fuel. After his stop, the lead was given to McMurray, who had not won since 2002. However, McMurray would be chased by former-F1 driverJuan Pablo Montoya. Montoya passed McMurray (who was later forced to pit for a splash of fuel) with a few laps remaining and held offDaytona 500 winnerKevin Harvick to become the first Colombian born driver (and the third not to have been born in the USA) to win in a NASCAR Cup Series event. The win was even bigger for Montoya's car owner,Chip Ganassi who had struggled in previous years but would finally taste victory for the first time since 2002.

TheLenox Industrial Tools 300, the seventeenth race of the season and the eighth to feature the Car of Tomorrow, was held atNew Hampshire International Speedway on July 1.Dave Blaney won the pole, his second career pole and the first forToyota in Nextel Cup.

The Pepsi 400, NASCAR's eighteenth Nextel Cup race of the season, was held at Daytona International Speedway on July 7. The race officially marked the halfway point of the season. Coverage on TNT featured limited interruptions in a "wide open" production. In addition, this race was the last time the race was called the Pepsi 400, ending a 21-year sponsorship.Coca-Cola will gradually take over pouring rights at allISC-owned tracks starting with the Daytona Speedweeks events in February 2008, and as a result, the race will be renamed theCoke Zero 400.

The biggest news to come out of this race was qualifying.Boris Said in the No. 60 Ford was the fastest, but a rainstorm stopped the process, and under NASCAR rules, all cars must make a qualifying attempt before it is made official. Six other cars not in the top 35 in owners' points were following Said, but Jeff Gordon would be on the pole as time trials were rained out, and the field was set by the NASCAR rulebook based on owner points. Said would end up not even making the race because of this.

The race itself featured many twists and turns.Tony Stewart,Denny Hamlin, andDale Earnhardt Jr., some of the race favorites, were taken out early in a wreck. Eventually,Jamie McMurray, suffering a 166 race winless slump (since October 2002 atLowe's Motor Speedway), overcame a black flag penalty in the race and broke through to record his second career victory by only .005 seconds overKyle Busch, becoming tied for the second-closest finish in NASCAR history, the closest coming in 2003 whenRicky Craven edgedKurt Busch atDarlington Raceway by .002 seconds.

TheUSG Sheetrock 400, NASCAR's nineteenth race of the season was held atChicagoland Speedway on July 15.Casey Mears won the pole. Of note,John Andretti, subbing forKyle Petty who is currently in the TNT booth, qualified a surprise 9th, andMichael Waltrip made his fourth race of the season.Tony Stewart, who was in the midst of a 20-race winless streak and an altercation with teammateDenny Hamlin at Daytona, fended off challenges fromMatt Kenseth andJimmie Johnson to grab his first victory of the season. Additionally, on September 25, Chicagoland Speedway officials announced that starting in 2008, the event would become a Saturday night race.

TheAllstate 400 at the Brickyard, the twentieth Nextel Cup race of the season was held atIndianapolis Motor Speedway on July 29. It was the first Nextel Cup race to be broadcast byESPN since the 2000 NASCAR season when they carried theNAPA 500 from Atlanta. Additionally, this was the first time the Indianapolis event is scheduled for cable; the previous thirteen runnings of the race were broadcast on network television, either on ABC or NBC.Petty Enterprises driver and ownerKyle Petty made his 800th career NNCS start at the Brickyard. For the second consecutive year, rain washed out the Friday practice sessions, so there was one practice session and qualifying on Saturday, withReed Sorenson claiming his first career pole. In addition, Toyota scored another top ten, with driverDave Blaney finishing ninth, the best Toyota result sinceBrian Vickers finished fifth during theCoca-Cola 600.

ThePennsylvania 500, the twenty-first NNCS race of the season, was held at Pocono Raceway on August 5.Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first pole since 2002.Robby Gordon was taken out of the race by NASCAR officials after an incident in theBusch Series race in Montréal that led to his disqualification, and was replaced in the No. 7 car byP. J. Jones. The race was won byKurt Busch, dominating by leading all but 25 of the 200 laps.

The twenty-second race of the season, theCenturion Boats at The Glen, was held atWatkins Glen International on August 12. This was the ninth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow, and was the second and final road course race of the season.

In the race, Jeff Gordon, who had been given the pole position due to the cancellation of qualifying due to rain, led the most laps, but Tony Stewart, who was in the lead when he spun out heading into turn one on Lap 45 of the 90-lap event, capitalized on the same error by Jeff Gordon with two laps remaining and wins his third race out of the last four. With his win, Stewart scored his 4th Watkins Glen victory, putting him in a tie with Jeff Gordon as the all-time NASCAR winner at the historical racetrack. In 2009 however, Stewart would pass Gordon as the all-time winner when he went on to win his 5th Watkins Glen race. As of 2020, that record still stands. Also with his win in that race,Tony Stewart scored his 6th career road course win, putting him in a 4-way tie for 2nd in all-time road course wins withBobby Allison,Rusty Wallace, &Ricky Rudd. As of 2020 however, Tony Stewart is now in 2nd place with 8 road course wins, as Jeff Gordon currently holds the all-time record with 9 wins.

The race though was marred by an incident started by Martin Truex Jr. when he tapped Juan Pablo Montoya which chain reacted into Kevin Harvick and sent both Montoya and Harvick into a spin and a subsequent multi-car pileup which caused a red flag. Both Montoya and Harvick then got out of their cars and had a shoving match ending when Jeff Burton and officials separated the two drivers. Even though it was clear that Montoya was not at fault, Harvick blamed his accident on Montoya and threatened to "kick his ass." For that comment and his part in the feud, Kevin Harvick was put on indefinite probation by NASCAR because he violated the warning NASCAR gave him after intentionally crashingScott Pruett at Montreal the previous week and later winning.

The3M Performance 400, the twenty-third race of the season was scheduled to be held at Michigan International Speedway on August 19. The race sponsor moved from the June race to the August race in 2007.Jeff Gordon earned his sixth pole of the season, edging outGreg Biffle in the last qualifying attempt of the day.

The twenty-fourth race of the season, theSharpie 500, was held at the repavedBristol Motor Speedway on August 25. This was the tenth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow. In addition, this race was run on a reconfigured track where the infamous 36-degree high banks have been replaced by "progressively banked" turns between 24 and 30 degrees.Kasey Kahne won the pole. Carl Edwards won the race and held off Kahne, who led 305 laps, while Edwards led 182 laps, giving Ford their first CoT victory.

The twenty-fifth race of the season, theSharp AQUOS 500, was held at California Speedway on September 2.Kurt Busch won the pole. His brother,Kyle Busch, dominated the race for 97 of 250 laps. However, it was his teammate,El Cajon nativeJimmie Johnson, who won the race.

The twenty-sixth and final race of the "regular" season, theChevy Rock & Roll 400, was held at Richmond International Raceway on September 8. This was the eleventh race to feature the Car of Tomorrow.Jimmie Johnson won the pole and the race. It was his sixth victory of the year, which meant that he starts the Chase at the top of the points.Bobby Labonte made his 500th career start.

All ten of the races in the 2007 Chase for the Nextel Cup were broadcast on ABC. The ten races were evenly split between the regular stock car and the Car of Tomorrow, with the CoT running at New Hampshire, Dover, Talladega, Martinsville and Phoenix.

The first race of the 2007 Chase for the Nextel Cup, theSylvania 300, was held atNew Hampshire International Speedway on September 16. This was the twelfth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow. Clint Bowyer won the pole and entered the Chase as the only driver without a win. However, he would dominate the field, leading for 222 of 300 laps en route to his first career victory in 64 starts.

All 43 cars that started the race were running at the finish, the first time sinceNorth Wilkesboro in 1996 that every car starting the race finished.

The second race of the 2007 Chase was theDodge Dealers 400, which was held at Dover International Speedway on September 23. This was the thirteenth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow.Jimmie Johnson won his second pole of the season. Carl Edwards scored his third win of the season.

The third race of the 2007 Chase was theLifeLock 400, and was held atKansas Speedway on September 30.Jimmie Johnson won the pole. For the second consecutive race, due to a crash in happy hour Jimmie had to start in the 43rd position, half of the Chase drivers struggled. Jeff Burton was sent to the "back of the longest line" for a rule violation during the first red flag for rain when he pulled on the right front fender, in a repeat ofFendergate, as NASCAR prohibits working on the cars during the red flag.Greg Biffle won the race after two rain delays shortened the event to 210 laps.

The fourth race of the 2007 Chase, theUAW-Ford 500, was held at Talladega Superspeedway on October 7. This was the fourteenth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow, but it was the first to use them withrestrictor plates. Also, gear restrictions, which have not been used at restrictor plate races, but have been in use at other races since 2005, was also used for the first time at the track.Michael Waltrip won the pole, the second one forToyota this season. Seven of the top ten cars were Toyotas.Jacques Villeneuve made his debut, whileSam Hornish Jr. went home again. In fact, the top eight speeds were from "go or go home" teams, as the next three highest speeds were locked out of the race by other teams that were not locked into the top 35 teams in the owners' points.

Jeff Gordon earned his 80th career victory and the points lead with a last lap charge on teammateJimmie Johnson, sweeping bothTalladega races of the season and bringing his total victories at the track to six. Third-placedDave Blaney gave Toyota their best finish of the season to date. This would be the last race to be raced under the UAW-Ford 500 banner. Starting in 2008, the race would be known as theAMP Energy 500.

The fifth race of the 2007 Chase, theBank of America 500, was held at Lowe's Motor Speedway on October 13, and was the only Saturday night race in the Chase schedule.Ryan Newman won his fifth pole of the year, and swept both poles atLowe's Motor Speedway. The biggest surprise was that Brian Vickers, who drove to a top-five finish in the spring race, failed to make the field. After five consecutive DNF's at Lowe's, Jeff Gordon overcame a fuel issue, holding off Clint Bowyer and soon to be ex-teammate Kyle Busch for his first Charlotte victory since 1999. This race marked the 22nd and final time in his career that Jeff Gordon won back-to-back races. This race also featured Ned Jarrett as a guest on broadcasting, being his first broadcast experience since Atlanta in 2000.

• This was the last time the 24 won back to back until 2023 where William Byron won back to back races. This also the last time Jeff Gordon won back to back races too.

The sixth race of the 2007 Chase, theSubway 500, was held at Martinsville Speedway on October 21. This was the fifteenth race to feature the Car of Tomorrow.Jeff Gordon won the pole andJimmie Johnson won the race.

The seventh race of the 2007 Chase, thePep Boys Auto 500, was held at Atlanta Motor Speedway on October 28.Greg Biffle won his first pole of the season andJimmie Johnson won his eighth race of the season.

The eighth race of the 2007 Chase, theDickies 500, was held at Texas Motor Speedway on November 4.Martin Truex Jr. won his first career pole.Jimmie Johnson won his third race in a row and ninth in the season, and took the point lead.

The ninth and penultimate race of the 2007 chase, theChecker Auto Parts 500, was held at Phoenix International Raceway on November 11. This was the sixteenth and final 2007 race to feature the Car of Tomorrow.Carl Edwards won the pole, andJimmie Johnson won both his 10th race of the season and fourth consecutive race. Johnson became the 1st driver since teammateJeff Gordon to score both 10 victories in a single season, and 4 consecutive wins. Both accomplishments by Gordon came in the same season as well, back in 1998. As of 2021, Johnson is the last driver to accomplish four consecutive victories. He would be the last driver to win 10 races in a single season until future Hendrick Motorsports driverKyle Larson pulled it off 14 seasons later in 2021; with the 2010s became the 1st decade in NASCAR history that a driver failed to either score 10 victories in a single season, or win 4 consecutive races.Jeff Gordon tiesDale Jarrett for the Modern Era record of most Top 10 finishes in a single season with 29. Jarrett accomplished that feat in his Championship season in 1999.

The 2007 Nextel Cup season came to a close with the final race of the 2007 season atHomestead-Miami Speedway on November 18. The race observed two lasts: The last use of the fourth-generation car introduced in 1992, since the Car of Tomorrow would be used full-time in 2008, and the last race under the Nextel Cup banner. Sprint assumed the title sponsorship starting with the2008 Daytona 500.Jimmie Johnson won his fourth pole of the season.Matt Kenseth dominated, leading 214 laps en route to his second win of 2007, and Johnson finished seventh, clinching the championship by 77 points over teammateJeff Gordon. Gordon breaks out of a tie withDale Jarrett and finished out the 2007 season with 30 top 10 finishes. As of 2023, this is a NASCAR Modern Era record. Jarrett accomplished 29 top 10 finishes in his Championship season in 1999.

(key) Bold - Pole position awarded by time.Italics - Pole position set by owner's points standings. * – Most laps led.