NASCAR's Best Single Seasons of the 1980's

When fans think of the 1980's, Dale Earnhardt and Darrell Waltrip immediately come to mind as drivers who experienced superb seasons. While they combined to win six championships in the 1980's, other drivers also enjoyed dominant seasons.

Dale Earnhardt (1987)

Earnhardt and Richard Childress became quite the duo in the mid-to-late 1980's. After winning the title in 1986, they backed it up with a phenomenal 1987 campaign. Earnhardt won six of the first eight races. This streak included a four-consecutive winning streak. Earnhardt would end the season with a total of 11 victories in only 29 starts. He ran away with the Winston Cup championship, winning by a sizeable margin of 489 points over rival Bill Elliott. Earnhardt's brash and aggressive style rubbed many competitors and fans the wrong way. He became the driver fans loved to love or loved to hate. He developed several rivalries en route to his third championship.

29 races; 11 wins; 21 top 5 finishes; 24 top 10 finishes; 1 pole; 3,357 laps led

Darrell Waltrip (1981)

Waltrip supplanted Cale Yarborough in the No. 11 Junior Johnson-owned Buick in 1981, and picked up where his predecessor left off. Waltrip was a perfect fit for Johnson's team, as he racked up four wins in the season's first eight races. Waltrip, widely known as "Jaws" due to his frequent trash talking, was a villain in the eyes of the majority of the fans. Needless to say, fans did not initially enjoy the dominance the 'Dew Crew' displayed in 1981. Waltrip amassed 12 wins, just one shy of the record held by Richard Petty in 1975. Despite Waltrip's dominance in 1981, he had to fend off Bobby Allison for the Winston Cup championship, only winning by a slight margin of 53 points.

31 races; 12 wins; 21 top 5 finishes; 25 top 10 finishes; 11 poles; 2,517 laps led

Bill Elliott (1985)

Elliott did not win the championship in 1985, but his season will forever be etched in the record books. He won 11 races, all on the speedway facilities. He also clinched 10 poles. Victories included the Daytona 500, the Winston 500 at Talladega, and the Southern 500 at Darlington. He became the first driver to win the Winston Million by winning three out of four crown jewel events. His win at Talladega featured a comeback of historic proportions. Elliott made up two laps under green flag conditions on the 2.66-mile facility. It was clear that Elliott and his Harry Melling-owned team had some tricks up their sleeves on the super speedways. His Ford Thunderbird was a rocket ship. If only Elliott could have avoided a late-season plunge that allowed Waltrip to grab the title, this may have been the most impressive single-season of NASCAR's modern era.

28 races; 11 wins; 16 top 5 finishes; 18 top 10 finishes; 10 poles; 1,920 laps led

Darrell Waltrip (1982)

Waltrip followed up his extraordinary 1981 campaign with another dozen victories in the win column. He won five of the first 10 races of the 1982 season, verifying that the previous season was no fluke. However, wily veteran Allison continued to pester Waltrip throughout his championship chase. Waltrip was able to edge out his veteran foe by a margin of 72 points. Waltrip won 24 of 61 races in 1981 and 1982, becoming the ascendant force in NASCAR in the early 1980's.

30 races: 12 wins; 17 top 5 finishes; 20 top 10 finishes; 7 poles; 3,027 laps led

Bobby Allison (1983)

Allison was the best driver in NASCAR never to win a Winston Cup title for most of the 1970's and early 1980's. That all changed when he finally earned the elusive title by edging out rival Waltrip in 1983. In 1981 and 1982, the flamboyant Waltrip denied the popular veteran of his first Winston Cup trophy. In 1983, Allison finally captured the accolade that eluded him after nearly two decades in the sport. He won six races en route to his first and only championship. He won the title by a mere 47 points over none other than Waltrip.

30 races; 6 wins; 18 top 5 finishes; 25 top 10 finishes; 0 poles; 1,755 laps led

Honorable mentions include Dale Earnhardt (1980); Bill Elliott (1988); Rusty Wallace (1989); Darrell Waltrip (1985); Bobby Allison (1982); Dale Earnhardt (1986); Bobby Allison (1981); Tim Richmond (1986); Darrell Waltrip (1989); Cale Yarborough (1980); Rusty Wallace (1988); Terry Labonte (1984)

Resource:Racing-Reference.info