Carl Edwards Jr., in a four cylinder race car in Missouri at the age of 13 years old. In 1994, Edwards won four feature races running on the tracks around Missouri and Illinois in the four-cylinder series. In the next two seasons, he collected 14 additional feature victories in four cylinder cars.
It was in 1997, that Carl Edwards switched over to the dirt circuits of Missouri to come in the NASCAR Dirt modified division. In 1998, he won Rookie of the Year honors in the modified division at Capital Speedway in Holt Summit, Mo. In 1999, he started to race in the Dirt Late Model division at Capital Speedway, he put together 13 feature wins in the modifieds on the way to another track championship.
It wasn't until 2002 that he got the chance to race in the big leagues. MB Motorsports, who had fellow Missouri native Jamie McMurray before put Edwards in for seven races that year, with his best finish being a 7th place finish that season. In 2003, Jack Roush gave him the chance to shine and he wasn't about to let him down. He won the Raybestos Rookie of the Year crown and finished eighth in the standings. He scored three wins, one pole, 13 top-five finishes, 15 top-ten finishes.
In 2004, he kicked the season off with a bang by winning the season opening Florida Dodge Dealers 250 at Daytona in dominant fashion, one that will be remembered for his 120 mph ride down road to save from being in an accident. Edwards won at his home track Kansas Speedway in July, and at Bristol in August. In early August, Jack Roush put him behind the wheel of the No. 99 Ford Taurus after Jeff Burton departed from the team. Edwards' debut at Michigan in the car came as a surprise with a tenth place finish. He finished fourth overall in the Truck Series standings, along with a best third place Nextel Cup Series finish of 3rd at Atlanta.
In 2005, Edwards won both of his series' first wins for Nextel Cup and the NASCAR Busch Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March. He was named Rookie of the Year in the Busch Series, while taking home five wins, four poles, 15 top-fives, and 21 top-10 finishes in 34 starts. He collected four wins, 13 top-fives, and 18 top-ten finishes while finishing third in the Nextel Cup standings, just 35 points shy of winning the title.
In 2006, Carl Edwards went winless on the Nextel Cup Series side, finishing 11th in the standings. On the Busch Series circuit, Edwards scored four wins, three poles, 15 top-fives, and 25 top-ten finishes while finishing second in the standings to Kevin Harvick.
Edwards was able to rebound in 07'. He won his first NASCAR championship in the No. 60 Scotts Ford Fusion while winning leading the standings 33 consecutive weeks. Edwards put in four wins, 15 top-fives, and 21 top-tens, on the way to claiming the title that season. He won the title by 618 points and was the second for his car owner Jack Roush. Edwards rebounded on the Cup side, winning 3 events, and finishing ninth in the points standings, with 11 top-fives, 15 top-tens.
2008 was a career season for Edwards. He won nine Sprint Cup Series events, finished 2nd in the standings. Edwards won 3 of the last 4 races in the season, however, came up short on Jimmie Johnson by 69 points. He finished the season with a season and personal high nine wins, 19 top-five finishes, 27 top-tens. On the Nationwide circuit, Edwards finished 2nd in the standings as well. He came up 21 points shy of winning the title, Edwards finished off the season with seven wins, 4 poles, 19 top-five finishes, and 22 top-tens. He won the Tag Heuer Top Racecar Driver of the Year Award and the NMPA voted him the Richard Petty driver of the year, he was also the choice for 2008 NASCAR.com Driver of the Year.
Carl Edwards struggled through much of the 2009 season and didn't score a single win in Sprint Cup, however, he did make the Chase. In 2010, it looked to be another one of those seasons as Edwards and his crew struggled to find the right setup for the first three quarters of the season, until the final two races of the season when they dominated at Phoenix and Homestead and rallied late to finish fourth in the points standings, in 2011 Edwards will look to continue his momentum in Sprint Cup after those two great wins. |
