Cup Series drivers to win five times in seven-race span

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Kyle Larson’s incredible finish to the 2021 season — which culminated with him winning the NASCAR Cup Series championship — bled over into the start of 2022. Larson’s captivating win at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday made it five wins in the past seven races dating back to last year. It’s exclusive company: only nine drivers have won five times in a seven-race span since the Modern Era began in 1972. Read on to see the full list.

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Bobby Allison, 1972

The first year of the Modern Era saw Allison win 10 races and finish runner-up to Richard Petty for the championship. His five wins in a seven-race span were part of a larger stretch of 10 consecutive top-three finishes.

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David Pearson, 1973

Pearson ran part-time in 1973, winning 11 times in 18 starts. He won five consecutive races he entered during a seven-race stretch on the schedule.

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Richard Petty, 1974

Petty won three consecutive races at Atlanta, Pocono and Talladega, finished second at Michigan and 35th at Darlington, then won the next two races at Richmond and Dover.

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Richard Petty, 1975

Petty won 13 of 30 races in 1975, claiming his sixth title. Five of those wins came in race Nos. 3-9, putting him atop the points standings — where he’d stay all year.

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Cale Yarborough, 1976

Yarborough cemented the 1976 title with a run that reached the “five in seven” status late in the year, including four consecutive wins down the stretch.

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Dale Earnhardt, 1987

Earnhardt’s best career statistical season included a stretch of six wins in the opening eight races of the year, including four in a row at Darlington, North Wilkesboro, Bristol and Martinsville.

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Rusty Wallace, 1988-89

Wallace’s late push for the 1988 title yielded four wins in the final five races (but no title). Like Kyle Larson most recently, Wallace then won the second race of the following season.

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Jeff Gordon, 1998

Gordon’s streak actually was seven wins in a nine-race stretch in one of the best seasons in the Modern Era. That stretch started with a win at Sonoma on June 28 and ran through Darlington on Sept. 6. He finished runner-up three consecutive races after that and would close the year with two consecutive wins. All told, Gordon rattled off 17 consecutive top fives.

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Tony Stewart, 2005

Stewart’s five wins in 2005 came in a seven-race stretch, bookended by wins at Sonoma and Watkins Glen. Stewart would go on to win his second championship and bolster his reputation as a driver that heats up during the summer months.

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Kyle Larson, 2021-22

Larson won three consecutive races down the stretch of the 2021 playoffs, placed 14th at Martinsville and then won the championship at Phoenix. His 2022 win at Auto Club came in the second race of the season and first points-paying race with the Next Gen’s 670 horsepower configuration.