6 NFL legends that made the drive over to NASCAR
Running backs and receivers are nowhere to be found, but speed still dominates Sundays despite the NFL's absence thanks to NASCAR.
A week after a local Super Bowl champion was crowned in Los Angeles, NASCAR hosted its own high-profile festivities 36 hours away, opening its 2022 premier Cup Series season with the annual running of the Daytona 500. Commonly referred to as the "Super Bowl of Motorsports," the race ended in a pulse-pounding finale that featured rookie Austin Cindric holding off Bubba Wallace to secure his first career Cup Series victory on the final lap of the 500-mile event.
A PHOTO FINISH IN THE #DAYTONA500!
AUSTIN CINDRIC WINS! https://t.co/abobUxgbRa
While the two sides constantly battle each for views during the fall, there's been a fair share of crossing over from the gridiron to the asphalt. Sunday's race, for example, featured accomplished NFL defender Charles Woodson serving as the grand marshal. Other legends of the game, however, have opted to take a more direct role in the proceedings...
Which NFL stars have moved over to NASCAR?
#1 - Troy Aikman/Roger Staubach
With 179 wins and five Super Bowl triumphs between them — all coming with the Dallas Cowboys-branded star on their helmets — Aikman and Staubach made for a perfect pair to lead a new winning group further.
The two were among the principal owners of Hall of Fame Racing, along with accomplished Trans-Am driver Bill Saunders, which debuted the No. 96 Chevrolet in 2006. Alas, their collaboration did not yield further titles.
The group earned respectable results in its debut year with former Cup Series champion Terry Labonte splitting the ride with Tony Raines, but they failed to build on that momentum. Aikman and Staubach eventually left the team in September 2008, by which point the No. 96 had switched to racing Toyotas and was hosting several different drivers (including future Cup Series champion Joey Logano) behind its wheel. Without the backing of its aerial legends, the team folded in 2009.
A 12/10 command from @NFL legend Terry Bradshaw!
Engines are fired at @TXMotorSpeedway! @NASCAR is NEXT on NBCSN! https://t.co/sZJnbkqNbg
#2- Terry Bradshaw
Rest assured, those who are winning "Terry's money" in Fox Sports' new betting contests aren't denying the four-time Super Bowl champion funds toward his NASCAR team.
Bradshaw enlisted championship pedigree when he embarked on a racing endeavor with former Vanderbilt linebacker Armando Fitz, the son-in-law of longtime owner Felix Sabates. Among the drivers in the FitzBradshaw Racing stable in the NASCAR Busch Series (now known as the Xfinity Series, serving as the equivalent of AAA-baseball) were Kerry Earnhardt (the oldest of the late NASCAR legend Dale) and Sterling Marlin (a two-time Daytona 500 champion).
Bradshaw and Fitz's collaboration also yielded a single start in the premier Cup Series, with four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday Jr. driving the No. 83 Chevrolet at Phoenix in 2002.