Voting is officially over, and NASCAR has announced the 2024 Hall of Fame inductees.
First up, the recipient of the Landmark Award is Janet Guthrie. A true trailblazer in motorsports, she became the first woman to compete in the Daytona 500 in 1977. That same year, she also raced in the Indianapolis 500.
Guthrie was the first woman to lead a lap in the NASCAR Cup Series, and across her 33 career Cup starts, she earned five top-10 finishes. Her best result came at Bristol in 1977, where she finished sixth. She broke barriers for women in racing, proving they could be just as competitive.
Next, the pioneer ballot inductee for 2024 is Donnie Allison, famously part of the Alabama Gang. His achievements include being the 1967 Cup Series Rookie of the Year and winning the World 600 in 1970. Just six days later, he followed that with a fourth-place finish in the Indy 500—the best finish ever for a driver attempting double duty in the Coca-Cola 600 and Indy 500.
Of course, Donnie Allison is perhaps best remembered for the 1979 Daytona 500. This race was historic as the first live, start-to-finish superspeedway race televised on a major network. The dramatic on-track crash between Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough, followed by a brawl involving the Allison brothers and Yarborough, became one of the most iconic moments in NASCAR history and a defining moment in sports broadcasting.
Finally, the modern-era ballot inductees: Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus.
Chad Knaus joined Hendrick Motorsports in 1993 as a fabricator on Jeff Gordon’s team. Everything changed in 2002 when he became the crew chief for rookie Jimmie Johnson. After just 13 races together, Johnson earned his first Cup Series win at Auto Club Speedway. In over 17 years of partnership, the duo collected 81 wins together leading Knaus to remain as the only crew chief in NASCAR history to guide a driver to five consecutive championships. He continues to serve as Hendrick Motorsports’ Vice President of Competition.
As for Jimmie Johnson, he finished his career with 83 Cup Series wins, including two Daytona 500s, two Southern 500s, four Brickyard 400s, four Coca-Cola 600s, and seven All-Star Race victories. Johnson is one of only three seven-time champions in NASCAR history, winning five consecutive titles—a feat that may never be matched. Beyond his on-track accomplishments, he has been a tremendous ambassador for the sport and now serves as a part-owner of Legacy Motor Club, fielding the No. 42 and No. 43 cars.
Interestingly, the vote was not unanimous for the seven-time champion to enter the Hall of Fame. Donnie Allison received 53% of the votes, just ahead of Banjo Matthews. Chad Knaus earned 81% of the vote, while Jimmie Johnson received 93%, meaning four voters did not select Johnson for induction.
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