The Top 5 Worst Drivers in the History of Roush Fenway Racing


The Top 5 Worst Drivers in the History of Roush Fenway Racing
An Article by Brian Cotnoir

So this is a new series I’m going to be starting, the premise is simple I will be counting down the 5 Worst Drivers on various NASCAR teams (Past and Present).  Now just to clarify, I’m not necessarily saying these drivers are all bad.  In Many instances these drivers have had some moderate success in a lower tier form of NASCAR or another form of racing like Indy Car, USAC, Formula 1, or ARCA, but for whatever reason they had little to no success with certain teams; maybe it was the drivers fault, maybe it was a clash with the crew chief or owner, maybe they were just hired to drive because they brought sponsorship to the table, or maybe they just had rotten luck, whatever it is these drivers did not have a lot of success driving for Roush Fenway Racing.

#5.) Johnny Benson

Johnny Benson is a Champion in NASCAR’s Busch (Now Xfinity) Series and the Camping World (now Gander Outdoors) Truck Series, but never managed to find the same success at Roush Fenway Racing.  In 2 full seasons at Roush, he showed some early signs of potential, scoring three Top 5’s in his first season with the team, but really struggled with the team as they went on and struggled to break the Top 20.  His second season with the team was even worst and finished a dismal 28th in the final points.  Benson ended his career at Roush with 0 Wins and an average point’s finish of 24th.


#4.) Wally Dallenbach Jr.

Wally Dallenbach Jr. was a champion driver in the Trans-Am series, but his transition to NASCAR did not yield the same success.  Like Benson, Dallenbach also ran 2 full seasons for Roush.  His only Top 5’s with the team came at Watkins Glen,  where he scored a career best 2nd place in 1993, losing out on the win to teammate Mark Martin.  It’s clear why Dallenbach wasn’t a great driver in NASCAR, he was a road course ringer, and couldn’t get it on the Ovals and Super Speedways that NASCAR ran.  Wally, I’m glad you had more success as a commentator on NBC; that is where you truly shine.

Stick to Commentating, Wally

#3.) Kevin Lepage

Kevin Lepage ran a little over 2 seasons for Roush in the #16 Ford.  Each year at Roush he finished worst in the points than the year before, his average points finish was 26th,  he wasn’t competing for wins,  and after he was released from the team they would go on to hire Greg Biffle to drive the car and he would lead the #16 team at Roush to its most successful years.



#2.)  Chad Little

Jack Roush bought Chad Little’s 97 team and made him apart of the Roush Stable at a time when Roush was entering 4-5 cars a race.  Little was a former Busch Series winner, but couldn’t cut it at NASCAR’s top level in Winston Cup.  His best finish was a 2nd at Texas Motor Speedway in 1998 (a race which he also lost to teammate Mark Martin).   At this time Roush, had 2 successful drivers—Mark Martin and Jeff Burton—and Little couldn’t compete with him.  He would eventually be replaced with driver Kurt Busch who would lead the 97 team to it’s first win ever and the 2004 Championship.

Still the Coolest Paint Scheme ever in NASCAR

#1.) Trevor Bayne

I’ll admit that he probably pulled the biggest upset win in the history of NASCAR at the 2011 Daytona 500, but that was with the Wood Brothers.  Yes, Roush Fenway Racing was on a down swing in the Cup Series back when he drove for the team, but he wasn’t anything to get too excited about before then either.  He was so unpopular that he got dropped from his Nationwide team due to lack of sponsorship and if it wasn’t for that upset win in the Daytona 500, I don’t think Jack Roush would have brought Trevor Bayne back to the Nationwide Series to replace Ricky Stenhouse Jr.  In the Cup Series, Bayne ran in the back of field with the likes of Danica Patrick, Travis Kvapil, and David Gilliland.   He never won a race at Roush in the Cup Series and was performing so badly last year that they had to talk Matt Kenseth out of retirement to run a part-time schedule for the team.  He has since been dropped by the team and replaced by Ryan Newman in the #6 car.  One word comes to mind when I think of Trevor Bayne; Bust!

They all can't be winners, Jack.



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