3 NASCAR crew chiefs who hold the most championship titles

The success of racing is highly dependent on a good driver-crew chief relationship. While NASCAR drivers are the ones in the limelight, crew chiefs with support from their mechanics and engineers play an important role behind the curtain running the show and making it happen.

A crew chief directly communicates with the driver, calling the shots during the race, if and when required. With a great understanding of technical knowledge and experience, they guide the path for the racers by making strategic calls. In-race strategies like pit stops, tire changes, and refueling matter a great deal in turning the outcome in their favor. However, only a few crew chief-driver partnerships have found significant triumphs in NASCAR history, and fewer still have earned the Cup Series championships for their team.

Let's take a look at three crew chiefs who hold the most NASCAR Cup championship titles.

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#3 Kirk Shelmerdine

The 2023 NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductee Kirk Shelmerdine earned his first victory as a crew chief when he joined Richard Childress Racing. He earned his first Cup victory with Ricky and Rudd before joining NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, with whoom he won four titles.

At a very young age, Shelmerdine went on to clinch his first championship title with Earnhardt in 1986. They also won the Cup series title in 1987, 1990, and 1991. Moreover, in 1987, Shelmerdine secured 11 wins in a single season, as part of 46 wins in his 16-year-long career. After retiring in 1992, the youngest-ever crew chief to win a championship went on to pursue a career in stock car racing.

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#2 Chad Knaus

Chad Knaus made a name for himself as the crew chief for Jimmie Johnson and the #48 team in Hendrick Motorsports. The driver-crew chief duo was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2024. Knaus won the Cup series title seven times.

Before joining HMS as vice president of competitions, Knaus made history by winning the NASCAR championship five consecutive times, in a total of seven with Johnson. With a total of 81 Cup wins, the Johnson-Knaus duo is among the most productive partnerships in NASCAR history. Knaus last competed with William Byron, and claimed his 82nd and last triumph in 2020.

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#1 Dale Inman

The most successful crew chief in NASCAR history, Dale Inman, has the most number of victories,193, to his name, and an astounding eight Cup Series championships. His last championship title was with Terry Labonte in 1984.

With more than three decades of experience, Inman was profoundly famous in partnership with NASCAR legend Richard Petty, with whom he claimed seven titles and 188 wins. Moreover, the duo holds the record of winning the Daytona 500 seven times. Inducted in the class of 2012 NASCAR Hall of Fame, Inman retired in 1998 and continued to work with Petty Enterprises.