2014 Driver Reviews: No. 18 Jamie McMurray

After doing exit interviews for Sprint Cup Series drivers in 2013, we’re turning the tables. We want the drivers to sell themselves. So here are the resumés for all full-time Sprint Cup Series drivers in 2014. Then, at the end, we’ll provide a summation of the driver’s season in 150 words or less.

Name: Jamie McMurray

NASCAR Experience: 12+ seasons in the Sprint Cup Series. Seven wins. Eight wins in the Nationwide Series too.

Most recent team: Chip Ganassi Racing

Most recent season finish: 18th

2014 accomplishments: Seven top five finishes and two pole positions. Started first at at Sonoma and Martinsville. Finished third at Charlotte in the fall and fourth at Sonoma, Richmond and New Hampshire.

Most memorable moment: Won a race. Yeah, screw you and your technicalities that it wasn’t a points race and wasn’t worth anything for the Chase. It paid $1 million REAL DOLLARS. And caused real tears.

Strengths: Potentially the fastest driver week-to-week in the high groove at a track. Showed speed at all types of tracks in 2014.

2015 goals: Win a race that pays real dollars and real points to make the Chase.

FTM’s Take: You can make the argument that this was McMurray’s second-best Cup season. Yeah, he didn’t win a points-paying race, but he led 368 laps, a career high. Yes, that’s 22 more laps than he led in 2010, when he won the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and at Charlotte.

And if there was no Chase, McMurray would have been 14th, tied for his fourth-best points finish. Instead, he had to settle for the second-best driver who didn’t make the Chase. McMurray and Kyle Larson should make a formidable tandem at CGR for the foreseeable future. They just have to win races to get into the Chase.

Previous reviews: No. 19 Clint Bowyer, No. 20, Austin Dillon, No. 21 Paul Menard, No. 22 Brian Vickers, No. 23 Marcos Ambrose, No. 24 Martin Truex Jr., No. 25 Tony Stewart, No. 26 Casey Mears, No. 27 Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 28, Danica Patrick, No. 29, Justin Allgaier, No. 30, David Gilliland, No. 31 Cole Whitt, No. 32 David Ragan, No. 33 Michael Annett, No. 34 Reed Sorenson, No. 35 Alex Bowman