A native of Grand Rapids Mich., Johnny Benson is a three-time rookie of the year, winning the honor in the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series in 1990, the Busch Series in 1994 and the Winston Cup Series in 1995.
In 2004, Benson will drive the No. 09 Phoenix Racing Dodge for car owner James Finch in at least eight races. Benson, who lost his ride in the No. 10 Vavoline pontiac (Now Chevy) in 2003, will possibly run some Busch races also in 2004.
Benson finally ended the quest for his first career Winston Cup victory in 2002 when he took the checkered flag in the Pop Secret 400 at Rockingham, a goal that took him 226 starts to realize.
The year did not start off promisingly at all for Benson. He struggled with injuries in 2002, twice having to sit out after injuring his ribs -- once in a Busch Series crash at Richmond and the second time in a Winston Cup wreck at Daytona.
Despite missing five races, Benson managed to post seven top-10 finishes, earning himself a multi-year contract extension with MB2 Motorsports, his team since 2000, when they nearly won the Daytona 500 in an unsponsored car fielded by Tyler Jet Motorsports. Midway through the year, MB2 purchased Tyler Jet's assets. In 2001, Valvoline became an equal partner with MB2.
Benson started his career with Roush Racing, but fell victim to unrealized expectations It wasn't all bad for Benson at Roush Racing, where he toiled in 1998 an 1999. He scored 12 top-10s in two seasons and managed a pair of front-row starts in his tenure. In addition, he piled up more than $1.5 million in prize money in his second season in the No. 26 Ford.
