How many NASCAR races did Mario Andretti win?

This most respected racing driver has excelled in each aspect of the sport. Mario Andretti, a four-time IndyCar champion and the 1978 Formula 1 World Champion, also excelled in sports cars and NASCAR.

His solitary Indianapolis 500 triumph came in 1969, though, as "Andretti luck" often prevented him from enjoying more success at the Brickyard. In 1967, Andretti competed in a few NASCAR and sports car events as a works Ford driver.

Andretti remained in racing, eventually taking up 21 modified stock car victories in 1960 and 46 in 1961. In 1964, Andretti entered the professional ranks when he joined the USAC series. The very following year, he would take home the Champ Car National Championship.

He won both the Sebring 12 hours while sharing a GT40 with Bruce McLaren and the Daytona 500 in the former, outpacing everyone but Fred Lorenzen. He crashed the second-placed car at The Esses, though, and his first attempt at the Le Mans 24 hours was over for the night.

Andretti competed in 879 races throughout the course of five decades in racing, earning 109 pole positions and 111 victories. The Associated Press named Andretti the Driver of the Century, while Racer magazine named him the Driver of the Century in 2000. Mario Andretti, who is currently retired, however acts as one of racing's best representatives.

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Mario Andretti on Lewis Hamilton and George Russell

Mario Andretti, the 1978 F1 World Champion, stated that he does not think that Lewis Hamilton's abilities are diminishing but rather that he is only finding it difficult to adjust to life in a less competitive car after spending the majority of his career in front-running Mercedes machinery.

F1 Grand Prix of Miami

Since the beginning of 2022, Hamilton has been paired with the young British driver, and as a result, he hasn't had the same advantage over his teammate as he did with Valtteri Bottas.

In fact, last weekend's Miami Grand Prix saw Russell outqualify and outrace Hamilton en route to fourth place, and as their strategies played out, Hamilton even had to move aside for Russell.

Andretti said:

"But the difference between he and George Russell is that Russell has never driven a car that is as competitive as the Mercedes. And Lewis Hamilton has never driven a car that’s as uncompetitive as Mercedes is at the moment. Lewis has always had the blessing of being with an extremely competitive car."

Andretti said he feels it is entirely up to Hamilton to decide whether or not he signs a new contract with Mercedes for the following season. Given Russell's performances, he may find the going more difficult than in the past.

If he can find a car that is competitive enough, Mario Andretti thinks Lewis Hamilton still has the passion and hunger to win another F1 world championship.