1972 NASCAR Winston Cup Series

The 1972 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season began on Sunday January 23 and ended on Sunday November 12. Richard Petty won his second consecutive Winston Cup Championship and third overall. Larry Smith was named NASCAR Rookie of the Year.

This season is considered to be the first of NASCAR's "modern era". The number of races was reduced from 48 to 31, all dirt tracks were removed from the schedule, and a minimum race distance of 250 miles (402 km) was established for oval tracks.

Final Point Standings

 * 1) -Richard Petty 8701
 * 2) -Bobby Allison 8573
 * 3) -James Hylton 8158
 * 4) -Cecil Gordon 7326
 * 5) -Benny Parsons 6844
 * 6) -Walter Ballard 6781
 * 7) -Elmo Langley 6656
 * 8) -John Sears 6298
 * 9) -Dean Dalton 6295
 * 10) -Ben Arnold 6179