Carl Edwards announced today that he is stepping away from NASCAR and Joe Gibbs Racing. The 37-year-old driver wouldn't use the word retirement, but has no plans to get behind the wheel.
Edwards said he would like to devote the time he spends on racing to the people that are important in his life. "I wake up in the morning thinking about racing. I think about it all day. I go to bed thinking about it, and I have dreams about racing," he said. "I've been doing that for 20 years. I need to take that time right now and devote it to the people and things that are important to me, things that I'm really passionate about."
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Carl Edwards NASCAR Toyota Camry
The driver of the number 19 Toyota Camry is happy to get out of the sport healthy. "I can stand here healthy. After all the racing I've done, and after all the stupid stuff I've done in a race car, that is a true testament to NASCAR, to the tracks, to the people who built my race cars, to my competitors, and to the driver's who've come before me who haven't been so fortunate," he said. "Having said that, though, it's a risky sport, and I'm aware of the risks. I don't like how it feels to take the hits that we take. I'm a sharp guy and I want to be a sharp guy in 30 years."
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Edwards never missed a start due to injury.
Edwards made 445 career starts. He won 28 races, including three in 2016, and posted 124 top-five finishes. He never won the championship, but placed second in the standings in 2008 and 2011. He finished fourth overall in 2016.
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