Crew Chief, Broadcaster

The Rockford, IL native is the only crew chief in NASCAR history to win five consecutive Cup Series championships. Together, Knaus and 2024 inductee Jimmie Johnson dominated NASCAR so thoroughly that the playoff rules were revised again and again to make it harder for them to capture another title. They won seven Cup Series championships overall (2006-10, 2013, 2016) over the course of 11 seasons and finished second twice. From the time he was 14, Knaus crew-chiefed his father to multiple track championships in the Midwest. From 1993 to 1997 he worked under Ray Evernham on Jeff Gordon’s Cup team, advancing from a general fabricator to managing the entire chassis and body construction program for the #24. He returned to Hendrick in 2002 to begin his history-making collaboration with Johnson. More recently, the Hendrick Motorsports VP of Competition oversaw the team’s successful “Garage 56” Le Mans entry. Asked what his most lasting legacy was in NASCAR, Knaus told us, “Making the rulebook bigger.” He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2024.