Car: #99 Office Depot Ford Fusion for Roush Racing in the Nextel Cup series (also runs a full schedule in the Busch Series)
Born: August 15, 1979 in Columbia, Missouri

Career highlights: Edwards burst onto the racing scene in 2005, nearly winning the Nextel Cup Championship in his first full season in NASCAR’s premier series. Edwards is known for doing a back flip off his car following a victory, a trick he got to perform four times in 2005. He is quite popular with fans, due to his exceedingly polite personality, his good looks, and his toothy smile. He is by far the most muscular of the Nextel Cup drivers, which doesn’t hurt his stature with the ladies, though he has been dating Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer and part-time model Amanda Beard since 2005. In February 2006, he was featured shirtless on the cover of ESPN: The Magazine, a move which led to much teasing from the NASCAR community.

Edwards grew up watching his father, Carl Sr., race, and was inspired to do the same. He began racing mini-sprint cars at age 13, and moved on to dirt-track racing at age 17.

• Edwards got his big break in 2002 when he competed in seven Craftsman Truck Series races for MB Motorsports. His performance impressed legendary car owner Jack Roush, and in 2003 Edwards raced full-time in the Truck Series, driving the #99 Ford F-150 for Roush Racing. He won three races and Rookie of the Year, and finished eighth in the points.

• In 2004, Edwards continued to run full-time in the Truck Series, winning three races and finishing fourth in the points. But in August he moved up to Nextel Cup after Jeff Burton left Roush Racing. Edwards drove the #99 car for the remainder of the season.

• In 2005, Edwards began his first full-time seasons in both the Nextel Cup and Busch Series, and made a serious run at both titles. In March at Atlanta Motor Speedway, he captured his first Busch Series win on a Saturday and followed it up with his first Nextel Cup victory the following day, passing Jimmie Johnson on the final turn to win by .02 seconds. It was the first time a driver had won his first Busch and Cup races on the same weekend, and the first-ever weekend sweep at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

• Edwards went on to qualify for the Chase for the Nextel Cup, winning four races (including another win at Atlanta) and finished in a tie for second in the points with his teammate, Greg Biffle (Biffle was awarded second because he had more victories). Edwards was in contention to win the championship late into the final race of the season, but Tony Stewart managed to hold on for his second Cup championship.

2006 so far ... In April 2006, Edwards made a cameo on the Fox television show 24, playing a Homeland Security agent.