Rider

The Pasadena native was one of America’s top road racers, collecting a record five AMA Formula 1 titles (1978, 1982-85) and finishing his career as the all-time leader in wins. Marks that will never be broken because the class was discontinued after 1986. In all, Baldwin won 27 AMA national events, 17 of them in F1/750 and 10 in AMA Superbike. Baldwin was runner-up in the Superbike series in 1982 and ’83. His breakthrough win in the Superbike category came at the 1976 Loudon, NH race, where he ran away from the field. At the Canadian round of the 1978 Formula 750 World Championship, Baldwin beat title contender Kenny Roberts by 40 seconds. Internationally, Baldwin was the first rider to win the prestigious Suzuka 8 Hour three times (1978, 1981, 1984) and a force in the 500cc World Championship competition (now MotoGP). He finished fourth in the title race in 1986 aboard Kenny Roberts’ Lucky Strike Suzuki thanks to five podium finishes. Baldwin was inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame in 2001.