Driver

Although his NASCAR career lasted just seven seasons, Richmond's meteoric rise made him one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers. The Ashland, OH native raced USAC sprints and Silver Crown cars before moving up to IndyCars in 1980. He was Rookie of the Year at that year’s Indy 500. Named NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year in 1981, Richmond won four races for J.D. Stacy and Raymond Beadle before joining Hendrick Motorsports in 1986. Richmond and crew chief Harry Hyde got off to a rocky start, but in the last 17 events of the season, he won seven times — more than any other driver that year — and finished a career-best third in points. By early 1987, he battled an AIDS diagnosis that would claim his life, yet incredibly in eight starts, he won twice more (Pocono and Riverside) and collected one pole, three Top 5s and four Top 10s. Richmond finished his career with 13 Cup victories. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2002.