NHOF: Overview of Class of 2020

Tony Stewart:

Known as “Smoke”, Tony Stewart a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion has been a force to be reckoned with ever since he stepped foot into the Cup series back in 1999.

Stewart earned three victories in his Rookie of the Year season in 1999. Titles would soon follow. Driver No. 20 would win his first NASCAR Cup championship in 2002 for Joe Gibbs Racing and would soon capture his third title in 2005.

Over his 17-year NASCAR Cup Series career, “smoke” compiled 49 wins and won the Brickyard 400 in his home-state of Indianapolis twice.

In 2009, Stewart would become a team owner in the NASCAR Cup series. During his time at Stewart-Haas Racing, Stewart won 16 times as a driver/owner including his thrilling 2011 championship battle with Carl Edwards.

Stewart-Haas Racing has 55 wins, including the 2017 Daytona 500 with Kurt Busch and two championships (2011/Tony Stewart, 2014/Kevin Harvick)

 

Cup Series Stats:

Starts: 618

Poles: 15

Wins: 49

Championships: 3 (2002, 2005, 2011)

 

Joe Gibbs:

Known as “coach” because of his time coaching the Washington Redskins, Joe Gibbs has won in both football and NASCAR. Gibbs was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996.

The three-time Super Bowl champion started Joe Gibbs Racing in 1992 and has led his Cup Series team to five Cup Series championships and five Xfinity Series championships. Gibbs currently ranks third on the all-time owner wins list in the Cup series with 176 owner wins.

His wins include three Daytona 500 victories and five Brickyard 400 wins. Gibbs five Cup series championships have come with three different drivers: Bobby Labonte in 2000, Tony Stewart (2002, 2005) and Kyle Busch (2016, 2019).

Cup Series Owner Stats:

Competed 1992-present

Starts: 2,451

Wins: 176

Poles: 127

Championships: 10 (5 in Cup, 5 in Xfinity)

 

Bobby Labonte: 

Brother of NASCAR Hall of Famer Terry Labonte, Bobby Labonte got his break as a full-time Cup Series driver at 28 years old in 1993.

Throughout his career, Labonte made 21 trips to Victory Lane and one Cup Series championship in 2000.

Labonte was the first of four drivers to win both a Cup Series championship and Xfinity Series championship. He’s also one of 27 drivers to win a race in all three of NASCAR’s national series.

Labonte’s career is highlighted by his 2000 Cup Series championship and his wins in both the Brickyard 400 and Southern 500.

Cup Series Stats:

Starts: 729

Wins: 21

Poles: 26

Championships: 2 (Cup – 2000, Xfinity – 1991)

 

Waddell Wilson:

 

As an engine builder and crew chief, Waddell Wilson guided cars to some of the biggest victories in NASCAR Cup Series history.

Wilson supplied the power that led David Pearson (1968, 1969) and Benny Parsons (1973) to Cup Series championships.

Wilson’s engines helped some of NASCAR’s greatest drivers – including NASCAR Hall of Famers David Pearson, Fireball Roberts, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip to 109 wins and 123 poles.

Wilson guided three cars to Victory Lane in the Daytona 500 with Buddy Baker in 1980 and Cale Yarborough (1983, 1984). Wilson also assembled the famed “Grey Ghost” that still to this day holds the Daytona 500 record with an average speed of 177.602 mph.

Cup Series Stats:

Starts: 287

Wins: 22

Poles: 32

Championships: 3 (1968, 1969, 1973)

 

Buddy Baker:

Known as the “Gentle Giant,” Buddy Baker stood at six feet, six inches tall. In 1970, right after Talladega Superspeedway opened, Baker became the first driver to surpass the 200-mph mark on a closed course while testing there.

Baker won at Talladega four times throughout his career. In 1980, the Charlotte, NC, native won the Daytona 500 with an average race speed of 177.602 mph. That track record still stands to this day.

Son of NASCAR Hall of Famer Buck Baker, Buddy Baker won 19 times in the Cup Series, including a victory in the 1970 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway where he lapped rest of the field.

Baker also won back-to-back Coca-Cola 600s at Charlotte in 1972 and 1973.

After his retirement in 1992, Baker made a transition from the drivers seat to the television booth for CBS.

Sadly, Buddy Baker would pass away from Lung Cancer in 2015.

Cup Series Stats:

Starts: 669

Wins: 19

Poles: 38 


 

 

Matthew Jackson
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