Nominee for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2019
A dual threat as an engine builder and crew chief, Waddell Wilson powered and guided cars to some of the biggest victories in NASCAR history.
Born: Dec. 29, 1936
Hometown: Bakersville, North Carolina
Championships
Three (1968, ’69, ’73 as engine builder)
Premier Series Crew Chief Stats
Competed: 1979-88, 1990-93, 1995
Starts: 287
Wins: 22
Poles: 32
As an engine builder, he supplied the power that helped David Pearson (1968, ’69) and Benny Parsons (1973) to premier series titles. Overall, Wilson’s engines helped some of the greatest drivers to ever wheel a car — including NASCAR Hall of Famers Pearson, Fireball Roberts, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip — to 109 wins and 123 poles. He originally gained acclaim for building the engine Roberts used to win the 1963 Southern 500.
Wilson guided three cars to Victory Lane in the Daytona 500 as a crew chief, winning The Great American Race with Buddy Baker (1980) and Cale Yarborough (1983-84). The famed “Grey Ghost” he assembled for Buddy Baker still holds the Daytona 500 record with an average speed of 177.602 mph.
RELATED: Waddell Wilson’s career stats | Members of the Hall of Fame
Wilson directed his drivers to 22 wins and 32 poles as a crew chief.
In 1982, Wilson built the first engine to help a premier series driver break 200 mph when Benny Parsons turned a 200.176 mph qualifying lap at Talladega for the Winston 500.