NASCAR Hall of Fame, Class of 2017
The founder and owner of Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick’s organization is recognized as one of NASCAR’s most successful. A longtime racing enthusiast and driver himself, Hendrick owned drag-racing boat teams that won three championships before founding “All-Star Racing,” the team that would evolve into Hendrick Motorsports, in 1984
Born: July 12, 1949
Hometown: Palmer Springs, Virginia
Championships (14)
Premier: 1995, ’96, ’97, ’98, 2001, ’06, ’07, ’08, ’09, ’10, ’13, ’16 (owner)
Truck: 1997, ’99, ’01 (owner)
Premier Series Owner Stats (Through 6/18/17)
Competed: 1984-Present
Starts: 3,759
Wins: 248
Poles: 211
Hendrick Motorsports owns an all-time record 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car owner championship titles — seven with Johnson, four with Gordon and one with Terry Labonte. Hendrick also has 14 total NASCAR national series owner championships, which is most in NASCAR history. Gordon and Labonte combined to win four consecutive titles from 1995-98. In 2010, Johnson won a record-extending fifth consecutive championship.
Some of NASCAR’s most prominent drivers have driven for Hendrick. Geoff Bodine was the first, snaring the organization’s first victory on April 29, 1984, at Martinsville Speedway. The late Tim Richmond, three-time series champion Darrell Waltrip and the late Benny Parsons, the 1973 champion, also are Hendrick alumni.