NASCAR Hall of Fame Class, Class of 2018
One of the forefathers of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, few drivers can be mentioned in the same breath as Ron Hornaday Jr. when it comes to wheeling a truck around a race track.
Born: June 20, 1958
Hometown: Palmdale, California
Competed (Truck Series): 1995-99, 2002, 2004-14
Starts: 360
Wins: 51
Poles: 27
Championships: Six (Truck: 1996, ’98, 2007, ’09; Elite Division, Southwest: 1992, ’93)
The second-generation racer from Palmdale, California boasts a record four Truck Series championships and 51 wins competing on the rough-and-tumble circuit. Hornaday also holds the Truck Series all-time marks for top fives (158) and top 10s (234).
In 2009, Hornaday won five straight Truck Series races, a feat matched only three other times in NASCAR national series history.
Given his first opportunity in the Truck Series by Dale Earnhardt after “The Intimidator” discovered him during a NASCAR Winter Heat Series event on ESPN2, Hornaday gave back to the sport by allowing young West Coast upstarts to stay at his home while pursuing their stock car racing dreams, including future premier series champions Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick.