Timothy Lee Richmond (June 7, 1955 – August 13, 1989) was an American
race car
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...
driver from
Ashland, Ohio
Ashland is a city in and the county seat of Ashland County, Ohio, United States, 66 miles southwest of Cleveland and 82 miles northeast of Columbus. The population was 20,362 at the 2010 census. It is the center of the Ashland Micropolitan Stat ...
. He competed in
IndyCar racing before transferring to
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
's Winston Cup Series. Richmond was one of the first drivers to change from
open wheel racing
An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have the ...
to NASCAR
stock cars
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
full-time, which later became an industry trend.
He won the
1980 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award and had 13 victories during eight NASCAR seasons.
Richmond achieved his top NASCAR season in 1986 when he finished third in points.
He won seven races that season, more than any other driver on the tour.
When he missed the season-opening
Daytona 500 in February 1987, media reported that he had
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
.
The infection most likely resulted from his compromised immune system, which was weakened by
AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
. Despite the state of his health, Richmond competed in eight races in 1987, winning two events and one
pole position before his final race in August of that year.
He attempted a comeback in 1988 before NASCAR banned him for testing positive for excessive over-the-counter drugs, ibuprofen and pseudoephedrine; NASCAR later announced they gave Richmond a new test and tested negative. Richmond filed a lawsuit against NASCAR after NASCAR insisted they wanted access to his entire medical record before they would reinstate him. After losing the lawsuit, Richmond withdrew from racing. NASCAR later stated their original test was a "bad test."
Richmond grew up in a wealthy family and lived a freewheeling lifestyle, earning him the nickname "Hollywood".
In describing Richmond's influence in racing,
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing includin ...
president
Humpy Wheeler
Howard Augustine "Humpy" Wheeler (born October 23, 1938) is the former President and General Manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway, one of the premier auto racing venues owned by Bruton Smith's Speedway Motorsports, Inc. Better known as H.A. or ...
said, "We've never had a race driver like Tim in stock car racing. He was almost a
James Dean
James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931September 30, 1955) was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, ''Rebel Without a Cause' ...
-like character."
When Richmond was cast for a bit part in the 1983 movie ''
Stroker Ace
Alyson Mackenzie Stroker (born June 16, 1987) is an American actress, author and singer. She is the first wheelchair-using actor to appear on a Broadway stage, and also the first to be nominated for and win a Tony Award. Stroker was a finalist on ...
'',
"He fell right in with the group working on the film," said director
Hal Needham
Hal Brett Needham (March 6, 1931 – October 25, 2013) was an American stuntman, film director, actor, writer, and NASCAR team owner. He is best known for his frequent collaborations with actor Burt Reynolds, usually in films involving fast c ...
.
Cole Trickle, the main character in the movie ''
Days of Thunder'', played by
Tom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...
, was loosely based on Richmond and his interaction with
Harry Hyde
Harry Hyde (January 17, 1925 – May 13, 1996) was a leading crew chief in NASCAR stock car racing in the 1960s through the 1980s, winning 56 races and 88 pole positions. He was the 1970 championship crew chief for Bobby Isaac. He inspired t ...
and
Rick Hendrick
Joseph Riddick "Rick" Hendrick III (born July 12, 1949), nicknamed "Mr. H", is an American businessman. He is best known as the owner of the NASCAR team Hendrick Motorsports. He is also a co-owner of JR Motorsports and founder of the Hendrick Au ...
.
Early life
Richmond grew up in Ashland, Ohio. His parents, Al and Evelyn (née Warner) Richmond, met in the course of their work. Al was a
welder for pipe construction companies and Evelyn was a field office manager.
Noticing that highway crews had to dig up the entire highway to lay pipe, Al designed a machine to bore underneath the highway. To market this invention, he founded Richmond Manufacturing, which eventually exported machines worldwide.
Tim's driving days started as a toddler when he was given a
go-kart
A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance racing ...
that he often drove inside buildings and across his lawn.
He later raced the kart at tracks in
Moreland
The City of Merri-bek is a local government area in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. It comprises the inner northern suburbs between 4 and 11 kilometres from the Melbourne CBD. The Merri-bek local government area covers , and in June 2018, ...
and
New Pittsburg.
Richmond grew up in a well-to-do family, and was sometimes therefore treated differently by his classmates, so his parents enrolled him in Miami Military Academy in
Miami, Florida
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
. During his years in Miami, Tim and his mother moved to Florida and his father stayed in Ohio. While home in Ohio over a summer break, he met local
drag racer
Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, most c ...
Raymond Beadle
Raymond Beadle (December 16, 1943October 20, 2014) was an American drag racer and auto racing team owner.
Beadle was perhaps best known as the driver and owner of the ''Blue Max'' Top Fuel funny car. Beadle won three consecutive NHRA Funny Car ...
through lifelong friend Fred Miller.
When Richmond reached age 16, his parents purchased him a
Pontiac Trans Am
The Pontiac Firebird is an American automobile that was built and produced by Pontiac from the 1967 to 2002 model years. Designed as a pony car to compete with the Ford Mustang, it was introduced on February 23, 1967, five months after GM's Ch ...
, a speedboat and a
Piper Cherokee
The Piper PA-28 Cherokee is a family of two-seat or four-seat light aircraft built by Piper Aircraft and designed for flight training, air taxi and personal use.Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', pages 62–64. Werner & Werner Corp, ...
airplane for his birthday. Yet his mother Evelyn often worried about spoiling her only son. She once said, "Tim was lazy...", and "... I did everything for him. I ruined him, I admit it. He was my whole life."
Richmond excelled in sports; he set a conference record in
high hurdles
Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, ...
and his high school
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
career was stellar enough that the academy
retired
Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload.
Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...
his
sports jersey
Traditionally, a jersey is an item of knitted fabric, knitted clothing, generally made of wool or cotton, with sleeves, worn as a Sweater, pullover, as it does not open at the front, unlike a Cardigan (sweater), cardigan. It is usually close-fitt ...
after his gridiron days were over.
Miami Military Academy named him Athlete of the Year in 1970.
Richmond's other interests included flying, and he earned his
private pilot license
A private pilot licence (PPL) or, in the United States, a private pilot certificate, is a type of pilot licence that allows the holder to act as pilot in command of an aircraft privately (not for remuneration). The licence requirements are dete ...
at age 16.
Following high school graduation, Richmond attended
Ashland University
Ashland University is a private university in Ashland, Ohio. The university consists of a main campus and several off-campus centers throughout central and northern Ohio. Ashland was founded in 1878 as Ashland College. It is affiliated with The ...
for about one year before dropping out.
Racing career
Open wheel racing
A friend of Richmond's father co-owned a
sprint car
Sprint cars are high-powered open-wheel race cars, designed primarily for the purpose of running on short oval or circular dirt or paved tracks. Sprint car racing is popular primarily in the United States and Canada, as well as in Australia, New ...
and Richmond joined the team as a crew member for Dave Shoemaker. In 1976, 21-year-old Richmond took the car onto Lakeville Speedway at
Lakeville, Ohio
Lakeville is an unincorporated community in northeastern Washington Township, Holmes County, Ohio, United States. It has a post office
A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting let ...
for some practice laps. "Somebody put a stopwatch on me," Richmond said. "I was running laps faster than Dave had been. It was the first time I had ever driven a race car."
Richmond and his father found a red, white and blue-colored No. 98 car in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, which was the same number and
paint scheme
A livery is an identifying design, such as a uniform, ornament, symbol or insignia that designates ownership or affiliation, often found on an individual or vehicle. Livery will often have elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or ...
that Richmond used on model cars as a child. In his first competition at the track, officials placed Richmond in the slowest
heat
In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...
. He passed several cars before spinning out and breaking an
axle
An axle or axletree is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to the vehicle, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearing ...
. Although he made several attempts to get the car pointed in the right direction, the broken axle prevented the car from driving straight. After being towed to the pits, he parked the car for the rest of the event.
Later that season, they towed the car to
Eldora Speedway
Eldora Speedway (nicknamed "The Big E", "Auto Racing's Showcase Since 1954," and "The World's Greatest Dirt Track") is a high-banked clay dirt oval. Located north of Rossburg, Ohio in the village of New Weston, Ohio, it features permanent and ...
, only to have Richmond crash the car again. In response, Richmond's father fired him as the driver. The next season, Al Richmond bought a
SuperModified better suited to his son's driving style. In 1977 Tim Richmond became both
Sandusky Speedway
Sandusky Speedway is a half-mile automobile race track located south of the city of Sandusky in Perkins Township, Erie County, Ohio, United States. The track features low banking in the turns and long straightaways. It has a layout similar to ...
's Rookie of the Year and the SuperModified class track champion.
Richmond returned to racing sprint cars in the
United States Automobile Club
The United States Auto Club (USAC) is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapol ...
's (USAC) national sprint car tour in 1978.
Competing in 12 races, he finished 30th in points as the series' Rookie of the Year. That year he attended Jim Russell's road racing school at
Willow Springs International Motorsports Park
Willow Springs International Motorsports Park (commonly referred to as Willow Springs) is located in Willow Springs near Rosamond, California, about north of Los Angeles. It is the oldest permanent road course in the United States. Constructio ...
, setting a student course record. Richmond raced in a 1978 Mini Indy car event at
Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix Raceway is a 1-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona, near Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually including the final championship race since 2020. P ...
, winning the
Formula Super Vee
Formula Super Vee was an open-wheel racing series that took place in Europe and the United States from 1970 to 1990. The formula was created as an extension of Formula Vee, a racing class that was introduced in 1959. Formula Super Vee in Europe was ...
support event in a
Lola
Lola may refer to:
Places
* Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama
* Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States
* Lola Prefecture, Guinea
* Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture
* Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands
People
* Lola (fo ...
T620. The win attracted sponsors and attention from major owners like
Roger Penske
Roger Searle Penske (born February 20, 1937) is an American businessman and entrepreneur involved in professional auto racing and a retired professional auto racing driver. He is most famous for his ownership of Team Penske, DJR Team Penske, t ...
.
He also competed in USAC's
Silver Crown series.
Richmond's father bought an
Eagle
Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...
Indy Car
INDYCAR, LLC, is an American-based auto racing sanctioning body for Indy car racing and other disciplines of open wheel car racing. The organization sanctions five racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with its centerpiece the Indianapolis ...
chassis and an
Offenhauser
The Offenhauser Racing Engine, or Offy, is a racing engine design that dominated American open wheel racing for more than 50 years and is still popular among vintage sprint and midget car racers.
History
The Offenhauser engine, familiarly ...
engine for the 1979 race at
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...
. Richmond qualified 21st fastest with a lap, significantly slower than
Bobby Unser
Robert William Unser (February 20, 1934 – May 2, 2021) was an American automobile racer. At his induction into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1994, he had the fourth most IndyCar Series wins at 35 (behind his brother Al, A. J. Fo ...
's
pole position speed.
The race ended for him when his motor blew up on the fourth lap, and he finished last (23rd).
Owner Pat Santello was looking for a driver to replace
Larry Rice
Larry Rice (24 March 1946 – 20 May 2009) was an American racing driver in the USAC and CART Championship Car series. He was the 1973 USAC National midget driver's champion and won the USAC Silver Crown series in 1977 and 1981. He was inducted i ...
for his
CART
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people.
It is different from the flatbed tr ...
team at the
following race at
Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track located in the town of Dix just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. It was long known around the world as the hom ...
, so he gave Richmond a test at
Willow Springs Raceway
Willow Springs International Motorsports Park (commonly referred to as Willow Springs) is located in Willow Springs near Rosamond, California, about north of Los Angeles. It is the oldest permanent road course in the United States. Constructio ...
where he had previously set the student record. Santello hired Richmond, who then qualified 15th fastest for the event and finished in eighth place, the best of his IndyCar career. Richmond raced in three more events that season.
Also in 1979, Richmond tested Kenny Reece's unusual "3-to-1" Supermodified at a
7.5-mile high-speed oval test track in Ohio. The car was unique in that it featured 3 wheels on the right side for added grip on oval tracks, but only 1 wheel on the center of the left side, along with a left-offset aluminum Chevrolet
ZL-1 V8 engine. Richmond was able to lap the test track at over 200 MPH, but found doing so in a car with no left front wheel slightly unnerving. The car was tested, but outlawed before it could actually be raced.
During practice for the
1980 Indianapolis 500, Richmond set the fastest unofficial practice speed of the month, besting even race favorite
Johnny Rutherford
John Sherman "Johnny" Rutherford III (born March 12, 1938), also known as "Lone Star JR", is an American former automobile racing driver. During an Indy Car career that spanned more than three decades, he scored 27 wins and 23 pole positions in 3 ...
in the vaunted Chaparral. His hopes for the pole were dashed with a crash in morning practice on the first day of qualifying. After repairs he qualified 19th for the race.
He worked his way up to the top 10 during the race, led a lap, and finished ninth as he ran out of fuel at the end of the race.
To the delight of the crowd, winner Rutherford gave him a ride back to the pits.
He was named the 1980
Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year
The Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year is an annual award "presented to the driver who has performed with the most distinction among first-year drivers in the Indianapolis 500." Criteria includes "on-track performance in practice, qualifying an ...
. "I busted up a few Indy cars right after that," he said. "Milwaukee, Mid-Ohio. . . at Michigan I cut one in two. I was afraid my racing career would come to a halt. So when I got an offer to drive stock cars, I took it, and it turned out I liked driving them better."
NASCAR
Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as ''The Tricky Triangle'', is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. It is the site of three NASCAR national series races and an ARCA M ...
President Joseph Mattioli III convinced Richmond to make the change to
stock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
on the NASCAR circuit.
Richmond made his first NASCAR start two months after winning the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award.
He debuted at the
Coca-Cola 500 at Pocono on July 27, 1980, finishing 12th in a
D. K. Ulrich-owned Chevrolet.
That season, he competed in five events, with two
DNFs (did not finish) and three 12th-place finishes. Overall, he finished the 1980 season 41st in points.
Richmond raced for three teams in 1981. He started the season by competing in 15 events for Ulrich.
He had his first career top 10 finish, taking tenth place at
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Bristol is among the m ...
, soon followed by a sixth at
Talladega and a seventh-place finish at
Texas World Speedway
Texas World Speedway (TWS) was a motorsport venue located in College Station, Texas.The track was one of only eight superspeedways of or greater in the United States used for racing, the others being Indianapolis, Daytona, Pocono, Talladega, ...
.
After
Kennie Childers hired him away from Ulrich mid-season, Richmond had top 10 finishes at Pocono and
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
. For the final seven races of the season, he drove for
Bob Rogers and had a top 10 finish at
Dover International Speedway
Dover Motor Speedway (formerly Dover Downs International Speedway and later Dover International Speedway) is a race track in Dover, Delaware. The track has hosted at least one NASCAR Cup Series race each year since 1969, including two per yea ...
.
Overall for the season, Richmond had six top 10 finishes to place 16th in season points.
![RaymondBeadleTimRichmond](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/RaymondBeadleTimRichmond.jpg)
Richmond started 1982 without a ride before getting a one-race deal to drive for Mike Lovern's Fast Company Limited,
Billie Harvey
William J. "Billie" Harvey (February 2, 1950 – September 13, 2007) was an American racing driver from Delray Beach, Florida.
Career
Primarily an ARCA stock car racer, he won two races in the series in 1980, finishing 8th in ARCA points, and ...
, at the
Rockingham track. Richmond completed 112 laps of the 492-lap event to finish 31st, retiring from the race with engine problems.
For the following event, Richmond was hired to drive
J.D. Stacy
James D. Stacy (March 27, 1930October 12, 2016), frequently referred to as Jim Stacy or J.D. Stacy, was an American entrepreneur and former NASCAR Winston Cup Series race car owner whose career spanned 1977 NASCAR Winston Cup Series, 1977 to 1983 ...
's No. 2 car. In his first race for the team, Richmond earned his first career top 5 finish when he placed fifth at
Darlington Raceway
Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located in Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is ...
. Returning to Pocono, he finished second, before winning his first race on the
road course at Riverside, California the following week.
Later that season, he earned his first
pole position at Bristol.
The tour returned to Riverside for the final race of the season where Richmond won his second race, sweeping both events at the track.
Benny Parsons
Benjamin Stewart Parsons (July 12, 1941 – January 16, 2007) was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst/pit reporter on SETN, TBS, ABC, ESPN, NBC, and TNT. He became famous as the 1973 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion, and ...
said that "watching Richmond go through the Esses was unbelievable". For the season, Richmond had twelve top 10s, two wins, and one pole to finish 26th in points.
In 1983, Richmond began racing for
Raymond Beadle
Raymond Beadle (December 16, 1943October 20, 2014) was an American drag racer and auto racing team owner.
Beadle was perhaps best known as the driver and owner of the ''Blue Max'' Top Fuel funny car. Beadle won three consecutive NHRA Funny Car ...
whom he had known before he started racing. He returned to the
three-cornered Pocono racetrack, earning his first oval victory.
During the season, he accumulated four pole positions (Darlington, Pocono,
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...
, and
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
), one win (Pocono), and fifteen top 10s on his way to finishing tenth in season points.
He made his first appearance in a NASCAR Busch Series car, but did not finish any of the three races he entered that season.
Esquire magazine
''Esquire'' is an American men's magazine. Currently published in the United States by Hearst Communications, it also has more than 20 international editions.
Founded in 1933, it flourished during the Great Depression and World War II under t ...
named Richmond as one of "the best of the new generation" in 1984.
That year he had one win at
North Wilkesboro Speedway
North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short oval racetrack located on U.S. Route 421, about east of the town of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, or 80 miles north of Charlotte. It measures and features a unique uphill backstretch and downhill fr ...
and second-place finishes at Dover, Darlington and Riverside. Richmond finished the 1984 season 12th in points, with 11 finishes in the top 10 and in six in the top 5.
In 1985, the final season that Richmond competed for Beadle,
his best finish was a second-place run at Bristol. He ended the season 11th in points with 13 Top 10s in 28 races.
His crew chief for the season was newcomer
Barry Dodson
Barry Dodson was an American stock car crew chief. He was the crew chief for Rusty Wallace's 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship for Blue Max Racing. He pitted for several drivers won a combined 19 Cup races.
Racing career
Dodson began rac ...
who won the 1989 championship with
Rusty Wallace
Russell William "Rusty" Wallace Jr. (born August 14, 1956) is an American former NASCAR racing driver. He has won the 1984 NASCAR Cup series Rookie of the Year and the 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Championship. Over the course of his successful care ...
. In the Busch Series, he qualified at the pole position in the two races he entered, and won the Charlotte race.
Richmond joined
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup Seri ...
in 1986, where he teamed up with veteran
crew chief Harry Hyde. It took the team until the middle of the season to gel.
Richmond had suffered a 64-race winless streak that was finally broken at the
Van Scoy Diamond Mine 500
The Pocono Organics CBD 325 was a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held annually at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The race was the first of two NASCAR Cup Series races at Pocono Raceway, with the other being the Pocono 350, held t ...
at Pocono in June 1986. After two straight second-place finishes at Charlotte and Riverside, Richmond started the Pocono event in third place inside the second row. That race saw a caution for rain with five laps left before the halfway point.
NASCAR wanted the cars to get to the halfway point to make the race official, so the sanctioning body had the drivers slowly circle the track. It took the drivers 26 minutes to complete the laps, and the rain was so heavy that some drivers had to look out their side windows because they could not see out their windshields. Two hours later, the track had dried and the race resumed with Richmond in third.
After Richmond's car was adjusted to remove the "
push
Push may refer to:
Music
* Mike Dierickx (born 1973), a Belgian producer also known as Push
Albums
* ''Push'' (Bros album), 1988
* ''Push'' (Gruntruck album), 1992
* ''Push'' (Jacky Terrasson album), 2010
Songs
* "Push" (Enrique Iglesias s ...
", the car was more to his liking.
Because his radio did not work, he was unable to communicate with his crew chief, Hyde, and he made his final pit stop with 37 laps left.
Hyde worried that Richmond had stopped a lap too early to ensure that he would have enough fuel to make it to the end.
After Richmond took the lead with 30 laps left in the race,
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr. (; April 29, 1951February 18, 2001) was an American professional stock car driver and team owner, who raced from 1975 to 2001 in the former NASCAR Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series), most notably dri ...
made up three seconds on Richmond's five-second lead. With four laps to go,
Buddy Arrington
Buddy Rogers Arrington (July 26, 1938 – August 2, 2022) was an American NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and owner.
Racing career
Arrington has the second-most starts without a win, and finished in the top 10 of NASCAR points twice; in 1 ...
spun in a three-car accident. The remaining laps of the race where completed slowly under caution and Richmond took the checkered flag for the victory. He had led 97 laps, including the final 30, taking his first victory in a
Rick Hendrick
Joseph Riddick "Rick" Hendrick III (born July 12, 1949), nicknamed "Mr. H", is an American businessman. He is best known as the owner of the NASCAR team Hendrick Motorsports. He is also a co-owner of JR Motorsports and founder of the Hendrick Au ...
car.
The tour returned to Pocono a month later, and Richmond battled for another victory in a fog-shortened event. In the final 8-lap sprint, Richmond competed in a three-car battle with
Geoff Bodine
Geoffrey Edwin Bodine (born April 18, 1949) is a retired American motorsport driver and bobsled builder. He is the oldest of the three Bodine brothers (with Brett Bodine and Todd Bodine), and sister Denise. Bodine lives in West Melbourne, Florida ...
and
Ricky Rudd
Richard Lee Rudd (born September 12, 1956), nicknamed "The Rooster", is an American former racing driver. He is the uncle of actor Skeet Ulrich and former NASCAR Busch Series driver Jason Rudd. He retired in 2007 with 23 career wins. He was named ...
. Richmond crossed the finish line beside Rudd, winning the race by 0.05 seconds.
He notched four more victories that season, and over a span of twelve races, Richmond earned three second-place finishes, and six wins.
The National Motorsports Press Association named him Co-Driver of the Year with Earnhardt after Richmond accumulated 13 top 5 finishes and 16 in the top 10.
He had a career-best third-place finish in points after winning seven events in 1986, in what was his last full NASCAR season.
Illness and death
Richmond fell ill the day after the 1986 NASCAR annual banquet during a promotional trip to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.
He was not well enough to begin the 1987 NASCAR season despite lengthy hospitalization in Cleveland
and further rest at home; when Richmond missed the Daytona 500, his condition was reported as
double pneumonia
Pneumonia can be classified in several ways, most commonly by where it was acquired (hospital versus community), but may also by the area of lung affected or by the causative organism. There is also a combined clinical classification, which combi ...
.
Media later reported that he had Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
He returned to Pocono for the
Miller High Life 500 during the middle of the year. Starting third, he led by the fifth lap and ultimately led 82 laps, including the final 46, to win the race by eight car-lengths over
Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing ...
.
In the middle of the race, Richmond's car suffered gearbox problems. Because he could use only fourth (high) gear, he had to use that gear to slowly exit the pits. Richmond was emotional after the victory, saying, "I had tears in my eyes when I took the checkered flag. Then every time anyone congratulated me, I started bawling again."
Richmond earned a victory in the next race at Riverside, and made his final 1987 start at
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...
's
Champion Spark Plug 400
The NASCAR Cup Series has held stock car races annually at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan since 1969. Traditionally, the track held two Cup Series races, one in June, around Father's Day weekend and another in August. The ...
that August, finishing 29th with a blown engine.
He resigned from Hendrick Motorsports in September 1987.
Although Richmond attempted a comeback in 1988, NASCAR suspended him for testing positive for banned substances.
Days later the substances were identified as
Sudafed
Pseudoephedrine (PSE) is a sympathomimetic drug of the substituted phenethylamine, phenethylamine and substituted amphetamine, amphetamine chemical classes. It may be used as a decongestant, nasal/sinus decongestant, as a stimulant, or as a wake ...
, a non-prescription over-the-counter allergy medication, and
Advil
Ibuprofen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is used for treating pain, fever, and inflammation. This includes painful menstrual periods, migraines, and rheumatoid arthritis. It may also be used to close a patent ductus arte ...
, an over-the-counter pain reliever.
In April 1988, Richmond sued NASCAR over the suspension. In the 2010 ESPN documentary film ''Tim Richmond: To The Limit''
Bill France Jr. of NASCAR acknowledged that it "was not a good test." NASCAR also demanded he release his medical records to them, which he refused.
Although he retested later that year and was reinstated, he could not find a car to drive.
In his final public appearance in February 1988, Richmond denied that he
abused drugs and said that a mistake had been made in his drug test.
His suit with NASCAR was settled out-of-court, the terms sealed.
Richmond withdrew into his condo in Florida. There were by then rumors of HIV and AIDS, which he denied.
He was later hospitalized in
West Palm Beach
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
.
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
sent a get-well-soon card to Richmond when it aired the July 1989 NASCAR race at Pocono.
The television network showed highlights of Richmond's victory at the track from 1986. "Tim had
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
good looks and the charisma of
Tom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...
," said his friend
Dr. Jerry Punch
Gerald Punch (born August 20, 1953) is an American auto racing and American football, college football commentator working for ESPN, as well as a physician. Punch also does local radio spots in Knoxville, Tennessee, Knoxville. Punch is currentl ...
. "There he was in victory lane with the team all around him and beauty queens hanging all over him. It was important for the people at the hospital to see Tim the way he really was, when he was healthy and handsome and vital, not the way he was as they saw him every day in the hospital."
On August 13, 1989, Richmond died at the age of 34,
about two years after his final NASCAR race.
He was buried in Ashland, Ohio.
The secrecy surrounding the circumstance of his death caused speculation for several days.
At the time, Punch stated that Richmond had been hospitalized due to a motorcycle accident,
though it is unlikely that Richmond had the strength to ride a motorcycle during his last months. Ten days after his death, on August 23, the Richmond family held a press conference to reveal that Richmond died from complications from AIDS, which he acquired from an unknown woman.
Richmond's physician, Dr. David Dodson, said: "There's no way of knowing who that woman was. Tim was a celebrity with a lot of charisma, a handsome guy. He naturally attracted a lot of women."
Punch later claimed that more than 90 drivers and personnel underwent HIV testing in the wake of Richmond's death.
Legacy
![Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on display](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Tim_Richmond_Hendrick_Motorsports_Chevrolet_on_display.jpg)
In 1990, a few months after Richmond's death, Washington television station
WJLA-TV
WJLA-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Washington, D.C., affiliated with ABC. It is one of two flagship stations of Sinclair Broadcast Group (alongside dual Fox/MyNetworkTV affiliate WBFF hannel 45in Baltimore), and is also sister to ...
and reporter
Roberta Baskin
Roberta Baskin is an American journalist and nonprofit director. She co-founded and served as Executive Director of the AIM2Flourish global learning initiative, hosted at Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit at the Weatherhead ...
reported that Dr.
Forest Tennant
Forest S. Tennant Jr. is an American physician, writer, businessman, consultant, and former mayor of West Covina, California. Tennant has earned recognition as an expert in pain management and substance dependence and has also been involved in s ...
, who was then the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
's drug adviser, "falsified drug tests" that ultimately helped shorten Richmond's NASCAR career. Baskin reported that sealed court documents and interviews showed Tennant and NASCAR used "allegedly false drug-test results in 1988 to bar Richmond from racing". Baskin also stated that NASCAR had targeted Richmond, requesting that Tennant establish a substance-abuse policy with Richmond in mind. A series of drug tests and falsely reported positive results shortly before the 1988 Daytona 500 kept Richmond from driving in what was to have been his last big race...", the report said. ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' published the findings. While neither Tennant nor NASCAR supplied an official response at the time, NASCAR did confirm that they were seeking to replace Tennant.
The Ashland County Sports Hall of Fame inducted Richmond in their second class in 1996. In 1998, NASCAR named Richmond one of its 50 greatest drivers of all time.
He was inducted into the
International Motorsports Hall of Fame
The International Motorsports Hall of Fame (IMHOF) is a hall of fame located adjacent to the Talladega Superspeedway (formerly Alabama International Motor Speedway) located in Talladega County, east central Alabama. It enshrines those who have c ...
in 2002.
The
Mansfield Motorsports Park
Mansfield Motor Speedway (formerly Mansfield Motorsports Park and Mansfield Motorsports Speedway) was a 0.44 mile dirt track located in Mansfield, Ohio, United States.
History
The former Mansfield Motorsports Park (known as Mansfield Motorsp ...
ARCA Re/Max Series race in 2009 was named the Tim Richmond Memorial ARCA Re/Max 250 in honor of the area native. The race at Mansfield was co-promoted by Mattioli's son Joseph Mattioli III.
The documentary film ''Tim Richmond: To The Limit'' was produced as part of ESPN's ''
30 for 30
''30 for 30'' is the title for a series of documentary films airing on ESPN, its sister networks, and online highlighting interesting people and events in sports history. This includes three "volumes" of 30 episodes each, a 13-episode series un ...
'' series with a premiere date of October 19, 2010.
In 2018,
Dalton Sargeant
Daniel Dalton Sargeant (born March 25, 1998) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 25 Chevrolet Silverado for GMS Racing. He was the 2016 ARCA Racing ...
drove the No. 25 truck for
GMS Racing
Petty GMS Motorsports, also known as GMS Racing in the Craftsman Truck Series, is an American professional stock car racing team formed by Richard Petty and Maurice J. Gallagher Jr. and operated by GMS Racing. In the NASCAR Cup Series they field t ...
in honor of Richmond.
In May 2019 an
ARCA Menards Series
The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...
driver who coincidentally shares the name Tim Richmond drove an identical paint scheme in his No. 06 to Richmond's No. 25 when he drove for
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup Seri ...
.
In June 2019 current
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup Seri ...
driver
Alex Bowman
Alex Michael Bowman (born April 25, 1993) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports, part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Seri ...
announced in the
Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town.
In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...
Throwback Race he would run a Tim Richmond throwback to the No. 25 Folgers car.
Motorsports career results
NASCAR
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Winston Cup Series
=Daytona 500
=
Busch Series
American open wheel
CART Series
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position)
USAC Champ Car series
Indianapolis 500 results
References
Further reading
*Poole, David. ''Tim Richmond: The Fast Life and Remarkable Times of NASCAR's Top Gun'' Champaign, IL: Sports Publications, 2005.
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Richmond, Tim
1955 births
1989 deaths
People from Ashland, Ohio
Racing drivers from Ohio
Indianapolis 500 drivers
Indianapolis 500 Rookies of the Year
NASCAR drivers
Champ Car drivers
American Speed Association drivers
Ashland University alumni
AIDS-related deaths in Florida
Burials in Ohio
International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees
Hendrick Motorsports drivers
NASCAR controversies