This article is about the racing driver who competed in the NASCAR Cup Series in the 1980s. For the racing driver who currently competes in the ARCA Menards Series with the same name and is not related to Tim, see Tim Richmond (racing driver, born 1998).
For the English photographer, see Tim Richmond (photographer).
NASCAR driver
Tim Richmond
Born
(1955-06-07)June 7, 1955 Ashland, Ohio, U.S.
Died
August 13, 1989(1989-08-13) (aged 34) West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.
Cause of death
Complications from HIV/AIDS
Achievements
1986 Southern 500 Winner
Awards
Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998)[1]
International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee (2002)[2] Named one of NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers (2023)
NASCAR Cup Series career
185 races run over 8 years
Best finish
3rd (1986)[3]
First race
1980 Coca-Cola 500 (Pocono)
Last race
1987 Champion Spark Plug 400 (Michigan)
First win
1982 Budweiser 400 (Riverside)
Last win
1987 Budweiser 400 (Riverside)
Wins
Top tens
Poles
13
78
14
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
10 races run over 4 years
Best finish
48th (1986)
First race
1983 Kroger 200 (Indianapolis)
Last race
1986 Gatorade 200 (Darlington)
First win
1985 Winn-Dixie 300 (Charlotte)
Last win
1986 Winn-Dixie 300 (Charlotte)
Wins
Top tens
Poles
2
4
6
Timothy Lee Richmond (June 7, 1955 – August 13, 1989) was an American race car driver from Ashland, Ohio. He competed in IndyCar racing before transferring to NASCAR's Winston Cup Series. Richmond was one of the first drivers to change from open wheel racing to NASCAR stock cars full-time, which later became an industry trend.[4] 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.[1] He won seven races that season, more than any other driver on the tour.[1] When he missed the season-opening Daytona 500 in February 1987, media reported that he had pneumonia.[1] The infection most likely resulted from his compromised immune system, which was weakened by AIDS. 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.[1] 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 it gave Richmond a new test and tested negative. Richmond filed a lawsuit against NASCAR after the organization insisted it wanted access to his entire medical record before it would reinstate him. After losing the lawsuit, Richmond withdrew from racing. NASCAR later stated its original test was a "bad test."[5]
Richmond grew up in a wealthy family and lived a freewheeling lifestyle, earning him the nickname "Hollywood".[6] In describing Richmond's influence in racing, Charlotte Motor Speedway president Humpy Wheeler said, "We've never had a race driver like Tim in stock car racing. He was almost a James Dean-like character."[6] When Richmond was cast for a bit part in the 1983 movie Stroker Ace,[6] "He fell right in with the group working on the film," said director Hal Needham.[6] Cole Trickle, the main character in the movie Days of Thunder, played by Tom Cruise, was loosely based on Richmond and his interaction with Harry Hyde and Rick Hendrick.[7]
^ abcde"Tim Richmond: NASCAR Winston Cup Career: 1980-87". NASCAR. Archived from the original on December 12, 2008. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
^"Tim Richmond". International Motorsports Hall of Fame. 2002. Archived from the original on November 20, 2008. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
^"Tim Richmond statistics". NASCAR. Archived from the original on February 5, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
^Aumann, Mark (June 5, 2008). "Richmond was always a threat to win at Pocono". NASCAR. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
^Cite error: The named reference call3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abcdGross, Ken; Grant, Meg (January 8, 1990). "Racer Tim Richmond Set Records Aplenty, but His Lovers Now Fear That Aids Will Be His Real Legacy". People. Archived from the original on March 4, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2009.
^Howell, Mark D. (1997). From Moonshine to Madison Avenue: A Cultural History of the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. Popular Press. p. 7. ISBN 0-87972-740-3.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to TimRichmond. TimRichmond driver statistics at Racing-Reference TimRichmond at IMDb TimRichmond at Find a Grave...
the No. 51 Mello Yello Chevrolet. The character was patterned after TimRichmond, while his name is a nod to veteran racer Dick Trickle. Robert Duvall...
Baseball (Four Days in October), the NBA (Once Brothers) and NASCAR (TimRichmond: To the Limit). The series had a slow beginning. The first film, Peter...
season for TimRichmond, whose health began to decline as a result of AIDS shortly after the season ended, ultimately claiming Richmond's life in 1989...
"Timeline: Sen. Tim Kaine's life and career". Richmond Times-Dispatch. July 22, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2021. Mahler, Jonathan (July 31, 2016). "Tim Kaine Recalled...
seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, and others such as Geoff Bodine, TimRichmond, Ricky Rudd, Ken Schrader, Ricky Craven, Jerry Nadeau, Joe Nemechek,...
1984 with Geoff Bodine driving. Hyde was then paired with new driver TimRichmond, a young open-wheel racer from Ashland, Ohio, as Hendrick went to a two-car...
qualified car to Richmond Steve Chassey R (#64) – Bumped Larry Cannon (#96, #99) – Bumped Tom Bagley (#43) – Bumped TimRichmond (#21) – Bumped; purchased...
1987 – TimRichmond announced that he would miss the first part of 1987 due to "double pneumonia." Benny Parsons was hired to replace Richmond in the...
(75 mi (121 km)) distance. Slick Johnson was on the pole. Top Five 29-TimRichmond (R) 48-Slick Johnson 25-Ronnie Thomas 05-Bill Meazell 49-James Hylton...
– Harry Gant 44 – Terry Labonte 7 – Kyle Petty 71 – Dave Marcis 27 – TimRichmond 75 – Lake Speed The Carolina 500 was run on March 3 at North Carolina...
drivers such as Neil Bonnett, Ferrel Harris, Sterling Marlin, Joe Ruttman, TimRichmond, and Dale Earnhardt. Stacy's vehicles participated in 126 races with...
broken kneecap at Pocono Raceway when he flipped after contact with TimRichmond. In 1983, Earnhardt rebounded and won his first of 12 Twin 125 Daytona...
his parents surprised him with a trip to the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway in September. In 2018, while juggling from school, basketball,...
Andretti, Johnny Rutherford, and rookie TimRichmond. A. J. Foyt was also a dark horse for the front row. Richmond had set the fastest lap of the month (193...
Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. TimRichmond won that race. Commercials for the product featured comedian Tim Conway and actor Kevin Dobson as spokespersons...
Kyle Petty as himself Richard Petty as himself Jerry Reed as himself TimRichmond as himself Ricky Rudd as himself Linda Vaughn as herself Cale Yarborough...
Tim Barry is an American musician and the lead singer of the Richmond, Virginia-based punk rock band Avail. In addition to performing with Avail, he was...
passed illegally to get a lap back late in the race. Waltrip passed TimRichmond with 44 laps to go for his seventh-straight Bristol International Raceway...
NASCAR Digital Media. Retrieved May 10, 2024. "Tyler Reddick to honor TimRichmond with Darlington throwback scheme". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR...
the deal failed to materialize. Afterwards, Hendrick attempted to hire TimRichmond, then Dale Earnhardt, but did not. As a result, the team signed former...
2005). "Tim Vine: Down the barrel of a pun". The Independent. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Richmond Theatre. "Aladdin Richmond Tickets –...
Richard Petty. Inman won five additional races from 1982 to 1984 with TimRichmond and Terry Labonte. Inman grew up playing with his second cousins Richard...
tenure as an owner, he employed many younger drivers. Sterling Marlin, TimRichmond, Morgan Shepherd, and Mark Martin all went on to successful careers after...
Harlan Ellison Bibliography, The Illustrated Reader's Guide edited by TimRichmond (2015) Subterranean Press The White Wolf Edgeworks Series was originally...
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