NASCAR Hall of Fame 2012 Inductees

The announcement was made yesterday for the Class of 2012 to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, NC. The announcement, which was made live on Speed Channel, announced the newest members to this prestigious club.




Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip headline the Class of 2012. Both drivers brought NASCAR to the national stage during the 1970's and through the 80's. Yarborough became the first driver to win three consecutive Cup titles, teaming with Hall of Fame car owner Junior Johnson to capture championships in 1976, '77 and '78. Yarborough retired after the 1988 season with 83 wins in 560 starts. In addition, he posted 255 top-five and 319 top-10 finishes and won 69 career poles. He ranks sixth all time in victories and fourth in poles. Yarborough is a four-time winner of the Daytona 500, capturing the series' biggest race with three different car owners, and a five-time winner of the Southern 500 at Darlington. His involvement in a last-lap crash, and the ensuing fight, with brothers Bobby and Donnie Allison  in the 1979 Daytona 500 created an unexpected windfall of fan interest in the sport. The event was the first live, flag-to-flag coverage of a major NASCAR Cup race.

Darrell Waltrip won three NASCAR titles during his career, driving for Hall of Famer Junior Johnson.
Waltrip's 84 career wins, which came in 809 starts, is tied for third all-time in the Cup series. Among his victories are the Daytona 500 and Southern 500, and he holds the record for consecutive wins at Bristol with seven (1981-84). Currently, DW is in the broadcast booth for FOX Sports.

Also joining the Class of 2012 include Dale Inman (crew chief and cousin of Richard Petty), Glenn Wood and the "Rapid Roman" Richie Evans. 
Inman served as crew chief for the majority of Richard Petty's 200 career wins but also was a mentor for a number of today's hands-on personnel. Inman won eight championships in NASCAR's Cup series -- seven with Petty and one with Terry Labonte . In 1967, he and Petty teamed up for 27 wins, including one stretch of 10 in a row.


Glenn Wood was the foundation upon which the legendary Wood Brothers Racing organization was built. After a brief driving career, during which time he won four times in 62 starts, he and brothers Leonard and Delano Wood stuck to ownership and turned the driving over to others.

The team has 98 Cup wins, including a win in this year's Daytona 500 with rookie Trevor Bayne. 


Richie Evans rounds out this year's class. A nine-time Modified champion, Evans, of Rome, N.Y., was known as the King of the Modifieds and in 2003 was named No. 1 among all-time Modified competitors in NASCAR. Richie has over 200 career wins in the open-wheeled Modifieds and is one of the best drivers in Modified history.