It's been over a decade now since Tim Richmond last competed in a Winston Cup race. There's little mention of him in NASCAR's official literature, and if you're a new race fan, sadly you may never even have heard his name. But for those of us privileged enough to have watched Tim Richmond drive a race car, during that all too ephemeral time that marked the peak of his career, there is no forgetting the magic. The tragic circumstances of a young man's passing, and the way NASCAR officialdom dealt with it, is the subject for another article and my purpose here is not to mourn Tim's passing, but to celebrate his life and talent. If there ever was a "natural" at driving a race car it was Tim Richmond. Lap after lap, fans watched in wonder as he hit the same mark time after time, but when it came time to get around another driver, it was like the laws of physics themselves stepped aside a few moments, content to be suspended and watch in wide eyed wonder at what Tim could do in a race car, driving the line everyone else thought was impossible. And it was impossible… for everyone else.
Tim Richmond started driving race cars at a relatively advanced age by the standards of today. He was 21 years old when a friend who owned a sprint car invited him to take some laps in the car at the Lakeville Speedway in Ohio. Tim was so ill prepared for his debut at the wheel of a race car, he showed up wearing cowboy boots and had to borrow a driver's uniform and a helmet just to be able to run a few laps on what was supposed to be a lark. Instead, Tim hopped in the car and within a very short period of time was turning lap times better than the car's regular driver who had been racing for years. Again, if there ever was a natural born race car driver, it was Tim Richmond. More importantly, that day Tim discovered his niche in life, the one thing that he enjoyed doing as much as his late night partying with friends. That evening, Tim decided he was going to be a race car driver, and with that goal set he pursued it with the same tenacity and determination he did everything else he set his mind to.
In 1977 Tim Richmond started driving a Supermodfied car he co-owned with his father at Sandusky Speedway, which bills itself as "the fastest half mile oval in Ohio." Success was almost immediate and that year Tim won not only "Rookie of the Year" honors, but the track championship in his class as well. Like most kids growing up in the Midwest at that point in time, Richmond's goal was not stock car racing but Indy Car racing and toward that end he competed in the Mini Indy car series in Phoenix, Arizona and again he won the title the first time out. From the Mini Indy car league Tim moved to the USAC sprint car series, and in 1979 he won the coveted "Rookie Of the Year" honors in that series as well. Many a driver spends years driving in the sprint car series waiting for a chance to drive in the Indy car series, but Tim's goal lay beyond the sprints and he made his own chance happen rather than waiting. Al Richmond was certainly wealthy enough to buy his son an Indy car, and there is a lingering misimpression among some people that was the case, but in fact Tim aggressively courted sponsors on his own and got backing from a business in his hometown of Ashland, Ohio, Robert Schultz and Associates. With financing in place, Tim, with help from Roger Penske, was able to set up a deal to buy a car, and planned to make his Indy car debut at Michigan. The debut did not go well; the car developed mechanical problems, but Tim's driving abilities raised some eyebrows. Mark Stainbrook, crew chief for a team owned by Pat Santello, asked if Richmond would be interested in driving for that team. When Tim expressed interest, an agreement was reached that if Tim could qualify the car at the next race, he would be given the ride. Fortunately, the test took place at the Willow Spring road course in California. Already an accomplished oval course racer, Tim had attended a Jim Russell driving school at that same track and set the lowest lap time by any student ever. Needless to say, he got the ride with Santello's team. Once again the ugly rumor that his dad had bought him the seat dogged Richmond, as a disgruntled friend of the team's former driver printed a story in the Indianapolis Star to that effect. Though the story was later retracted, it left a taint.
During the 1980 season, a difficult year as CART took over control of the IndyCar series from USAC, Richmond made five starts in Indy cars. A pattern was set where he would qualify and run well, only to be sidelined by mechanical problems with his outdated equipment.
1980 was Tim Richmond's biggest year in the IndyCar circuit, and his proudest moments were during those weeks in May leading up to the Indianapolis 500. Though a rookie, Tim set the fastest time in practice, and was considered a favorite for a front row starting spot. Unfortunately, a crash on Pole Day eliminated that possibility. Still Richmond was able to make the field in a backup car, and compete in the Indy 500. Throughout the event Tim showed skill and speed that belied his inexperience, and he actually led the race, before running out of gas in the waning laps. Race winner Johnny Rutherford was kind enough to let Tim hitch a ride to Victory Lane riding on the sidepod of the winning car. Legend has it, as Tim hopped off Rutherford quietly told him, one day Tim would be visiting that hallowed ground on his own. For his remarkable achievements that month Richmond was awarded "Rookie of the Race" honors.
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Winner Johnny Rutherford gives Tim a ride - IMS Photo[/caption]
Among the quarter-million spectators on hand that day for the Indy 500 was Dr. Joseph Mattioli, founder and president of Pocono International Raceway. He had been impressed by Tim's style and asked if he might be interested in driving a NASCAR stock car race there that July. (Recall, Pocono also hosted Indy Car races at one time.) Tim was the sort who would drive anything with wheels, and quickly agreed. Dr. Mattioli was able to line up a Chevy owned by DK Ulrich for Tim to drive. While he qualified a disappointing 23rd, Richmond was able to finish 12th in his very first Winston Cup race. Despite the venture starting out as a lark, Tim fell in love with racing stock cars. He would later describe the difference between Indy cars and stock cars as being that you "drove" an Indy car, but "raced" a stock car, and Tim Richmond had a racer's heart. He would compete in four more Winston Cup races that year; Dover, Martinsville, Charlotte and Atlanta. Mechanical problems relegated him to disappointing finishes at Dover and Atlanta, but Tim managed to finish 12th at both Charlotte and Martinsville (in his very first Winston Cup short track run.)
Richmond was never forced to decide between NASCAR and CART. A series of wrecks and financial problems with the team ended his open wheel driving days and in 1981 Tim Richmond began driving the Winston Cup circuit full time. Tim's arrival made quite a splash in the normally staid world of NASCAR. While most drivers of the era had "Opie Taylor" style haircuts, Tim
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A Dapper Tim Richmond - From the Craig Bontrager Collection[/caption]
wore his hair shoulder length and admitted to using a hair stylist rather than a barber. His Ohio accent sounded a bit different from the good old boys. And Tim arrived upon a Harley Davidson, not in a car, in an era long before Milwaukee's Finest was near standard issue for every cup driver. Richmond had a sort of confidence some mistook for arrogance, and more than a few guys in the garage area weren't very impressed with him. Of course, more than a few woman were.
That year was the first year of the "downsized cars" and even a lot of the top teams were struggling to figure those cars out. It was as true then, as it is today; Winston Cup racing is the most competitive series on earth, and Tim struggled a bit driving the DK Ulrich Buick Regal the early part of that season, including a disappointing 30th at the Daytona 500. His first Winston Cup top ten came at Bristol on March 29th 1981, when Tim finished tenth. The best finish Richmond had with DK Ulrich, and in fact that season, was a sixth at Talladega in May. After a disappointing result at Riverside in June on a road course where Tim had been expected to run well (he crashed out on the 12th lap) Richmond and Ulrich parted ways. Tim signed on with Kennie Childers to drive his Oldsmobile after the separation. The best finishes Richmond earned while with Childers were a 9th at Pocono, and an 8th at Bristol. Once again things went downhill and in September Tim moved over to Bob Rogers' team, debuting with them at Dover and finishing 9th, his last top ten of the season. In 29 starts in 1981 Tim had six top ten finishes and wound up 16th in the points.
Tim Richmond found himself without a Winston Cup ride for the 1982 season. He did not make his first start that year until Rockingham in March, driving the Fast Company Limited Ford to a dismal 31st place finish after losing an engine. But his fortunes were about to change... both for the better and the worse. Tim was finally able to land a well-funded ride after Rockingham, which was the good news, but the bad news was, he would be driving for mercurial millionaire and con artist JD Stacy. Stacy's financial house of cards was the object of considerable conjecture, but he did indeed pour a lot of money into his team when the mood and means suited him. Joe Ruttman had a falling out with Stacy, and Tim was given the seat as primary driver for one of two teams Stacy owned. (He also sponsored five others.) Their very first race together, Tim managed to finish a career best fifth at the Rebel 500 at Darlington. After a couple races for the team to gel together, Richmond and the Stacy team began putting together a solid string of top ten finishes. At Pocono that year Tim Richmond showed the sort of driver he really was and engaged in a dog fight for top honors with Bobby Allison. Richmond might have won that race, as Bobby Allison had run out of fuel trying to stretch his gas mileage under a caution flag thrown for rain, fearing if he pitted the race would end under caution. Dave Marcis was kind enough to push Allison back to the pits, and in fact Allison did go on to win by 3.1 seconds over Tim. (As a side note, Marcis also carried sponsorship from JD Stacy and lost the sponsorship for helping Bobby out.) But even that second place finish had put the other drivers on notice that Tim Richmond was a contender and would win a race soon. Very soon as it turned out.
The next event was the Budweiser 400 at Riverside, a road course. Terry Labonte had the dominant car that day after several other early favorites fell out with mechanical problems. Tim remained running with the front pack and on lap 89 of the 95 lap event he used his considerable road racing skills to out brake Labonte and take the lead. From there it was smooth sailing to Richmond's first Winston Cup win. The second half of that season had its share of highs and lows with Tim getting involved in several crashes not always of his making, mechanical problems and continuing uncertainty about the status of Stacy's finances. Richmond did manage a strong second place finish at Richmond in the fall, again tailing Allison to the checkers, and a fourth at Atlanta in the penultimate race of that season. The 1982 season ended at Riverside, the track where Tim had earned his first win. By that point he had already decided to split with Stacy after the race, citing the team's uncertain financial future. Richmond had landed a ride with Raymond Beadle's new Blue Max team, which was buying out the equipment of MC Anderson, who had announced he was quitting racing altogether, because his driver, Cale Yarborough, wanted to remain running a partial schedule rather than contend for the Winston Cup. Tim did leave the Stacy team in style, scoring the second win of his career in a race he flat out dominated. In 26 starts that year, Tim had the two wins at Riverside, five more top fives, and 12 top tens overall. Those statistics were remarkably similar to a driver who had befriended Tim and taken him under his wing, introducing him around, Dale Earnhardt. Dale had only one win, but like Tim he had 7 top fives and 12 top tens, but because he ran the entire schedule, Dale finished 12th in the points while Tim had to settle for 26th.
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From the Craig Bontrager Collection[/caption]
Tim Richmond and Blue Max racing team, running the Old Milwaukee Beer colors, got off to an uneven start in 1983. The team endured more than its fair share of mechanical difficulties and poor finishes, but when the car was running at the end of the race, Richmond was usually in the top ten. Their first strong run of the year came at Martinsville, where Tim was in contention to win until a pit miscue by crew chief Tim Brewer had the soft compound left side tires put on the right side of the car. NASCAR officials noted the violation and accessed Richmond a five lap penalty. A fourth place at Pocono in June and a third at the next race in Michigan seemed to indicate the team was turning the corner. Tim's breakthrough oval course win came at his favorite track, Pocono in July. A combination of incredible driving and brilliant pit strategy allowed Tim to take the lead when then leader Dave Marcis had to pit for a splash and go with seven laps remaining. Richmond held off a last ditch charge by Darrell Waltrip by two seconds. The win was a confidence booster for the rookie team and began a long string of top ten and even top five finishes whenever the car made it to the end of the race. At Rockingham in October, fans got a good look at the magic that was Tim Richmond's style as he engaged in an epic side-by-side duel with Terry Labonte in the waning laps of the race. Lap after lap the two ran together, with Tim trying moves on both the high and low side of the track, including several times when he gathered the car up as it got out of shape up in the marbles, where all others feared to tread. Terry Labonte won that race by .7 of a second, but it was one of the best races of that, or any other season. Back at Riverside, a track that Tim had mastered, he led the race several times, before he and Darrell Waltrip made hard contact, and both cars wound up spinning off the track. Tim recovered well enough to bring the car home 5th. For the season, Richmond had the one win, ten top fives, and 15 top tens, which earned him a tenth place finish in the points, and a new contract to drive for Blue Max again in 1984.
1984 did not start out well for Tim and the Blue Max team. Once again he finished well when the car was still running, but the team had a string of engine related failures that relegated Richmond to disappointing finishes. A hard crash with Rusty Wallace only increased Tim's frustrations. North Wilkesboro in the spring didn't look like it was going to be Tim's day either. In fact, the event looked like a benefit put on for Ricky Rudd for much of the race. Tim patiently paced himself, knowing the team needed a good finish to boost morale, until in the closing laps of the event Rudd started showing signs he was struggling. Once that opportunity presented itself, Tim threw caution to the wind, and in an awesome display of driving, ran down and passed Ricky. A great pit stop helped Tim maintain the lead and he went on to beat Harry Gant by a tick under four seconds. It was Richmond's first short track win. After that, the mechanical gremlins began rearing their heads again and the season of frustration continued. Even in that disappointing season there were some strong runs. At Dover, Richmond ran in the lead pack all day, and finished second to the King of Stock car racing, Richard Petty. It seemed appropriate as many people felt Tim had the talent to one day inherit the King's throne. Richmond was also in serious contention for the win in the June race at Riverside, battling once again with Terry Labonte in the closing laps until the two cars made contact. Labonte was able to continue, but Tim was forced to the pits for repairs and wound up sixth in the final run down. A second at the Southern 500, on a day where he had little chance of catching winner Harry Gant, was the only other highlight of the disappointing year as the series reached Riverside for the season finale. Though Richmond never led that race, he was in contention for most of the way and wound up second that day to Geoff Bodine. For the year, Tim Richmond wound up with the single win, five other top 5s, and a total of 11 top-tens, good enough to earn him 12th in the points standings. For a lot of drivers that might have been good enough, but Tim was thoroughly dispirited after what he felt was a lackluster season. Better times were coming, but they were still a ways down the road.
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