Richie Evans Inducted Into NASCAR Hall of Fame
Rome’s Richie Evans the winningest Modified driver of all time was posthumously inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame Friday night. Joining Evans in the class of 2012 were drivers Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip, crew chief Dale Inman and owner Glen Wood. According to USA Today the induction ceremony Friday night was a mixture of remembrance and good humor. Richie’s widow Lynn accepted the induction for Richie.
She was moved by the award, having told her children, “your dad will get in some day, but I won’t be here to see it.”
She thanked Hall of Fame voters “for stepping outside the box and making Rich the first driver inductee not to have raced in NASCAR’s top series full time. You have now given hope to thousands of NASCAR competitors throughout the country to maybe someday reach their dream.”
via NASCAR welcomes diverse Hall of Fame class – USATODAY.com.
Here is a thumbnail bio of Richie from the NASCAR Hall of fame website.
RICHIE EVANS – Driver (b. 7-23-41 – d. 10-24-85)
Hometown: Rome, N.Y.
Competed: 1973-85
Starts: 1,300 (estimated)
Wins: 475 (estimated)
The recognized “king” of Modified racing, Evans captured nine NASCAR Modified titles in a 13-year span, including eight in a row from 1978-85.
In the first year of the current NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour format in 1985, Evans won 12 races, including a sweep of all four events at Thompson, Conn.
Evans ranked No. 1 in the 2003 voting of the “NASCAR All-Time Modified Top 10 Drivers,” and he was named one of NASCAR’s “50 Greatest Drivers” in 1998.
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