Biography of a race car driver

1. Dale Earnhardt

Dale Earnhardt represents, for many race car fans, the pinnacle of excellence. Earnhardt started his legendary career in 1975 at the World 600, which was held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway as part of the Winston Cup Series (today the Sprint Cup Series).

From there, Earnhardt won a total of 76 Winston Cup races, including 34 victories at Daytona International Speedway (and one Daytona 500), the most of any racer.

Biography of a race car driver

He also earned seven NASCAR Winston Cup Championships.

His aggressive — some claim dangerous — driving style earned him the nickname "The Intimidator."

Earnhardt died Feb. 18, 2001, at the Daytona International Speedway, when he crashed on the very last lap of the race.

Earnhardt has since been inducted into numerous halls of fame, including the very first class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

2. Richard Petty

Richard Petty, nicknamed "The King," raced in the Grand National era of t