With 46 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race wins, 44 pole positions and an incredible talent to push the race car to the limit, Buck Baker was the first ever back-to-back champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 1956 and 1957.
He started driving as a bus driver before turning into a full-time racer.
| Born | 4 Mar 1919 |
| Died | 14 Apr 2002 (83 years) |
| Nationality |
United States
|
Baker won the southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, three times in 1953, 1960 and in 1964. In his 631 starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, he ran the most number of laps and miles for three consecutive years between 1955 and 1957.
He was inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association’s Hall of Fame in 1982 and in 1990, it was the turn of the International Motorsports Hall of Fame to bring him in. Baker went on to establish, run and teach in, high-speed and performance driving schools at the Atalanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia and at the North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham.
