With its sixth victory of the 2011 season, by Clint Bowyer at Talladega Superspeedway, Richard Childress Racing reached historic NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win No. 100, a major milestone in the storied history of one of NASCAR’s most prolific teams. It was the team’s 12th win at Talladega, which puts it atop the all-time wins list at the historic track.
Richard Childress Racing started its trek to the top of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 1969, as a single-car team with its driver also its owner. Richard Childress paired his business acumen with driving skills that produced results. Childress finished his driving career with six top fives and 76 top 10s.
But it was when Childress took the back seat that Richard Childress Racing exploded. It earned its first win in 1983 at Riverside International Raceway with driver Ricky Rudd. A year later, NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt joined the organization fulltime, and the rest – as they say – is history.
Earnhardt won six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championships and 67 races while flying the Richard Childress flag.
Now, the team has reached another milestone, and another accolade – 100 victories. RCR has won with seven different drivers, at 22 different tracks. Below is a timeline of Childress’ notable and milestone victories on its way to 100:
1 – On June 5, 1983 at Riverside, Ricky Rudd earned RCR’s its first victory. He led 57 laps in the event.
11 – RCR won its first Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, on May 25, 1986 with Dale Earnhardt driving.
23 – RCR won its first Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. On Sept. 6, 1987, Dale Earnhardt led 109 laps en route to his own milestone – victory No. 30.
50 – On July 3, 1993, Earnhardt won the Daytona International Speedway night race. He led 110 laps for his 57th career victory.
59 – RCR won its first Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. On Aug. 5, 1995, Earnhardt won the second running of the Brickyard 400. RCR has won three Brickyard 400s in all, with Earnhardt, Kevin Harvick in 2003 and Paul Menard in 2011.
64 – RCR won its first Daytona 500. In an emotional – and memorable – victory, Dale Earnhardt finally reached Daytona 500 Victory Lane on Feb. 15, 1998. It took Earnhardt 20 tries to get there.
84 – RCR won its second Daytona 500, with Kevin Harvick on Feb. 18, 2007.
Below lists the number of wins per driver, crew chief and track for Richard Childress Racing.
RCR Wins By Driver
Driver Wins
Dale Earnhardt 67
Kevin Harvick 18
Clint Bowyer 5
Jeff Burton 4
Robby Gordon 3
Ricky Rudd 2
Paul Menard 1
RCR Wins By Crew Chief
Driver Wins
Kirk Shelmerdine 46
Andy Petree 15
Gil Martin 11
Kevin Hamlin 9
Todd Berrier 8
Scott Miller 5
David Smith 2
Shane Wilson 2
Larry McReynolds 1
Richard Labbe 1
RCR Wins By Track
Driver Wins
Talladega 12
Atlanta 9
Bristol 9
Darlington 8
Richmond 8
Martinsville 7
Charlotte 6
Daytona 5
North Wilkesboro 5
Dover 4
Loudon 4
Indianapolis 3
Michigan 3
Phoenix 3
Rockingham 3
Chicago 2
Infineon 2
Pocono 2
Watkins Glen 2
Auto Club 1
Riverside 1
Texas 1
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