NASCAR Hall of Fame Honors the Class of 2021 Inductees

Credit: Debbie Ross for Skirts and Scuffs 

On Friday night, the NASCAR Hall of Fame honored Class of 2021 inductees Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Charles “Red” Farmer, and Mike Stefanik. Unfortunately, last year’s induction ceremony didn’t happen as scheduled due to the pandemic.

 

Dale Earnhardt, Jr., son of seven-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion Dale “The Intimidator” Earnhardt, joined his father as a NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee. His wife, Amy Earnhardt, introduced and inducted him.

 

“The people enshrined in this building, they’re my role models and heroes, and one of them happens to be my father,” the two-time Daytona 500 champion said. “So to join my dad in the Hall of Fame is probably as good as it’s going to get.”

 

He went on to share stories about his humble beings as a mechanic and eventual transition into becoming a driver. “I want to thank NASCAR for giving me a place to make a living, and by NASCAR, I mean the entire industry,” Earnhardt, Jr. said. “I’m grateful for every employee, racetrack official, every ticket seller, every weekend volunteer, crew member, competitor, everyone who ever invested their time in this sport to make it great.”

 

In 631 career starts, he earned 26 wins, 149 top-five finishes, 260 top-ten finishes, 15 poles and led 8,234 laps. He also earned the NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver honors 15 times.

 

Credit: Mike Comer

Three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and 2020 Hall of Famer, Tony Stewart, had the honor of introducing and inducting Charles “Red” Farmer. At the age of 89, the former NASCAR driver and member of the Alabama Gang can still be found racing often at the dirt track across from Talladega Superspeedway.

 

In an interview with NASCAR.com’s Alex Weaver, Farmer said, “as long as I can crawl in that window, I’ll keep racing.” In 36 NASCAR career starts, he had two top-five finishes, three top-ten finishes, and led eight laps.

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2018 NASCAR Hall of Famer, Ray Evernham, had the honor of introducing Julie Stefanik as they inducted the late Mike Stefanik. He was a seven-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion who earned 74 wins throughout his 38-year career.

 

“He was meticulous about everything he did,” his widow said. “He cared about details and everything being perfect. His obsession was the same for racing, to always be prepared.”

 

Two posthumous honors included the late Bob Jenkins with the Ken Squier-Hall Award. He was a legendary, award-winning motorsports broadcaster for ESPN and ABC. The late Ralph Seagraves was awarded with the Landmark Award for the trailblazing work that he did to bring national sponsorship to NASCAR’s premier series after a life changing meeting with 2010 NASCAR Hall of Famer Robert Glenn “Junior” Johnson.