| Buddy Baker | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Baker in his car, 1970 | |||||||
| Born | Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. January 25, 1941 Florence, South Carolina, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | August 10, 2015 (aged 74) Lake Norman of Catawba, North Carolina, U.S. | ||||||
| Achievements | 1980 Daytona 500 Winner 1970 Southern 500 Winner 1968, 1972, 1973 World 600 Winner 1975, 1976, 1980 Winston 500 Winner 1979 Busch Clash Winner | ||||||
| Awards | International Motorsports Hall of Fame (1995) Charlotte Motor Speedway Court of Legends (1995) National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame (1997) Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998) NASCAR Hall of Fame (2020) Named one of NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers (2023) | ||||||
| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 700 races run over 33 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 5th (1977) | ||||||
| First race | 1959 untitled race (Columbia) | ||||||
| Last race | 1992 Winston 500 (Talladega) | ||||||
| First win | 1967 National 500 (Charlotte) | ||||||
| Last win | 1983 Firecracker 400 (Daytona) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Grand National East Series career | |||||||
| 8 races run over 2 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 15th (1973) | ||||||
| First race | 1972 Sandlapper 200 (Columbia) | ||||||
| Last race | 1973 Buddy Shuman 100 (Hickory) | ||||||
| First win | 1972 Sandlapper 200 (Columbia) | ||||||
| Last win | 1973 Sunoco 260 (Hickory) | ||||||
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| Statistics current as of December 18, 2012. | |||||||
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Elzie Wylie "Buddy" Baker Jr. (January 25, 1941 – August 10, 2015) was an American professional stock car racing driver and commentator. Over the course of his 33-year racing career, he won 19 races in the NASCAR Cup Series, including the 1980 Daytona 500. Known by the nickname "Gentle Giant", Baker was noted for his prowess at NASCAR's superspeedways, Daytona and Talladega, at which he won a combined six races. After his racing career, he worked as a broadcaster and co-hosted a number of radio shows on Sirius XM.