ELZIE WYLIE "BUCK" BAKER - 03/04/1919 - 04/14/2002
an American stock car racer. Born in Richburg, South Carolina. Baker entered his first race in 1939 in Greenville, South Carolina, but failed to finish because one of his tires flew off. Despite his inauspicious start, Baker went on to become one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR's history. His first NASCAR Cup start came at Charlotte in 1949. He would bring home his 1949 Kaiser in 11th place. He just ran a few races his first few years (1949- 1952); but did claim his first Cup win in 1952. It came at Columbus Speedway in Columbia SC. He would start first; lead 82 laps and get the win. In 1953 he started running in almost all of the Cup events and picked up four additional wins; Including his first Southern 500; and finished fourth in points. 1954 saw Baker win four more times while finishing third in the points. 1955 saw Baker move one step closer to the Championship, as this season he finished second in the points,
while winning once at once at Charlotte and twice at North Wilkesboro. 1956 saw Buck have a career type season. He would post 14 wins and finally break through and win the points Championship. 1957 saw a repeat of 1956 as Baker won on 10 occasions and again win the Championship. 1958 he finished second in the points and garnered three wins. From that point on he would only win a total of five races over the next 15 years and never finish better than fifth in points. He did win a third Southern 500 in 1964 and it would be his final career win. His final Cup start would come in 1976 at Charlotte in the National 500. He would start 38th, complete 301 laps and finish 24th. He was the first back-to-back winner of the Cup Championship. He finished in the top five in points six times. Baker's 46 victories rank him 11th in the all time
list. In 1953, 1960 and 1964, Baker won the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. After his retirement in 1976, Baker opened up the Buck Baker Racing School, where Jeff Gordon drove his first stock car. His son, Buddy, is a 34-year Winston Cup veteran and later taught at the school along with Buck's daughter, Susie Baker. In 1998 he was named one of the NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers. Baker died on the night of April 14, 2002 at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the age of 83, of natural causes. Some info from Wikipedia
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