The latest class for the NASCAR Hall of Fame includes Ricky Rudd, Carl Edwards and Ralph Moody.
NASCAR announced the four-person class in a conference on May 21.
Rudd and Edwards were inducted under the modern-era ballot.
Rudd was NASCAR’s Ironman for much of his career, making 788 consecutive starts in the NASCAR Cup Series, long a record until Jeff Gordon broke it in 2013.
He earned 23 wins in the series, many coming consecutively between 1983 and 1998.
A chunk of Rudd’s success came as an owner-driver, though he also earned accolades driving for Hendrick Motorsports, Robert Yates Racing and more.
Edwards was a 28-time Cup winner between 2005 and 2016. He was also the NASCAR Xfinity Series champion in 2007.
Edwards was a surprise retiree after the 2016 season and has not returned to NASCAR competition since.
Moody was inducted under the pioneer ballot. A former driver who scored five Cup wins, he eventually formed Holman-Moody alongside John Holman. The team not only manufactured cars but also owned them, snagging Cup championships with David Pearson driving in 1968 and ’69 alongside scores of race victories, including the 1967 Daytona 500 with Mario Andretti.
Moody will be the lone posthumous inductee of the group, having died in 2004 at age 86.
The Landmark Award was given to Dr. Dean Sicking, who invented the SAFER barrier. 2024 was Sicking’s first year on the ballot.
The inductees will be formally welcomed to the Hall of Fame in a ceremony on Feb. 7, 2025.
About the author
Rutherford is the managing editor of Frontstretch, a position he gained in 2015 after serving on the editing staff for two years. At his day job, he's a journalist covering music and rock charts at Billboard. He lives in New York City, but his heart is in Ohio -- you know, like that Hawthorne Heights song.
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Good for them and good luck.
Why has Geoff Bodine not been inducted?
We lost a pioneer in Modified Stock Car racing this week.
Carl “Bugsy” Stevens (age 90).
He was a phenomenal driver, NASCAR Champion, and a real character. Bugsy was track champion several times, at several tracks in the northeast; including Stafford Springs Motor Speedway in CT.
His real name was Carl Berghman. Bobby Allison used an alias when he started racing because his mother didn’t want him to and after he started winning she told him to use his real name.
So glad to see Ricky Rudd get the recognition he deserves. He was a heck of a racecar driver, and one tough hombre.
Still no Smokey!