NASCAR HOF (2012) Darrell Waltrip

down Baltic the new kid in town the future looks bright for this youngster Walter from Franklin Tennessee takes the lead little restraint there's not a lot of room for anything to go wrong Darrell Walter Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Tahoe Darrell Walker wins what a streak that team is on when I decided that I was going to retire in 2000 it was bittersweet I didn't end up my career the way I wanted to Walter brings the car you can hear the engine misfiring and there's a lot of smoke it's more than a plug wire I'm afraid Daryl water hits it hard into the wall Walter I've sweated it out just to get into this race new fans that have started to fall in the sport in the 90s never got to see me when I was at my best matter of fact they never even got to see me when I was just mediocre they didn't know who Darrell Waltrip was there were people that didn't know Darrell Waltrip won seven races in a row with Bristol or five coke 600 turning those things seventy-five was a darn good year for us we were really really competitive in our in my own car it was number seventeen orange and white thermal transport and we came here to Nashville and it was a Mother's Day weekend my grandmother and my grandfather all my family came down here for the big races a couple laps we took the lead and that was my first Cup win and it was so cool the picture that I have is my whole family a mom my dad and Michael standing down front corner of the car my grandmother my grandfather and then the interesting thing about my grandmother being there was she really was a reason why that I ever even thought about racing there was five of us kids and we didn't have a lot of money my grandfather was a deputy sheriff in Owensboro and he worked traffic on the weekends for the races my grandmother would bring me to the races with her to keep her company she liked sitting in the grandstand by herself I'm a little guys six seven years old those cars fascinated take that thing down her to wit sideways Wow Wow Wow I told my grandmother's you know granny one day I think that's what I want to do one day I'm gonna be a race car driver mom worked at the IGA and my dad drove with pepsi-cola truck he was a route salesman or pepsi-cola side help my dad in summertime when school is out there was a hardware store in Owensboro where I grew up they sew go-karts every time for the next few weeks we stopped out there to deliver Pepsi Cola and there he said that go-kart they had on the showroom floor I'd go over and not sit on that thing and I just I had this vision I had this vision of me winning the world's biggest go-cart racing nobody in my family ever raced for for anyone like I'd inherited something the guy that owned the hardware store II said Leroy that's my dad's names you got to get that boy go-cart I'll sell it to you on credit ah when came to the Waltrip family that was us we didn't care how much it costs we just want to know how much your month is it had a big race at the fairgrounds in Louisville and we took that go-kart to that race you would have thought I'd ridden go-kart my whole life I hopped on that thing and if everybody else was going around that track in 15 seconds I was going around the track in 13 seconds but my poor brothers and sisters sacrificed a lot so I could race my go-kart so I could work on my racing career and I I know all of them at the time maybe thought it was a little bit over the top for us to be doing what we were doing and so when I look at that picture of my first win right down here in victory circle and who's standing in there as proud as she could possibly be with my grandmother for the one to long after that she passed away but it's always so grateful that she got to see me win my first race car Waltrip a new young tiger of NASCAR racing Darrell Waltrip certainly is the man to watch this year we've seen the second wait waltrip duro Walton second straight national driving title walked all over this deal tonight I didn't have to work at driver it was a natural thing for me to do I had a talent I didn't know I had it I was racing in Owensboro and winning every week little racetracks teach you car control throttle control finesse you're not going 200 miles an hour so you got time to absorb more learn more you got to be too easy there was not any competition there for me anymore so I needed a challenge and my next challenge I felt like was here at the fairgrounds in Nashville this racetrack had an incredible reputation can I on this July 25th night if you could win a race at Nashville you got national recognition ended up leaving Owensboro moving down to Franklin Tennessee to go to work for a man named PB Crowell and he had won the track championship here and he had the best cars and he knew this racetrack and he hired me to drive for him dad always told me and since this always feel always played with somebody better than you are because you can learn something from them and that's where Darryl was when he come in Darryl couldn't have picked a racetrack any better than the fairgrounds there and Nashville it was slick hard to manage and just having the fastest car was not gonna win your race the old racetrack that I started on was a lot like Darlington it was narrow it was kind of a one groove racetrack you'd go in and go right up to the top of the banking and real high bank right dead in the middle of the corner so you went in you had to run at the wall and turn and come off the wall because he couldn't just go around like a circle some of the worst wrecks probably ever been calls here at the fairgrounds I caused I learned I learned fast mr. Donaho the promoter here he wanted to change the track because he couldn't pass it's hard to race on so he wanted to change it around make it a little more exciting so he decided he was gonna have the highest bank short track in America he banked this thing up to 36 degrees and there you see the rollercoaster at the State Fairgrounds here this racetrack is something like a roller coaster as it's often right these 35 degrees and banked turn when the track was minded sharply as it was you look through that windshield in the corner you can't see very far at it so you've got to sharpen your reflexes that's what Nashville really teaches the race driver how to do some of the top notch drivers refuse to either race there or never really adapt it to the racetrack like Darrell did once they built that track with the big banks I mean he just he's like an old comfortable pair of shoes he just I mean he just put a hurt on everybody week after week I've watched enough races that I knew exactly what to do I mean it just came to you it was so fast and so high bank that we couldn't have a weekly show here and that's what this joint truly was known for back in the day was weekly racing so I think the banks now are 1820 degrees on my cat and that's the track you see here now I firmly believe that Darryl's early experiences here at Nashville is as much as anything one of if not the compelling reason why he was so successful on the NASCAR Cup circuit experiencing those different configurations like I said that first one like Darlington with the donk and I was like a daunting didn't scare me one bit real racing he has to be patient he has to discipline himself and that is one of the toughest today here in traffic again water Floyd he's got him that took some real nerve to do that at wash up the big man that goes Speedway's every Saturday I just out in front and you know went to Bristol I said man this racetrack here bristle just like running a home in Nashville I'd sit there the place like Bristol and watch the stop watches and total amazement how he could click off a lap after lap after lap and only very a couple of tenths each lap far in a way his number one all-time greatest accomplishment was winning seven in a row now walk it will win his fifth and six races in a row seventh time in a row which scoring volumes own the talent level of Daryl could he have done it without his background here in Nashville I want to say probably not all the guys that came up in the Carolinas you know they had Hickory and they had Martinsville and they had Asheville and all those places but there was nothing Bank like national this is a great training ground and I learned so much here the legend of this place and being a part of that legend it's really important to me it's been important to my career and it's been important to the success I've had it was and still is the type track that just produces fabulous racing and produces fabulous racecar drivers often humorous sometimes a bit outspoken but rarely silent and his articulate wit and quick sense of humor prompted his fellow competitors to nickname him jaws I owned this joint I own this fairgrounds racetrack I owned every racetrack I went to and tell her what the cub and then then I was just a small fish in a big pond and the best thing I had going for him is my ability to talk and antagonize the drivers they were very intimidated with television they didn't like to place a camera Leeroy what happened out there okay we are following Benny and neighbors every person was behind me in man I came along huh I mean I live to join up you got any comment aging anything to say you have to get bought either all in life you'll never know what to say back to the town though he does get he understands the game my driver has to be good and lucky know what in Talladega Darryl Walsh Utley you feel lucky today no but I feel good when they need stories they always came to tower and the reason was he he always had something to say to them that was unique my mother's father changing my diapers about the first time is racing Roy don't see relief drivers very much anymore well it's hard on our pride where can your rest on this racetrack kind of in the pits and if you got a good picture hidden last very long Darrell was so good it it psychons people out you know when it's your turn to win or your track I guess you just gonna win no matter what lot of times we're not the fastest but when the green flag comes out we go the front Joe how does it feel to be the biggest cheater here today I always admired his confidence and I think that that carried him a long way in the sport and and the fact that he didn't mind speaking about it I thought that was good to hear Darrell Racing here told me about racing and how to race on difficult racetracks but those guys taught me all about how to do TV and how to deal with the media and how to do interviews and that turned out to be invaluable to me he was what I would call the first showman of the sport and as a truck owner you're thankful for that because he puts the sport on the front page and as a result he's hold tickets I always felt I needed to take the road less travel because it's not so crowded when it came into sport big belt buckles cowboy boots cowboy hats not me so I always tried to be different he embraced the media he didn't run from it I think he understood that this was a platform for him to be able to separate himself from basically the standard NASCAR driver because of that I had a bad reputation race fans at that time didn't like somebody different all of a sudden this smooth-talking slick dressed guy from Tennessee shows up and starts beating their heroes you know every week you wanted to have a rivalry it's sold tickets it got headlines it made news when he come in he looked at it completely different I think that the good-old-boy deal even though he's from Kentucky of Tennessee whatever he tried to put his mark on and he did Darrell Waltrip in the mercury number 95 has taken over the lead he's a hard charger and considered to be one of the most promising rookie on the nascar scene I had to beat Richard Petty if I was sitting here and you were seven times he did that 43 car he's the king of this sport he's mine they're coming to the finish line and it really was showing Petty and was showing the world that this new superstar was here to stay now here is Cale Yarborough trying to move back into second place racing with Darrell Waltrip you see that 11 cards Cale Yarborough 3-time consecutive champion he's on my list he's going down I think it's in Darlington he crashed me one then getting the race both leaders are out of it cale yarborough is still spinning so the mean old lady at Darlington jumps up and snaps both leaders Darryl Waltrip and Cale Yarborough one of us would have won that race if we hadn't wrecked and when they interview Kelly so what happened some of the news port asked me what happened I just said jaws got me it's always running that mouth and tearing up cars look like jaws to me you know everybody laughed although it's funny and nobody thought about it sticking I just couldn't resist it I called this friend of mine up down and down at the beach she was a shark fisherman and I said Doug it don't catch me big shark you can't bring it up to a shark humpy wheeler great promoter head he is thinking maybe a little different everybody else he decides he's gonna elevate the legend of Jaws they bring that shark back up to the Charlotte take the shark hook it on the back of a wrecker that was pretty wild I'm his shark hanging upside down I'm not sure that Daryl was very receptive to that but humpy wheeler didn't care of course Gail was racing with Holly Farms chicken it's time the coup was I had a dead chicken that had not been plucked and I stuck the chicken down in in in that shark's mouth the legend of Jaws she was alive and well after that darrel Baltic the new kid in town with his first grand national win coming only two weeks ago the future looks bright for this 28-year old youngster you know back in the day pretty much if you wanted to get into Cup racing or really any kind of race had to do it on your own head do it out of your own pocket we start 275 season and we got nice cars I was spending money I didn't have but people trusted me first all this all my passion they saw my vision and I can back it up time to be tonight he really drove a good hard rain died guard was around at the time Donnie Allison was driving for him my brother-in-law that died died guard Mike the prospero was his name he was from Connecticut hadn't made a lot of money before he was 30 and I had made a lot of money before I was 30 and he approached me in this game of pinochle about the fact that he had bought a car Bobby Allison was having a build to run it at Daytona and he said would you like to go half with me and I said I don't know anything about racing you know I'm not that's not my world and he's that commodity fun Donnie Allison was driving the car and fourth of July race of 1975 didn't go so well we go to Daytona it's 4th of July race and cars running good I passed Donnie on the last lap of the race Darrell Waltrip the youngster who want her this year at Nashville Tennessee he takes the number 4 spot and Donnie Allison will finish in the number 5 position and of course I'm from a world of not losing I'm used to making business deals and winning Milgard a high-strung big businessman and he's not used to losing and getting beat every week by that 17 car and that kid from Tennessee that doesn't have two nickels to rub together and he keeps beating us every week I'd made a decision that if I didn't feel we were that competitive and going to win that we needed to make a change and so after that 1975 fourth of July race I terminated our relationship with Donnie Allison the old French said have you seen bill Gardner they want to hire you to drive their car that's ridiculous I got my own team I got my own cars I'm better than they are so I get back your car and steam they're driving up the road I see no you're not gonna believe what just happened that died guard munch wants to hire me to drive your car of course Stevie knows the financial shape we were in how much money we were spending how much money we owed we really didn't have anything going for us other than just his desire so in the middle of 75 we parked all my stuff I called Jake and all the guys together told him what I was gonna do and I said but here's the deal I'm gonna make them hire all the y'all and that's when things really improved the crowd up on their feet the checkered flag Falls for car number 88 coming to the finish line and if Darrell Waltrip winning the Rebel 500 seeing the hometown guy do that good that early then you had to think there were better things down bro Darrell was driving the wheels off the car 126 races was testament to his his capabilities and what he wanted to show the world just kind of like coming out party we won several races in 77 78 same thing and then 79 we made a strong run into championship Darrell Waltrip certainly is the man to watch this year Waltrip wins it by just about a half a car length I didn't get beat by the competition I beat myself situation it down bill about almost a mile and a half lean on his nearest competitor I've always regretted losing that championship and so that was one of those life lessons I learned and I take it with me everywhere I go to this day don't beat yourself we lost by 11 points to Richard Petty and it's almost like in any sport you know teams that have won championships consistently like a Richard Petty or the we brothers junior Johnson they can let it all hang out more I think we took more of a conservative approach Gallagher won three consecutive championships he comes to me in 1988 he says I'm gonna give you some of the best advice anybody ever gave you junior doesn't even know it yet but I want to run a partial schedule I'm tired of racing every week and I know that junior would really like to have you in this car Darrell a good guy like to talk but he was good he was a good guy he was he was a heck of a race car driver and I felt like if I was going to leave one of the best positions in the in the culture in racing that uh I should let somebody know about it so naturally junior would look around just like I would if I had been in his position at that time and said well who is the best driver now in the sport and obviously was Darrell Waltrip when I lost Kayla you know I knew that he was an Excel cover when we got word that jr. might be interested in having Darryl be his driver that was huge to us I mean the man is a legend and he had the best car in the sport at the time and won championships and races and he'd won 50 races himself I was flabbergasted but I had a problem I just earned contract I intend to enforce the contract to the letter of the law and I hope that the Darrell will be driving for us in 1981 and 82 no one had did contracts at that time they they weren't from the might the business world that I was from so much language in there that that that there was no way that we're just gonna be able to say I'm walking I knew that major sponsorships required moral turpitude clauses and things that most of these drivers had never even heard of there were no written contracts while this was new my position was if he wanted to get out of the contract that we needed to have compensation so we end up negotiating the deal and jr. ended up putting up a hundred grand Mountain Dew put up a hundred grand and I borrowed a hundred grand from my father-in-law it was an investment in my future probably could have stayed at die guard and toughed it out but I wanted to drive for the legend I wanted to drive for a man that I knew would would take me from just being a race car drivers to a champion and because I said I've seen what he deal with kale and I wanted that too to be with Junior Johnson it's like a rebirth for me and I'm just looking forward to 1981 I think it's gonna be the best year I ever had this is an opportunity of a lifetime this could be my defining moment in the sport and I knew that just one little small hiccup the team would not want me to be their driver honestly it was more like oh dear God please not Darryl Walter because Darryl was one of our biggest Robins well Darryl would no question he is going to be a great race driver but everybody I had on the team didn't like dark house sometimes he'd beat us it's a big learning process between when you're trying to get acclimated to a new guy and now we're going into a model change here all those cars came from 116 inches to 110 inches the tread width came from 66 and a half inches down to 62 inches and we were trying to refine and define that those cars were evil hard to drive a lot like what we went through you know in the last few years with the co t car well that was a big change in the 80s just like that was a big change in 2000 jr. finally came to us and he had a little meeting of the minds he was about really had all he could stand with the crew all he could stand with Darrow complaining about the crew brewing our about ready to kill each other finally jr. grabs his boat by the college so y'all come with me and boy when jr. gets mad you got trouble he pulled us up in the front how to holler nice let me tell you two knuckleheads something I'm sick and tired of your bellyache either you get out there you get your heads together you work on that car and you get along or guess what you and you are both gonna be looking for a job we got a lot of fun after you know a racer - Darrell knew what he had to do he knew he had the best car on the racetrack and he tuck in proved it Darrell Waltrip received the checkered flag birthplace we watch break when it you brought a gun car number 11 driven by Darrell Waltrip is dominated NASCAR Grand National racing winning almost every race it enters by the end of the season we went to North Wilkesboro Martinsville Charlotte Rockingham and a fall we set on four poles and won four races in a row we came out with the brashness that I think really helped us take it to our competition and eventually you know helped lead us to a championship in 81 we ended up winning 12 races the championship nobody could touch it it looked like kind of an easier day for you that's a problem with me I'll make it look too easy it's a perfect year first team to be honored in New York at the Waldorf we're just happy as we can possibly be me and Brewer and Harrell and all of us were celebrating and brewers had had a good year been good but we're leaving what yeah we're gonna go to work for MC Anderson why was crushed we just bonded we just kind of all got together and they're gonna leave their fortune became my fortune because when everybody had left and the smoke had cleared you know I saw an opportunity so I walked in the office and I told Union I really would like to have a shot at being your crew chief and he looked at me and he said okay and everybody said aw it's a sinking ship they'll never win another championship look at the people they got darrel eyes relationship had been real rocky up to that point but fortunately for me I think he saw the sincerity and my commitment to him a v2 is a great year 12 more wins and other championship I just need to thank jr. and Jeff Hammond and all the boys that work so hard on this race car I tell you right now we got a super crew for 82 you know 81 82 you couldn't have scripted better years for so many reasons that $300,000 investment I made paid off he proved our side and he sided he was the best driver that given time and he might very well could have been the best drivers ever all right narrow long-term I hand the he wins 200 the motor blew right when I took the checker all the bases the guy just flipped head the talent he could wrestle it out of the car it's all over for the 1985 Westin Cup season Darrell Waltrip wins the championship 85 we win the championship but it wasn't pretty junior decided that maybe I don't have the same desire I had that the fire had gone out junior was just junior he he wanted to everything his way I don't knock him for the I mean that's that's business but I think that brought the downfall because there was competitiveness never faltered during the 86 season by now Rick Hendrick mmm this guy this car dealer all of a sudden he's getting his legs under and because he was a Chevrolet dealer things started flowing over toward the Hendrick side and left for the junior side but you tell Junior Johnson that he didn't want to hit you one of left hooks and so we were kind of coming apart at the seams things like had happened they don't get bad to just move on and do the best yeah so I call Rick up and I say Rick let's do it and I'm making the deal drive the tide car in 1987 because it had to make into something really really great about the only thing darrell waltrip is not one in his stellar Winston Cup career is the Daytona 500 but when he became the third driver in the Rick Hendricks table the odds became better than ever that he would break a long-standing drought you know he'd won championships he'd wanted a lot of races but the really cap his career off Darrell really wanted to win the Daytona 500 in 89 we had this new engine package we go to Daytona and this thing was bad to the bone I mean it was it ran like it didn't have a restrictor plate on it Hammond and I were so excited we're nervous are we cheating on something is the engine illegal what's going on and got him up art cribs checks the carburetor on all the engines he takes my carburetor off and he immediately says I can't run that so what do you mean we can't run that that's not legal so they took my carburetor well that carburetor was worth about 15 horsepower the carburetor we put on the engine not too much power but really good gas mileage then we are set to go racing 200 laps in the Daytona 500 pass they just stay in line side-by-side is a hit for turn one boy Waldrip is in trouble he's just falling way back the car was going slower slower Darrell was starting to you know get agitated and frustrated because he can feel this when you know getting away from him okay Darrell nice go back through you get the position Campbell what you wanted okay I understand you think you needed a now's the time to do it as the day went on we kept coming in we'd come in just on the car come in just on the cart I wonder miles a long time at Daytona my job as a crew chief was to get him as happy as you possibly could at the end of the day and we start thinking about this thing I also realize you know we pack a thankful a few on that last stop we might go go distance when they gave one to go with 55 laps to go we came down pit road we topped up with fuel everybody else stayed out are they going to be able to go that 55 laps around Lincoln fuel Stevie had set there and she'd worked with the guys on the fuel mileage and she did all the calculating and she told Hammond we can make it and I said you guys we know how to lose this race let's win it let's take a chance here what have we got to lose what does he get some rocks let's run for his first place we're talking about three laps further we've been all day and he says we're gonna go for it draft draft sure enough everybody start stopping for fuel the first thing you know just me and a li Kui it's obvious he's gonna try to make it to and I I'm good but I don't have the car to pass him with I'll here come those two cars go Whitney and Walter they're not making any effort to slow whatsoever they're gonna stay on the racetrack Romeo he takes off up the hill Alka wiki is a Lovato he trips high in the banking darrell wolf it takes the lead Waldrop in prada think he's going to take the gamble all around the track of anyone he can find trying to conserve fuel then we had the fuel pressure gauge and that thing is jumping all over the place and it's you know it's four seven pounds it's no pounds it's all over the place the motors I'm screaming on the radio you know I was a cheerleader and if you give him that little bit of encouragement you know when he started faltering a little bit he'd bring it right back on what I know it's tough but you gotta hang on one lap to go will that fuel last lap go in the first turn yeah yeah we going in all grip under power still in turn number three I think he's gonna make it coming in the third turn I'm crying I'm gonna cry like a ratty and onion she's kind of chugging along on banana man and and sure enough hosted across the start-finish line won that stupid race and I've been trying to win for 17 straight years the Daytona 500 the Franklin jealousy Walter on the Daytona 500 they're all how long this is it this is the Daytona power in it don't kill me in it thank God it just shows that as much of a perfectionist has always tried to be that whole week was anything from perfect but it ended up with the perfect result for what an incredible list of people for I've done a pretty amazing job of hiring some some very talented people as good as 89 was I mean it was a great year one most popular driver I won Daytona in seven races I want all my favorite races Martinville Bristol Atlanta Charlotte Daytona and ham and I sit down one morning I said look we can spend a sponsor's money just as good as these guys can I think we could have won a championship with Darrell the Peach State but he had this desire to do his own team you know when a guy gets that in his head then you got to let him go do it I remember I never felt felt so helpless that when he finally separated for Rick Hendrick and I looked in that race shop and I saw my toolbox how was it and we were gonna build a race team around that first-year men Hammond and we had a great group of guys we were doing our own cars and get the motors from Hendrick Motorsports everything started off beautifully first race in September at the end of 91 I said I can't believe I waited this long to do this got our legs under us 92 we come out strong the checkered flag waves my heart out for you at the end of 92 I looked at what we were doing and I said for us to get to where I want to go first all we got to do our own engine program we had the the equipment and the availability to build engines in-house and it's just something that Dara wanted to try that was the beginning of the end that was my demise Darrell Walker dam the pit area Boadicea met her problems with Zaros power plant going under the hood look at the smoke blowing do you see it yeah you guys got it he blew it up it broke me it's cost me six hundred thousand dollars a month keep this place open well the first month that's six hundred pound I'm okay I'm okay next month that's not a million to life I'm okay the next month another $600 a million eight whoop timeout I don't know that he ever doubted his ability as a driver but as a car owner yes I need to prove to some of you guys in here a lot of you guys probably all you guys a matter of fact that I can still get the job done I just like to get myself in a position where I can be a racecar driver if Darrell's not believed in he doesn't perform well and that kind of was going on my performance is now people were making fun of me for taking champions Provisionals I didn't have the money you know I was in pretty bad shape whatever the team needed he wanted to give it to him and he wants to be competitive and so the celia's team like he had to was devastating for him it was the hardest thing ever had to do I needed to get out much of the headaches of owning a race team finalized that deal of this past week with this gentleman said to my left here Tim Beverly he's a businessman he thinks he can run a team better than I can and I agree with it in the meantime Earnhardt has started Dei and he's got pins old sponsor and he was in a panic because Pennzoil was putting pressure on him they weren't getting the results Tom Steve Park got hurt in Atlanta broke his leg couldn't drive you know with Steve laid up and we were working on getting Steve well again it gave us an opportunity to put a truly great driver in there and bring a lot of confidence to the team first of all I was very honored and pleased that they would call me and ask me to do that at a time when he needed help and I needed helping it reach it it did so much for me we are a.cian this is kind of a new lease on life for it it really picked him up and and he got back to their they old arrow they went home before running Carroll a lot of people left you for dead you show them that you still have the fire they didn't put quite enough dirt over kicked it off and crawl back out I've been in holds before and crawled and crawling out of a pretty deep one right now but canvas is good if I could have stayed in that one car the rest of the year I'm pretty sure out of one a couple of races for Dale but that last couple of years I drove I drove for Travis Carter in the Kmart team you know another couple years of floundering around not being very competitive so I decided it was time for me to quit and it was so sad hard to believe man that tough that ain't gonna do this no more this is hard to believe I have loved this I've done so much thought it's so hard and so long hard to walk away from it was bittersweet disappointing but it was the right time to quit and the right opportunity came along for me to get out of the car and then transitioning into the TV booth where I'm just was a natural I know all too well it's a full hundred lap race but folks what I'm worried about are those first ten this racetracks been laying here in the Sun all afternoon beating down on it that turn up their turn three and four it's like hitting glass I gotta tell you Larry I think you'd agree if that 48 car is that goodness early look out because we know what he can do when the Sun Goes Down Darrell is special and somebody says well don't you get tired of playing second fiddle to Walter no that's been my role since since 81 I love being his wingman his copilot accolades I've got for my work in television and the success I've had there for all six any of those bad last two or three years I had in driving so I'm proud of what I've done I'm proud of my I'm proud of my accomplishments and I love my job can't imagine it could have worked out any other way you know we're sitting right here at Nashville fairgrounds Speedway where it all started and my first win in 1975 and started on a journey that I knew I wanted to go and I knew what I wanted to happen but I didn't know if it ever would or not and and so the sport has been good to me it's been my platform my whole life it's what I stand on it's Who I am I've helped grow the sport at times when when the you know like in the 80s when it needed a spokesperson I was there I hope people look at me and say that me being in this sport has made the sport better because me being this sport has made me better I'm proud of what I've accomplished and one of the things I always dreamed of was being called the Hall of Famer and now I am you

Channel: NascarAllOut

Views: 179,227

Rating: 4.8730736 out of 5

Keywords: NASCAR, HOF, Biography, Darrell, Waltrip, SPEEDHD, x264, English

Id: 0JaUREZtUu8

Length: 44min 53sec (2693 seconds)

Published: Wed Jan 11 2012