Legendary driver and broadcaster Buddy Baker dies

Buddy Baker, a former Daytona 500 victor and NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee, has died after a brief battle with lung cancer.

Baker has remained involved in the sport, working race telecasts for The Nashville Network and then co-hosting a radio show two nights a week on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Baker was the first driver to exceed 200 miles per hour on a closed course when he did it in 1970 at Talladega Superspeedway.

NASCAR legend Buddy Baker has passed away, according to Sirius XM NASCAR and NASCAR Senior Vice President and CCO Brett Jewkes.

“There comes a time when you talk to the doctor and say what are my chances and there’s dead silence”, Baker said. In his No. 28 “Gray Ghost”, Baker headed to Victory Lane following the 1980 Daytona 500, won three Coca-Cola 600s (1968, 1972, and 1973) and the 1970 Southern 500.

At 6-foot-4, Baker earned the “Gentle Giant” nickname but “Leadfoot” wasn’t far behind as he set a blistering pace during his career on NASCAR’s biggest superspeedways. He ranks 14th all-time in pole positions won at 38 in 700 career starts spanning from 1959 through 1992. Buddy Baker was a longtime Charlotte-area resident. He joined SiriusXM when the satellite radio company started an exclusive NASCAR channel in 2007 and became one of its most popular hosts, regaling fans as a beloved and an insightful storyteller.

“I just want to say goodbye to everyone”, Baker said before signing off from his final broadcast, which lasted about 40 minutes.