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About This Quiz
Can you tell the difference between NASCAR legends like Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty, or Tim Richmond and Bobby Allison from a single image? if you consider yourself an expert on all things racing, take our quiz to show off your '80s NASCAR driver IQ!
The '80s was a coming of age period for NASCAR -- a time when this sport grew to the behemoth it is today, on par with other pro sports like football, baseball and basketball. Not only did the fanbase increase substantially during the decade, but the '80s also brought an increased wave of interest from big-name sponsors, resulting in a sport that was flush with money.Â
The cars themselves also went through a big change; new technology meant that smaller cars could travel just as fast and incorporate just as much power as the larger rides of the '70s.
And while old favorites like Richard Petty and Cale Yarborough still got in plenty of laps, the '80s also brought fresh faces like the legendary Dale Earnhardt and Rusty Wallace, along with countless others. The introduction of the iconic Winston series in 1985 meant even more shots at a win for these drivers, and more excitement for fans.
Think you can recognize the biggest stars of the era from a single picture? Prove it with this quiz!
Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt made his NASCAR debut at the World 600 in 1975. The '80s found him winning the Winston Cup Series Champsionship three times, and famously swapping his blue and yellow car for the black paint job that became his trademark. The legendary #3 was killed in an accident on the track in 2001 at Daytona.
Buddy Arrington
Tighe Scott
A.J. Foyt
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Al Unser
Kyle Petty
Darrell Waltrip
Tim Richmond
Tim Richmond started the '80s winning the Indy 500 Rookie of the Year Award. He won countless races throughout the decade, and even appeared in a pair of films before passing away in 1989.
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Bobby Allison
Rusty Wallace
Rusty Wallace finished 2nd in his NASCAR debut at the 1980 Atlanta 500. The charismatic driver also raced his way to the 1989 Winston Cup Series championship title at the end of the decade.
Richard Petty
Mario Andretti
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Cale Yarborough
Cale Yarborough has the honor of being only the second race car driver in history to appear on the cover of "Sports Illustrated." He won four Daytona 500 races, including back-to-back in 1983 and 1984, then retired in 1986.
David Pearson
Terry Labonte
Emerson Fittipaldi
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Jimmy Mears
Richard Petty
Terry Labonte
In 1984, Terry Labonte was the Winston Cup Series champ. That same year, he guest starred as a member of a pit crew on "The Dukes of Hazzard." He went on to win the Winston in 1988 and the IROC championship in 1989.
Bobby Allison
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A.J. Foyt
Kyle Petty
Cale Yarborough
Buddy Arrington
Chrysler-devotee Buddy Arrington ran more than 500 races during a 25-year career -- but never won a single event. His best finish came in 1979, when he finished third at Talladega. He retired from the sport in 1988.
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Richard Petty
David Pearson
Dale Earnhardt
Buddy Baker
Buddy Baker's racing career spanned four decades, from the late '50s to early '80s. He won both the 1980 Daytona 500 and Winston 500, and was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1995.
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Bobby Allison
Kevin Cogan
Kyle Petty
Kyle Petty competed in more than 800 races in his 30-year career, which lasted from 1979 to 2008. He won the 1986 Miller High Life 400 at Richmond, and had more than 170 top tens over his career.
Terry Labonte
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Cale Yarborough
Jimmy Means
Jimmy Means had 17 top tens during a racing career than lasted from 1976 to 1993. After retiring, he founded Means racing and spent time as a NASCAR crew chief.
Al Unser
Bobby Allison
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Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott set qualifying records at both Daytona and Talladega in 1987. The next year, he was the Winston Cup champion. He also came out on top at the Daytona 500 in 1985 and again in 1987.
John Anderson
Tighe Scott
Neil Bonnett
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Bobby Allison
A.J. Foyt
Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Waltrip won a whopping three NASCAR cup series in 1981, 1982 and 1985. He was also the winner at the 1989 Daytona 500 -- and the runner-up in 1983 and 1986.
Kyle Petty
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Mario Andretti
Bobby Allison
Bobby Allison was the Daytona 500 winer in 1978, 1982 and 1988. He also won the WInston Cup championship in 1983. Allison was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1992.
Terry Labonte
Neil Bonnett
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Emerson Fittipaldi
Slick Johnson
Richard Petty
Richard Petty -- the King -- won more than 200 races in a career that spanned 1958 to 1992. He won the Daytona 500 a whopping seven times, including in 1981.
Bobby Allison
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Cale Yarborough
Rusty Wallace
A.J. Foyt
Harry Gant
Harry Gant, nicknamed Handsome Harry, drove the #33 Skoal Bandit car in the '80s. He was the 1984 and 1991 Southern 500 winner, as well as the 1985 IROC champ.
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David Pearson
Darrell Waltrip
Johnny Rutherford
Johnny Rutherford started off the '80s with a victory at the 1980 Indy 500 -- his third at the event. He was also the 1980 Indycar World Series Champ, and won the 1986 Michigan 500.
Dale Earnhardt
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Terry Labonte
Bobby Unser
Bobby Unser came from a big family of race car drivers. He won the Indy 500 three times, in 1968, 1975 and 1981 -- though a major controversy over his '81 win led him to retire soon after the event.
John Anderson
Richard Petty
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Gordan Johncock
Known to fans as Gordy, Gordon Johncock raced to victory at the 1973 and 1982 Indy 500. In 1999, he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.
Kevin Cogan
Slick Johnson
Cale Yarborough
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Kyle Petty
Al Unser
Geoffrey Bodine
Geoffrey Bodine had great success in the '80s. He was named 1982 Winston Cup Series Rookie of the Year. He won the 1986 Daytona 500, then became the IROC champ in 1987.
Bobby Allison
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Tom Sneva
Nicknamed The Gas Man, Tom Sneva was a math teacher before moving into racing. He is famous for a fiery crash at the 1975 Indy 500. The crash didn't stop Sneva, who went on to win the race in 1983.
Rusty Wallace
Dale Earnhardt
Geoffrey Bodine
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Terry Labonte
Richard Petty
Jody Ridley
Jofy Ridley raced in 140 events between 1973 and 1989, achieving more than 50 top ten finishes. He was named the Winston Cup Rookie of the Year in 1980.
Mario Andretti
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David Pearson
Tighe Scott
Darrell Waltrip
Cecil Gordon
Cecil Gordon participated in around 450 NASCAR events between 1968 and 1985. Though he never won a major race -- he had an average finish of around 17th place - he did score more than 110 top ten finishes.
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Cale Yarborough
Danny Sullivan
Danny Sullivan came in 29th place at the 1984 Indy 500 -- then came back to win the event the next year. He later competed in the Winston Cup Series in the '90s.
Buddy Arrington
Bobby Allison
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Neil Bonnett
Neil Bonnett took part in NASCAR from the mid-'70s to the mid-'90s, coming in within the top 10 more than 150 times. He won the 1988 Goodyear NASCAR 500 in Australia, and had a role in the 1990 flick "Days of Thunder."
Dale Earnhardt
Kevin Cogan
Terry Labonte
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Benny Parsons
Benny Parsons was the 1973 Winston Cup winner, and also won the 1980 Daytona 600. In 2017, Parsons was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
John Anderson
Al Unser
Geoffrey Bodine
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Terry Labonte
Emerson Fittipaldi
Brazilian driver Emerson Fittipaldi started his career racing motorcycles as a teen. He won the Indy 500 in 1989 and again in 1993, and was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2001.
Bobby Allison
Richard Petty
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Slick Johnson
David Pearson
Darrell Waltrip
Michael Andretti
The son of legend Mario Andretti, Michael Andretti had a successful racing career of his own. He was named the 1984 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year, and came in second at the event in 1991.
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Cale Yarborough
Mario Andretti
Bobby Rahal
Robby Rahal won the 1986 Indy 500 as a driver, then won the event again as a team owner when driver Buddy Rice brought his car across the finish line ahead of the pack in 2004.
Buddy Arrington
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Roberto Guerrero
Colombia native Roberto Guerrero was named 1984 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year. Despite a 1987 racing wreck that put him into a 17-day long coma, he came back to finish second at the Indy 500 twice during the '90s.
Rusty Wallace
Kyle Petty
Bobby Allison
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Geoffrey Bodine
Kevin Cogan
Tighe Scott
Rick Mears
Nicknamed Rocket Rick, RIck Mears won the Indy 500 four times -- in 1979, 1984, 1988 and 1991. He was also the Indycar World Series Champ in 1979, 1981 and 1982. Mears retired from racing in 1992.
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Rusty Wallace
John Anderson
John Anderson drove in 32 races over a five-year period between 1979 and 1983, with a top finish of fifth place. Sadly, he was killed in an auto accident on a North Carolina highway in 1986.
Darrell Waltrip
Richard Petty
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Geoffrey Bodine
Bobby Allison
Dick May
Dick May drove in more than 185 races between 1967 and 1985, but also spent many years racing on dirt tracks, rather than asphalt. He was inducted into the Dirt Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2007.
Buddy Arrington
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Al Unser
Al Unser comes from a family of racers, so it's no surprise he won the Indy 500 an incredible four times -- in 1970, 1971, 1978 and 1987. Between 1965 and 1993, he drove in more than 300 events.
Dale Earnhardt
Terry Labonte
Richard Petty
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Donnie Allison
The brother of NASCAR legend Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison was the 1970 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year. After a career that spanned three separate decades, he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2009.
Bobby Allison
Darrell Waltrip
Geoffrey Bodine
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A.J. Foyt
A.J. Foyt won the Indy 500 in 1961, 1964, 1967 and 1977. He also came in first at the Daytona 500. Foyt was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2000.
Tighe Scott
David Pearson
Darrell Waltrip
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Cale Yarborough
Richard Petty
Mario Andretti
Italian Mario Andretti was a midget and sprint racer, with lots of success in Formula One and Indycar before moving into NASCAR. He won the Daytona 500 in 1967, and scored a victory at the Indy 500 two years later.
Bobby Allison
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