Tim “Hollywood” Richmond was a GREAT natural talent--one hell of a driver and even more of a Hell raiser -- his throttle more wide open on his life than his car. He was the inspiration for the lead character in Days of Thunder.

Too colorful for NASCAR, it has been charged that the racing organization altered its rules and pressured flunkies to get Richmond suspended from the profession for testing positive for Sudafed (decongestant) and Advil (ibuprofen).

The Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year was the first open-wheel racer to switch to stock cars. 1986 was his best year with seven wins and a third place finish in the points.

He died of AIDS in 1989 at age 34.

Read this article from Jay Hart.

Photos of Richmond are posted here.