Rick Hendrick presently owns the US-based NASCAR team called Hendrick Motorsports. The sports businessman is also the co-owner of American stock car racing team JR Motorsports. He also founded The Hendrick Marrow Program and the Hendrick Automotive Group.
According to reports, the entrepreneur has an estimated net worth that reaches $1 billion.
Rick Hendrick: Early Life
The businessman, whose full name is Joseph Roddick Hendrick III, was born in the town called Warrenton in North Carolina on July 12, 1949. He was raised by his parent on the family’s farm.
He began his love for drag racing at the young age of 14, using a 1931 Chevrolet that he built by himself. When he turned 16, he won the Virginia leg of the Chrysler-Plymouth Troubleshooting competition. It is a two-part evaluation that includes a written exam and a time-pressured hands-on diagnosis and fixing of defects deliberately planted on vehicles.
He studied high school in Park View High School, located in South Hill, Virginia, where he thought about having a career as a baseball pro. After graduating from high school, Hendrick enrolled in a co-op program under the North Carolina University and Raleigh, North Carolina’s Westinghouse Electric Company.
Rick Hendrick: How His Automobile Racing Businesses Began
At the age of 23, he launched a little used-car business called the Hendrick Automotive Group with Mike Leith, a professional new-car dealer. Then Hendrick sold his assets in 1976 to buy a franchise located in the city of Bennettsville in South Carolina. It made him the youngest dealer of Chevrolet in the country. His influence helped boost the sales of the challenging location and catapulted it to become the most profitable franchises in the region during that time.
Hedrick also drove twice at the Winston Cup Series. The first one was in 1987 and finished at 33rd. Then he returned in 1988 when he finished in 15th place. The businessman also had a single start in the Busch Series as well as the Craftsman Truck Series. He also joined the pit crew team of Ray Hendrick in the Flying 11.
Rick Hendrick: Life As A Team Owner
During the late 1970s, Hendrick started a dead boat racing team that managed to win three succeeding championships. The team also set a world record using Nitro Fever. Afterward, he decided to shift his focus to the NASCAR Model Sportsman Series, which is now called the Xfinity Series. It helped him earn a victory at Charlotte Motor together with Dale Earnhardt.
In 1984, Hendrick launched All-Star Racing, which is now called Hendrick Motorsports. He was able to field one team in the NASCAR Winston Cup and five dedicated employees, and a massive 5,000 square feet of total workspace. His team, led by driver Geoff Bodine, completed all 30 races to reach the ninth spot in the final standings. They were able to have three wins and some pole positions.
During his entire career as a team owner, he was able to win 17 Drivers’ championships, including one Xfinity Series, three Camping World Truck Series, and 13 Cup Series. His team also had a total of 347 race wins and 291 total pole positions. Thus, Hendrick managed to earn a reputation for being the most successful car racing team owner in the entire history of NASCAR.
No wonder he was able to amass an estimated amount of $1 billion in net worth.
