Rick Hendrick was well on his way to becoming a legendary NASCAR® team owner by the Fall of 1987. The Charlotte, North Carolina car dealer had started his Hendrick Motorsports operation three years earlier and had already amassed victories with iconic drivers such as Geoff Bodine, Tim Richmond, and Darrell Waltrip behind the wheel of his race cars.When Richmond fell ill part-way through the 1987 season, it left a vacancy behind the wheel of Hendrick’s No. 25 Folgers Chevrolet. Rather than keep his winning ride away from the track, Hendrick decided to don his helmet and strapped behind the wheel for the Western 500 at Riverside International Raceway – the penultimate event of the 1987 season. For it being his first foray into driving his Hendrick Motorsports No. 25 car, Hendrick was quite competitive among the NASCAR Cup Series®’ best at Riverside. Mechanical woes eventually spoiled what was otherwise a successful debut for Hendrick. The team owner only made one additional NASCAR Cup Series® start – again at Riverside in 1988 – but went on to become the most successful team owner in NASCAR® history with more than 300 victories and 14 championships over the course of 40 years.