Dale Earnhardt and 12 Other Guys Who Won NASCAR Cup Races in the No. 3

When it comes to car numbers in NASCAR, none are more revered among modern fans than the No. 3 made famous by The Initmidator, Dale Earnhardt.

The number and Earnhardt's legacy were held in such regard that the car number was not used in the NASCAR Cup Series by car owner Richard Childress from Earnhardt's death in 2001 until 2014. That year, Childress allowed the No. 3 to go on the Cup car of Austin Dillon, who is Childress' grandson.

Throughout NASCAR history, 13 different drivers has found their way to victory lane in the No. 3, the most recent being July 19 when Dillon won in a Chevrolet Camero ZL1 at Texas. Six of those, including Earnhardt, are in NASCAR Hall of Fame.

The last driver to win in a car sporting the No. 3 before Earnhardt took the ride to legendary status is not in the Hall of Fame (find answer to that trivia question below).

Here's a look at each of the 13 past winners in the No. 3 car (now is when true NASCAR fans hold up three fingers):

Danny Letner won twice in 27 career starts in his NASCAR Cup career that spanned from 1951-63. Two of those starts came in the No. 3 car and included a 1954 win at Oakland Stadium in a 1952 Hudson. Oakland (Calif.) Stadium was a 5/8-mile track featuring (gulp) a hard-to-believe 62-degree banking in the uppermost groove.

Well, if you're going to have a lightning bolt painted on the side of your car, you had better be fast. Dick Rathman win three NASCAR Cup Series races in 1954 in a Hudson for car owner John Ditz. The wins were the final three of Rathman's career. He finished with 13 victories in 129 starts from 1951 to 1955.

Paul Goldsmith won five races for car owner/mechanic Smokey Yunick from 1956-58. The wins came in a career that spanned from 1956-69 and netted Goldsmith nine wins. And each of the five wins with Yunick were on the level. Just ask Smokey.

Earl Balmer made 32 NASCAR Cup Series starts between 1959 and 1958. Two of those starts, both at the Daytona 500 in 1966, came in the No. 3 car fielded by Ray Fox. Balmer won the second qualifying race that week (in 1966 those wins in the qualifying races counted as official Cup wins). He wasn't so fortunate in the 500, however, finishing 41st in a 50-car field.

NASCAR Hall of Famer Fireball Roberts won the 1959 Firecracker 250 at Daytona in a No. 3 Pontiac fielded by Jim Stephens. Roberts led 84 of 100 laps, including the last 16, beat Joe Weatherly to the checkered flag. Roberts won 33 races in his Cup career (1950-64).

Hall of Famer David Pearson, known more for his years in the N0. 21 and before that the 17 car, made 13 career starts in the No. 3 car. Teaming with legendary crew chief Ray Fox, Pearson won three times in the No. 3 in seven tries in 1961, including the World 600 at Charlotte (pictured), the July race at Daytona and at Atlanta. Peason would finish his career with 105 wins, second only to Richard Petty's all-time record of 200.

NASCAR Hall of Famer Junior Johnson has the second-most wins in the No. 3. He won nine times in the car, including seven in 1963. That year was also significant for Johnson, as he attempted to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 that year. He didn't qualify, but neither did all-time greats who gave it a shot that year—Dan Gurney and Graham Hill.

Buck Baker started 67 of his 635 NASCAR Cup Series races in the No. 3. The Class of 2013 NASCAR Hall of Famer won 46 times in Cup, with two coming in the No. 3 Dodge for car owner Ray Fox in 1964, Those wins came at Darlington in the Southern 500 and Valdosta (Ga.) Speedway.

Buddy Baker, a 2020 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee, won 19 races in 699 starts in a career that spanned from 1959-94. His two wins in the No. 3 car came in 1967 and 1968 while racing a Ray Fox Dodge. The wins were the first two of his career. At 6-foot-6, Baker is the tallest driver to win in the No. 3.

Charlie Glotzbach was a true racing lifer. His NASCAR Cup career started in 1960, and he made his final Cup start in 1992 at the age of 54. He won four times in Cup, including a 1971 race in the No. 3 at Bristol. It was dream day for Glotzbach, as his Chevrolet led 411 of the 500 laps. Bobby Allison finished second, and Richard Petty third.

OK, here's your trivia answer. Ricky Rudd was the last driver to drive the No. 3 before Dale Earnhardt took over the ride at Richard Childress Racing. But before he moved over to race for Bud Moore in 1984, Rudd won twice in the No. 3 for Childress in '83. Wins at Riverside and Martinsville were the first two of Rudd's career. He would go on to win 23 times in the Cup Series.

The Intimidator won 67 of his 76 NASCAR Cup Series career in the No. 3 Richard Chldress Chevrolet. The Hall of Famer raced from 1975 until his death in 2001. Six of his career wins, and the first of his seven championships in 1980, came in the No. 2 car. Three more wins came in the No. 15 before he moved to Richard Childress Racing in 1984. The rest, as they say, is NASCAR legend.

Austin Dillon, grandson of team owner Richard Childress, notched the most recent win for the No. 3 car when he won at Texas Motor Speedway on July 19. He's raced in the 14 since 2014. One of his victories came in the 2018 Daytona 500.