Rick Hendrick
Two years later, at age 16, Hendrick won the Virginia division of the Chrysler-Plymouth Troubleshooting Contest, a two-part test consisting of a written exam and a timed hands-on diagnosis and repair of defects planted on a car.Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, his company had a revenue in excess of US$3.5 billion in 2009, after selling 100,000 vehicles and servicing 1.5 million, and is the sixth-largest dealership in the United States.[4] In the late 1970s, Hendrick founded a drag boat racing team that won three consecutive championships, as well as setting a world record of 222.2 mph (357.6 km/h) with Nitro Fever.[9][10] During the late 1980s, Hendrick owned the Goodwrench IMSA GTP Corvette driven by Sarel Van der Merwe and Doc Bundy.The GTP team was based in a tiny shop on Gasoline Alley (formerly Roena Street) in Indianapolis, Indiana and managed by Ken Howes of South Africa.Hendrick was born in Warrenton, North Carolina and was raised on his family's farm in South Hill, Virginia, where he attended Park View High School.Hendrick admitted to giving hundreds of thousands of dollars, BMW automobiles, and houses to American Honda Motor Company executives.