Ronnie Silver (born July 20, 1951) is a former American stock car racer and crew chief. He raced in the

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

Busch Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

for eight seasons, winning two races.

Career

A native of

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...

, Silver's career started in the

Whelen All-American Series The NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (formerly the Whelen All-American Series, Winston Racing Series and the Dodge Weekly Series) is a points championship for NASCAR-sanctioned local short-track motor racing in the United States and Canad ...

, in which he finished fourth in the 1982 Mid-Atlantic Region season. Eventually, Silver joined the

in its inaugural season as an owner driver, and finished 7th in the

Southeastern 150 Stock car racing events in the NASCAR Xfinity Series have been held at Bristol Motor Speedway, in Bristol, Tennessee during numerous seasons and times of year since the series’ inception in 1982. From 2021 to 2023, the series has had one date. ...

Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol Motor Speedway (formerly known as the Bristol International Raceway from 1978 to 1996 and as the Bristol International Speedway from 1961 to 1978) is a oval Oval track racing#Short track, short track in Bristol, Tennessee. The track ha ...

. Silver ended the season 15th in points with 1,514, along with 7 top tens and 2 top fives. In 1984, Silver was the car owner for

Jack Ingram Jack Owen Ingram (born November 15, 1970) is an American country music artist formerly signed to Big Machine Records, an independent record label. He has released eleven studio albums, one extended play, six live albums, and 19 singles. Alt ...

, who won the Busch 200 at Langley Speedway. In 1985, Silver claimed his first career NASCAR victory in the Bobby Isaac Memorial 200 at

Hickory Motor Speedway Hickory Motor Speedway is a short track located in Hickory, North Carolina. It is one of stock car racing's most storied venues, and is often referred to as the "World's Most Famous Short Track" and the "Birthplace of the NASCAR Stars". The t ...

; Silver won again at Hickory in 1986, this time in the

Mountain Dew 400 The Galaxy Food Centers 300 was a NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of ...

after taking the lead from Jack Ingram with 11 laps left. In 1985 and 1986, Silver finished 8th (3268 points) and 7th (3927 points), respectively. In 1989, Silver's slow time trial for the

All Pro 300 The Drive for the Cure 250 presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is a NASCAR Xfinity Series stock car racing, stock car race that takes place at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. The 1985 race was extended ...

Charlotte Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009 due to sponsorship reasons) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Concord, North Carolina. It has hosted various major races since it ...

relegated him to the 40-lap consolation race as a last chance to qualify for the event. However, Silver did not make the field. In 1992, Silver's team served

Shawna Robinson Shawna Robinson (born November 30, 1964) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. She was a competitor in all three of NASCAR's national touring series, as well as the ARCA Racing Series, ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series and the ISC ...

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States, about north of Orlando, Florida, Orlando. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race ...

North Carolina Motor Speedway Rockingham Speedway and Entertainment Complex (formerly known as North Carolina Speedway from 1998 to 2007 and North Carolina Motor Speedway from 1965 to 1996) is a D-shaped oval track in Rockingham, North Carolina, United States. The track h ...

and

Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (currently known as EchoPark Speedway for sponsorship reasons, formerly known as the Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Hampton, Georg ...

, crashing at Daytona and Atlanta. The following season, Silver failed to qualify for

The Pantry 300 The Pantry 300 was a NASCAR Busch Series stock car race held at Hickory Motor Speedway, in Hickory, North Carolina. One of the inaugural events of the series from its 1982 season, it was one of five races at the track in 1982, four in 1983 to 198 ...

. Later, Silver owned cars and served as crew chief for

Michael Waltrip Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, racing team owner, amateur ballroom dancing competitor and published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASC ...

in the Busch Series, and currently works in the family auto body repair business. Eventually, Silver became the crew chief for

Michael Waltrip Racing Michael Waltrip Racing Holdings LLC, doing business as Michael Waltrip Racing ("MWR"), was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed full-time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The company was as a 50–50 partnership betwe ...

Patty Moise Patricia Moise-Sawyer () is a former NASCAR driver. She drove in five Winston Cup races from 1987 to 1989, and 133 Busch Series races from 1986 to 1998. She is the wife of former fellow NASCAR driver Elton Sawyer. Racing career Moise began raci ...

in 1998 with engines supplied from

Roush Racing Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, doing business as RFK Racing, is an American professional stock car organization that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. One of NASCAR's largest racing teams in the 2000s and early 2010s, Roush formerly ...

, though in 2000, Silver worked less with the team due to business obligations in his hometown of

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Winston Cup Series

Busch Series

ARCA Talladega SuperCar Series

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silver, Ronnie Living people 1951 births Sportspeople from Asheville, North Carolina Racing drivers from North Carolina NASCAR drivers NASCAR crew chiefs NASCAR team owners