Fireball Roberts News Journal

DAYTONA BEACH -- "Fightin' in the mud, the blood and the beer."

That pretty well sums up many people's first reactions when drivers from NASCAR's past come to mind.

Few past drivers, though, seem to evoke a one-word description -- "legend" -- as frequently as Glenn "Fireball" Roberts.

"Fireball is a little bit before my time," Nextel Cup rookie driver Brendan Gaughan said. "But one of the first things that comes to my mind is he's one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers, one of the founding fathers of the sport I love so much. . . a legend.

"Fortunately, for me, I've got a guy by the name of Buddy Baker that kind of mentors me," Gaughan said.

"Fireball's one of the guys that got us where we are today, made the sport what it is and one of the great colorful nicknames that always help bring sports along."

Veteran Cup and sportscar racer Scott Pruett said, "I think of him as being just a good old boy."

"He was hardcore, goin'-racin'-fightin'-for-the-win kind of guy -- the way racing used to be.

"He was one of those guys wearing nothing but a T-shirt and goggles that'd go out and race on the beach, dirt or asphalt track, and then if things didn't go well in the race, there was a big scrap afterwards."

Cup veteran Robby Gordon said, "He's a legend of the sport, for sure. What else can you say?"

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