Car number 87 has started 746 races and has 27 wins, 26 poles, 285 top 5s, 385 top 10s, and 319 DNFs in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Buck Baker has the most starts in the #87 with 417 from 1949-1971. Beginning with the first ever NASCAR Strictly Stock (Sprint Cup Series) event at Charlotte in 1949, Buck quickly became on of the most recognizable starts of NASCAR, despite running part time schedules for nearly his entire career. Baker did, however, win the 1956 and 1957 Grand National (Sprint Cup) Championship, making him the first driver to win back-to-back titles.

Buck was also the 1952 Champion of the short lived NASCAR Speedway Series, a series which raced open-wheel cars with stock engines. During the 1953 seasons, the Speedway series ran events in conjunction with the Sportsman Division, the forerunner to the modern XFINITY Series, before being dissolved.

26 of Buck’s 46 career Cup Series wins would come in #87. Baker would be inducted into the 2013 class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame on February 8, 2013.

Joe Nemechek fielded his NEMCO #87 in 2 different eras of his Sprint Cup career, in addition to his #87 entries in the NASCAR XFINITY Series.

After leaving Larry Hedrick Motorsports, Nemechek brought his NEMCO Busch (XFINITY) Series team to the Cup series in 1995 with Burger King as the sponsor. Nemechek finished 4th at Dover in 1995, but after struggling in 1996 he relegated the team back to the Busch Series and signed with SABCO racing.

In 2009, following his departure from Furniture Row Racing, Nemechek re-promoted his NEMCO Team to the Cup series From 2009-2012 Nemechel and his #87 frequently qualified for races, though they mostly start-and-parked. In 2013 he attempted 3 races in #87, but DNQ’d for all of them, while driving #66 for Identity Ventures Racing in many other races.

All the while, from 1990-2015, Joe Nemechek and NEMCO Motorsports put together a fairly successful XFINITY Series team. Over this time the NEMCO team earned 16 wins with “Front Row Joe” behind the wheel. His last win came in Kansas in 2004.

Today, NEMCO operates as a Camping World Truck Series Team. Joe Nemechek drives the #87 truck, mostly as a start-and-park team, to help fund the career of his son John Hunter Nemechek. Joe drove #87 in 12 of his 17 Truck Series starts in 2018 with a best finish of 3rd at Daytona.

Driving his father’s car, young Buddy Baker made 38 starts in #87, and Buddy’s brother Randy Baker made 13 starts in the car.

Other notable names in #87 Neil Castles, 7 starts Jim Paschal, 5 starts, 1 win Speedy Thompson, 5 starts Ron Fellows, 5 starts Scott Speed, 2 starts Wendell Scott, 1 start Cale Yarborough, 1 start Morgan Shepherd, 1 start Kenny Wallace, 1 start

