NASCAR Community Mourns the Loss of Era-Defining Broadcaster, Randy Pemberton

Randy Pemberton, the NASCAR broadcaster from the late 1980s and 1990s recently passed away. If you were a NASCAR fan in the late 1980s and 1990s, chances are you recognize the voice and the name of Pemberton.

The broadcaster was 62 years old.

He was the voice of an entire generation of NASCAR fans back in the day. And at the same time, he was also a very committed and dedicated professional who prioritized building connections over building a career.

Because although Pemberton walked away from the sport back in the 90s, the tributes that poured in after his death proved that he remained a part of the sport despite that.

Randy Pemberton claimed some NASCAR drivers acted like “jockies”

In an interview from 2008, Randy Pemberton spoke about the differences between old school drivers and the new age drivers that weren’t exactly the way a racecar driver should ideally be. In fact, it was because of a few run-ins and feuds with drivers he refused to name, that he quit the sport back in the 90s.

“New drivers started coming in, their attitudes are different,” he said. “Kids today, they’re already used to instantaneous gratification.”

“Some guys didn’t work on their cars the way Mark Martin did, or Rusty Wallace did, or Dale Earnhardt did. They came into the sport as jockies.”

Yet despite him walking away from the sport, he emphasized that he would not trade his early days for anything in exchange. “I’m proud to have been part of watching the growth,” he said.

Pemberton believed that everyone on a race team is doing everything they can to contribute to the sport. This was something, which, in his opinion, could be hard to come by in other sports.

 “I’m not sure it’s that way in the NBA. How hard does a guy with a $26 million contract practice?”

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