FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Darrell Waltrip, who parlayed his career as a race car driver into a place in the NASCAR Hall of Fame and a longtime broadcasting stint at Fox Sports, has stepped away from public life due to a progressive brain disease.
Waltrip and his family shared a statement Wednesday that said the 79-year-old Kentucky native “has been diagnosed with Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) complicated by possible Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) — likely from injuries incurred during his racing career.”
Waltrip is among NASCAR’s storied characters as one of the first drivers to build a brand around his supersized personality, and he served for decades as one of the stock-car racing’s strongest ambassadors. Waltrip won 84 races on NASCAR’s top level and Cup Series championships in 1981, 1982 and 1985 before moving straight into the broadcast booth.
He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in January 2012, part of the third class for the shrine in Charlotte, North Carolina.
He was Fox Sports’ first hire when the network launched its NASCAR coverage in 2001 and became widely known for his signature call: “Boogity! Boogity! Boogity! Let’s go racing, boys!” He retired from that role at the end of the 2019 season.
Waltrip, who first showed up on the NASCAR scene in May 1972 at Alabama’s Talladega Superspeedway, aggravated his competitors by beating them on the track and then running his mouth out of the car.
Rivals nicknamed him “Jaws,” and Waltrip was at the forefront of parlaying his personality and fame into a lucrative side hustle of appearances, celebrity endorsing and, finally, the broadcast booth.
“While this disease will inevitably progress, thankfully it is currently limited to some minor noticeable symptoms,” the family’s statement read. “As a result, he will be stepping further away from the public limelight. Be assured, Darrell is happy and otherwise healthy — spending his time with his wife, Stevie, two daughters and his three young grandchildren. We are all grateful for your continued prayer, love and support! Boogity! Boogity! Boogity!”