Wheeler, one of stock car racing's greatest promoters, was recently named to the NASCAR Hall of Fame's Class of 2026

With fire-breathing robots and death-defying school-bus stunts, he brought spectacle to stock-car racing as the sport boomed in the 1970s and beyond.

Wheeler will be remembered for his love of stock car racing and his acumen for promoting races — one that yielded the nickname the “P.T. Barnum of Motorsports.”