Remembering Greg Biffle: A NASCAR Champion, a Hurricane Helene Hero… and the Untold Story Behind His Bravery

Biffle’s many accomplishments on the track are only eclipsed by the work he did to help those in need during the final years of his life

Greg Biffle was just days away from his 56th birthday when he died in a tragic plane crash in Statesville, North Carolina, which occurred on Thursday morning. Among the passengers were Biffle’s wife Cristina, daughter Emma, and son Ryder, as well Craig Wadsworth, Dennis Dutton, and his son Jack Dutton.

‘The Biff’ is being remembered by the NASCAR community in an outpouring of tributes, but his impact went far beyond the race track.

Following Hurricane Helene, Biffle, who was a registered pilot, flew daring helicopter missions into the mountains of Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee to help those stranded and deliver aid to those cut off from the rest of the world by the historic floods. He has aided in other relief efforts as well, including recently in Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa impacted the region.

In NASCAR, Biffle came from the Pacific Northwest, and his early achievements got the attention of NASCAR Hall of Famer Benny Parsons.

He arrived on the scene at the national level in the late 90s, and was named the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Rookie of the Year in 1998. The following year, he won nine of 25 Truck races in a win record that stood until Corey Heim toppled it this past year. Biffle was one of the first to congratulate Heim on the achievement.

In 2000, Biffle became a Truck Series champion with five wins, beating Kurt Busch to the crown. The following year, he moved up to the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts (then Busch) Series where he also earned Rookie of the Year honors, while also winning five races. Just one year later, he was a champion there as well, defeating Jason Keller.

He went on to win 20 NOAPS races and 18 NCTS races in his career, and while he never became a champion at the Cup level, he had plenty of success at the top level of the sport too.

Biffle made his Cup debut in 2022, driving for Jack Roush. But 2003 was his first full-time season, and it didn’t take him long to find Victory Lane.

In the 2003 Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway, he started 30th, but was running second behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the closing laps of the summer classic. He fell back a few spots as he got put in the middle three-wide, but many of those around him still had to pit for fuel. This gave Biffle the lead with 20 laps to go, and he had a teammate in Matt Kenseth directly behind him. Kenseth eventually had to pit as well, while Biffle was able to join up with a group of cars at the back-end of the lead lap, and used the draft to save fuel and keep most of the field at bay. However, Bobby Labonte stayed with him until the final lap when he ran out of fuel as well. But not Biffle, who cruised to the finish line, over four seconds clear of his closest competition as he became a NASCAR Cup Series race winner.

Biffle quickly asserted himself as a top driver in the No. 16 machine, and in 2005, he nearly won the Cup Series title. After winning six races (more than any other driver), he ended the year as the championship runner-up, just 35pts behind Tony Stewart.

That year also featured Biffle’s most dominant Cup win when he led 219 of 334 laps to capture the checkered flag at Texas. There were a handful of tracks where Biffle really shined during his career, and Texas was just one of them. He had four wins at Michigan, three at Homestead, and two at Dover.

But none of those triumphs compare to winning one of NASCAR’s most grueling races in back-to-back years. Biffle won the 2005 Southern 500 at Darlington. He led 176 of 370 laps, but had to battle past Ryan Newman on a green-white-checkered restart with fresh tires to secure the victory.

The following year, he won the Southern 500 again in a similarly dominant showing, leading 170 of 367 laps. He held off a charging Jeff Gordon, and in doing so, he joined Gordon in exclusive club that also included Dale Earnhardt, Bobby Allison, David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, and Herb Thomas. They were the only drivers to have ever won the historic race in back-to-back years, and Biffle was the last driver to do it until Chase Briscoe went back-to-back in 2024 and 2025.

His career featured several iconic moments, including a famous duel with Mark Martin where he beat his teammate in a photo finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He also wasn’t afraid to get into it outside of the car. Just ask Jay Sauter, or Boris Said, or Jimmie Johnson, or Kevin Harvick…

But while tempers flared often on the track, Biffle had everyone’s respect as one of the truest talents in the garage. He continued to be competitive into his 40s, winning his final race in the 2013 season at Michigan International Speedway. Biffle earned Ford its 1000th NASCAR win and at 43 years old, he earned his 19th and final Cup Series win by leading the final 31 laps of the race, crossing the finish line nearly three seconds clear of Kevin Harvick.

With Cup Series wins spanning a decade between 2003 and 2013, Biffle managed to reach Victory Lane across three generations of race cars.

Later in his career, he returned to the Truck Series for his first start there in over 15 years. Despite that, he earned an impressive win while driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports in what would end up being his final win at any of the three national levels.

Biffle briefly returned to the Cup Series in 2022 for five races with the NY Racing Team, qualifying for the Daytona 500 for the 15th time in his career. Biffle never won NASCAR’s crown jewel event, but finished as high as third in 2010 and 2012, and earned pole position for the event in 2004.

Biffle was inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame in 2022, and was named as one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers in 2023.