Richmond was hospitalized for a motorcycle accident shortly before his death. He died on August 13, 1989 at Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, about two years after his final NASCAR race. He was buried in Ashland, Ohio. The secrecy surrounding the circumstance of his death caused speculation for several days. On August 23, his death was revealed to be caused by AIDS, which he had acquired from an unknown woman. In the press conference, his physician Dr. David Dodson said: “There’s no way of knowing who that woman was. Tim was a celebrity with a lot of charisma, a handsome guy. He naturally attracted a lot of women.”
Tim Richmond was an American race car driver from Ashland, Ohio. He competed in IndyCar racing before transferring to NASCAR’s Winston Cup Series (now Sprint Cup Series). Richmond was the first driver to change from open wheel racing to NASCAR stock cars, which has since become an industry trend. He won the 1980 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award and had 13 victories during eight NASCAR seasons.
