Memorial service held for former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Hundreds in the NASCAR community gathered at a memorial service Friday for former Cup Series driver Greg Biffle, members of his family and others who were killed in a plane crash last month.

Biffle, who was 55, was among seven killed on Dec. 18 — along with his wife Cristina, 35, their son Ryder, 5, and Biffle’s daughter Emma, 14 — when the plane crashed as it returned to the airport in Statesville, according to authorities. Others on the plane were identified as Dennis Dutton, his son Jack, and Craig Wadsworth.

Race car driver Garrett Mitchell, also a social media influencer known as “Cleetus McFarland” in his YouTube videos and a close friend of Biffle’s, was among those who spoke during the service at Bojangle’s Coliseum.

“We have all been saying ‘Be like Biff’ since we lost our hero,” said Mitchell, who befriended Biffle later in his life. “What does that mean? That means to take opportunities when you see them, whether you are taking the opportunity to pass somebody on the track or getting off your couch to chase a dream you have only been talking about for the past five years.

“It means showing up for your friends and family. It means using your heart to make the world a better place. It means being generous whenever you can, and helping other humans when they’re down. That is what it means to be like Biff.”

Biffle was selected by NASCAR as one of the top 75 drivers of all time for the stock-car series when it celebrated its diamond anniversary in 2023, has been a nominee for the NASCAR Hall of Fame, and drove for 18 years in NASCAR’s top-tier Cup Series, where he won 19 times.

He hadn’t competed in a Cup Series race since running a limited schedule in 2022, but in 2024, he made headlines for his tireless humanitarian efforts as a helicopter pilot supplying aid in the devastation left behind by Hurricane Helene in the mountains of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee.

Biffle’s niece, Jordyn Biffle, told stories about Ryder’s hero being his father, Emma’s laughter and Cristina’s loving nature. Jordyn said the Biffle family “lived fully, loved deeply and gave freely.”

“Their lives remind us that what matters isn’t how long we are here, but how we use the time we are given and how fiercely we love while we are here,” she added. “And while this loss is devastating beyond words, their impact remains etched into all of us that were lucky enough to have known them, loved them and be changed by them.”

In the parking lot outside of the arena where the service was held, fans paused to peer inside three cars Biffle drove during his career.

Inside the arena, the pictures of the seven who died in the plane crash were shown on a videoboard above the makeshift platform in the center of the covered hockey rink. There were seven wreaths on the stage where Jordyn Biffle, Mitchell and former drivers Jeff Burton and Phil Parsons addressed the crowd.

Dylan Zirkle, 28, of Archdale, North Carolina, worked one year for Biffle at Roush Racing as a pit support employee while he was in high school. He said Biffle made a lasting impact on him, and Zirkle felt he needed to attend.

“Greg was always a really good guy, and I enjoyed being around him,” Zirkle said. “You could always talk to him at any time, and he was just a real person. You could talk to him about anything.”

Back home in his gameroom, Zirkle still has model racing trucks autographed by Biffle that he cherishes. Zirkle said he didn’t believe the news of the crash when he heard it.

“It still doesn’t feel real,” he said. “I was watching some of his YouTube videos the other night, and it just doesn’t seem real at all.”

Tanner Roberts and Jassamin Green made the four-hour trek from Wilmington with their 7-year-old son Bentley after hearing about the memorial.

“He was a good race car driver, and I enjoyed him,” Roberts said. “And he was a good person. I grew up watching him and Dale Earnhardt. Them two were my favorites. They were good people, and they loved to race.”

The Cessna C550 carrying the Biffle family and the others erupted in flames when it hit the ground shortly after it had departed Statesville Regional Airport, about an hour’s drive north of Charlotte. The plane crashed while trying to return and land, authorities said.

The crash a week before Christmas left the NASCAR community shaken in what has become a trying offseason. Ten days later, on the 52nd wedding anniversary of Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin’s parents Dennis and Mary Lou, the house he built to repay them for their years of sacrifice burned down. Dennis was killed, and Mary Lou was rushed to a hospital burn unit.

Sheriff’s deputies are also investigating an alleged break-in and theft last week at Biffle’s home in Mooresville that netted $30,000 in cash, some guns and memorabilia.

As part of the public tribute, Mitchell planned to do a burnout later Friday near Biffle’s marker along the North Carolina Auto Racing Walk of Fame in Mooresville.