Richard Petty

Richard Petty
Richard Petty in Pocono Raceway, 1985
Born	Richard Lee Petty (1937-07-02) July 2, 1937 Level Cross, Randolph County, North Carolina, U.S.
Achievements	1964, 1967 Grand National Series Champion 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1979 Winston Cup Series Champion 1964, 1966, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979, 1981 Daytona 500 Winner 1967 Southern 500 Winner 1975, 1977 World 600 Winner All-Time Wins Leader in Sprint Cup Series (200) All-Time Poles Leader in Sprint Cup Series (123) Holds record for most Sprint Cup Series wins in a season (27 in 1967) Holds record for most consecutive Sprint Cup Series wins (10 in 1967)
Awards	1959 Grand National Series Rookie of the Year NASCAR's Most Popular Driver (1962, 1964, 1968, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978) Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee (1989) International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee (1997) NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductee(2010) Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998) Presidential Medal of Freedom (1992)
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career
1,184 races run over 35 years
Best finish	1st (1964, 1967, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1979)
First race	1958 Jim Mideon 500 (Toronto)
Last race	1992 Hooters 500 (Atlanta)
First win	1960 untitled race (Southern States)
Last win	1984 Firecracker 400 (Daytona)
Wins Top tens Poles 200 712 123
NASCAR Convertible Division career
15 races run over 2 years
Best finish	4th (1959)
First race	1958 Race No. 14 (Columbia)
Last race	1959 Race No. 14 (Greenville-Pickens)
First win	1959 Race No. 13 (Columbia)
Wins Top tens Poles 1 8 10

Richard Lee Petty (born July 2, 1937), nicknamed The King, is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. He is best known for winning the NASCAR Championship seven times (Dale Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson are the only other drivers to accomplish this feat),^[1] winning a record 200 races during his career,^[1] winning the Daytona 500 a record seven times, and winning a record 27 races^[1] (10 of them consecutively) in the 1967 season alone (a 1972 rule change eliminated races under 250 miles (400 km) in length, reducing the schedule to 30 [now 36] races). Statistically, he is the most accomplished driver in the history of the sport and is one of the most respected figures in motorsports as a whole. He also collected a record number of poles (127) and over 700 Top 10 finishes in his 1,184 starts, including 513 consecutive starts from 1971–1989. Petty was the only driver to ever win in his 500th race start, until Matt Kenseth joined him in 2013. He was inducted into the inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010.^[2]

Petty is a second generation driver. His father, Lee Petty, won the first Daytona 500 in 1959 and was also a three-time NASCAR champion. His son Kyle is also a well-known NASCAR driver. His grandson, Adam, was killed in a practice crash at New Hampshire International Speedway on May 12, 2000, five weeks after Lee's death. Adam's brother Austin works on day-to-day operations of the Victory Junction Gang Camp, a Hole in the Wall Gang Camp established by the Pettys after Adam's death. Petty married Lynda Owens in 1958. She died on March 25, 2014 at her home in Level Cross, North Carolina at age 72, after a long battle with cancer.^[3][4] They had four children—Kyle Petty, Sharon Petty-Farlow, Lisa Petty-Luck, and Rebecca Petty-Moffit.^[5] The family resides in Petty's home town of Level Cross, North Carolina and operates Richard Petty Motorsports. The Richard Petty Museum was formerly in nearby Randleman, North Carolina but moved back to its original location in March 2014.

Racing career

Petty was born in Level Cross, North Carolina, the son of Elizabeth (née Toomes) and Lee Arnold Petty, also a NASCAR driver, and the older brother of Maurice Petty.^[6] He began his NASCAR career on July 18, 1958, 16 days after his 21st birthday. His first race was held at CNE Stadium in Toronto, Canada. In 1959, he was named NASCAR Rookie of the Year, after he produced 9 top 10 finishes, including six Top 5 finishes. In Lakewood, Georgia in 1959, Petty won his first race, but his father Lee protested, complaining of a scoring error on the officials' part. Hours later, Lee was awarded the win.

The 1960s

In 1960, he finished 2nd in the NASCAR Grand National Points Race, and got his first career win at the Charlotte Fairfrounds Speedway. 1963 was his breakout year, winning at tracks like Martinsville and Bridgehampton. In 1964, driving a potent Plymouth with a new Hemi engine, Petty led 184 of the 200 laps to capture his first Daytona 500, en route to 9 victories, earning over $114,000 and his first Grand National championship.

Joining in the Chrysler boycott of NASCAR due to the organizing body's ban of the Hemi engine, Petty spent much of 1965 competing as a drag racer. Petty Enterprises installed the Hemi in the new compact Barracuda and lettered "OUTLAWED" on the door. He crashed this car at Southeastern Dragway, in Dallas, Georgia, on February 28, 1965, killing a six-year-old boy and injuring seven others.^[7][8] Petty, his father Lee, and Chrysler Corporation faced lawsuits totaling more than $1 million, though Petty and his team came to settlements with the lawsuits within 1 month of the suits being filed.^[9] Afterwards, a second Hemi Barracuda was built, this time with an altered wheelbase and eventually with Hilborn fuel injection. This car was lettered with a large "43 JR" on the door. The car was very successful, winning its class at the Bristol Spring Nationals and competing in many match races against well known racers such as Ronnie Sox, Don Nicholson, Phil Bonner, Huston Platt, Hubert Platt and Dave Strickler. Even after returning to NASCAR once the Hemi was reinstated, Richard continued drag racing the 43 JR until early 1966.

On February 27, 1966, Richard Petty overcame a 2-lap deficit to win his second Daytona 500 when the race was stopped on lap 198 of 200 because of a thunderstorm. This made him the first driver to win the event twice. 1967 was a milestone year. In that year, Petty won 27 of the 48 races he entered, including a record 10 wins in a row (between August 12 and October 1, 1967). He won his second Grand National Championship. One of the 27 victories was the Southern 500 at Darlington, which would be his only Southern 500 victory. His dominance in this season earned him the nickname "King Richard". He had previously been known as "the Randleman Rocket".

In 1969, Petty switched brands to Ford, due to his belief the Plymouth was not competitive on super-speedways; he wanted a slippery Dodge Daytona but Chrysler executives insisted he stay with Plymouth. He would win 10 races and finish second in points. Won back in 1970 by the sleek new Plymouth Superbird with shark nose and towel rack wing, Petty returned to Plymouth for the 1970 season. This is the car in which Petty is cast in the Pixar film Cars (2006), in which Richard and Lynda Petty had voice roles.

The 1970s

On February 14, 1971, Petty won his third Daytona 500, driving a brand-new (for 1971) Plymouth Road Runner and beating Buddy Baker, by little more than a car length en route to another historic year, making him the first driver to win the race 3 times. He won 20 more races (which would make him become the first driver to earn more than $1 million in career earnings) and claimed his 3rd Grand National Championship. At the end of the 1971 season, Chrysler told the Pettys they no longer would receive direct factory funding support; this gave the Petty team great concern. In 1972, STP began what would turn into a successful 28-year sponsorship arrangement with Petty, however it marked the end of his famous all "Petty Blue" paint job. STP previously insisted on an all STP orangish-red color for the cars, but Petty balked and after an all-night negotiation session, the familiar STP orange/"Petty blue" paint scheme was agreed to as a compromise that would find its way to all STP racing operations, most notably Gordon Johncock's win in the 1982 Indianapolis 500. Thanks to his 28 Top 10 finishes (25 Top 5 finishes and 8 victories), Petty went on to win his 4th Winston Cup Championship. 1972 was a year of change in other ways, as it was the last year where Petty would campaign a Plymouth-based race car; as in the middle of the year, he debuted to drive a newly built 1972 Dodge Charger in a few races (winning one of them), as he believed that the car would have a slight aero advantage over the Plymouth body style. In a driver's duel on February 18, 1973, Petty, in a newly built 1973 Dodge Charger (a body style he would use exclusively until the end of 1977), outlasted Baker (now with the K&K Insurance Dodge race team) to win his 4th Daytona 500 after Baker's engine gave out with 6 laps to go. A year later, Petty won the Daytona "450" (shortened 20 laps {50 mi/80 km} due to the energy crisis) for the fifth time en route to his 5th Winston Cup Championship.

1975 was another historic year for Petty, as he won the World 600 for the first time in his career, one of 13 victories en route to his 6th Winston Cup. The 13 victories is a modern (1972–present) NASCAR record for victories in a season, and was tied in 1998 by Jeff Gordon, although Gordon won 13 out of 33 races, compared to Petty's 13 out of 30 races. In 1976, Petty was involved in one of the most famous finishes in NASCAR history. Petty and David Pearson were racing on the last lap out of turn 4 in the Daytona 500. As Petty tried to pass Pearson, at the exit of turn 4, Petty's right rear bumper hit Pearson's left front bumper. Pearson and Petty both spun and hit the front stretch wall. Petty's car came to rest just yards from the finish line, but his engine stalled. Pearson's car had hit the front stretch wall and clipped another car, but his engine was running. Members of Petty's pit crew came out onto the track and tried to push the car to the finish line, but ultimately failed. Pearson was able to drive his car toward the finish line, while Petty's car would not restart. Pearson passed Petty on the infield grass and won the Daytona 500. Petty was given credit for second place.

Oddly 1978 will stand out as the one year during his prime that Petty did not visit the winners circle. The Petty Enterprises Team could not get the new 1978 Dodge Magnum to handle properly, even though much time, effort, and faith were spent massaging the cars. Unhappy with the seven top-five and eleven top ten finishes (including two-second places), Petty decided that his longtime relationship with Chrysler could not continue and he instead began racing a secondhand 1974 Chevrolet Monte Carlo at the fall race at Michigan. Returning to the General Motors fold proved successful as Petty recorded six top ten finishes in the final ten races of the 1978 season and finished sixth in the final standings. He would go on to even better results in 1979. Petty won the Daytona 500 in an Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme and ran most of the remaining races in a Chevrolet, winning four additional races and taking the NASCAR championship for the seventh, and last, time by 11 points which was the closest points margin in NASCAR history until 1992.

The Twilight years

Petty won two more Daytona 500s in 1979 and 1981. In 1979, he snapped a 45-race drought, winning his sixth Daytona 500, the first to be televised live flag-to-flag; it would become notorious for a fistfight between competitors following the controversial finish. Petty won the race as the first and second place cars of Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough crashed on the last lap. Petty held off Darrell Waltrip and A. J. Foyt. The race is also regarded as being the genesis of the current surge in NASCAR's popularity. The East Coast was snowed in by a blizzard, giving CBS a captive audience. The win was part of Petty's seventh and last NASCAR Winston Cup Championship. He was able to hold off Waltrip to win the title in 1979.

For 1981, NASCAR dictated that all teams had to show up with the new downsized cars of 110" wheel-base, that Detroit had been building since 1979. Though Petty had been successful with the Chevrolet and Oldsmobile cars he had been running, he wanted to get back to his Mopar roots. After taking a phone call from Lee Iacocca (who personally asked Petty to campaign a Dodge for 1981), the Petty team built a stunning 1981 Dodge Mirada and took it to Daytona in January 1981 for high speed tests. Petty's fans were also in a large part fans of his Dodges, so when word got out about the Mirada testing, 15,000 or so showed up on January 17, 1981 at Daytona Speedway to watch Petty put the Dodge through its paces. Sadly for the fans, the car could do no better than 186 miles per hour, about eight miles per hour slower than the GM and Ford cars. Petty gave up on returning to Dodge knowing that for the superspeedways the Mirada would not be competitive, and bought a Buick Regal for the Daytona race. In the 1981 Daytona 500, Petty used a "fuel only" for his last pit stop, with 25 laps to go, to outfox Bobby Allison and grab his seventh and final Daytona 500 win. This win marked a large change in Petty's racing team. Dale Inman, Petty's longtime crew chief, left the team after the Daytona victory (Inman would win an eighth championship as crew chief in 1984 with Terry Labonte).

While the 1981 season gave Petty 3 wins, he felt the season was a failure, and the Regals being ill-handling and poor in reliability. For 1982, he made the move to the Pontiac Grand Prix, with the promise of substantial factory support from Pontiac. 1982 was a repeat of 1978, and no victories were to be had. At first, the Grand Prix behaved much like the Dodge Magnum of 1978, with handling and speed problems. Toward the end of 1982 things improved with several top-10 finishes, which opened the door to a successful 1983 season with three victories, and several top-5 and top-10 finishes. In 1983, he broke his 43-race winless streak from 1982 with a win in the 1983 Carolina 500, barely edging out a young Bill Elliott. After a controversial win at Charlotte in October 1983 (win No. 198), Petty left the race team his father founded for the 1984 season. He spent '84 and '85 driving for Mike Curb before returning to Petty Enterprises in 1986.^[10]

On July 4, 1984, Petty won his 200th (and what would turn to be his final victory) race at the Firecracker 400 at Daytona International Speedway. The race was memorable: On lap 158, Doug Heveron crashed, bringing out the yellow caution flag, essentially turning lap 158 into the last lap as the two drivers battled back to the start-finish line. Petty and Cale Yarborough diced it out on that lap, with Yarborough drafting and taking an early lead before Petty managed to cross the start/finish line only a fender-length ahead. (This is no longer possible because of the 2003 rule change freezing the field immediately upon caution. Furthermore, the green-white-checkered rule was created for if the yellow flag waves with two laps remaining, but not with one lap remaining.) President Ronald Reagan was in attendance, the first sitting president to attend a NASCAR race. Reagan celebrated the milestone with Petty and his family in victory lane.^[11]

In early 1988, Petty travelled to Australia to help promote a NASCAR exhibition race at the then new Calder Park Thunderdome, the first NASCAR race outside of North America. While he did not compete in the tracks inaugural race, the Goodyear NASCAR 500 (though his son Kyle did), in testing at the 1.119 mi (1.801 km) track which owner Bob Jane had modelled on the Charlotte Motor Speedway, Richard Petty set an unofficial lap record of 28.2 seconds (142.85 mp/h). This would have in fact landed him on pole position for the race as the fastest time in official qualifying was by Alabama Gang member Neil Bonnett who recorded a 28.829-second lap (139.734 mp/h) in his Pontiac Grand Prix.

Petty's Last Ride

On October 1, 1991, Petty announced he would retire after the 1992 season. Petty's final top ten finish came at the 1991 Budweiser at the Glen which was the same race J. D. McDuffie was killed in a fifth lap accident. Petty chose to run the entire 1992 season, not just selected events as other drivers have done before retirement. His year-long Fan Appreciation Tour took him around the country, participating in special events, awards ceremonies, and fan-related meetings. Racing Champions ran a promotional line of diecast cars for every race in Petty's Farewell Tour. In his final year behind the wheel, he had two notable races.

At the 1992 Pepsi 400 on July 4, Petty qualified second. Before the start of the race, he was honored with a gift ceremony which included a visit from President George H. W. Bush. At the start, Petty led the first five laps, but dropped out on lap 84 due to fatigue.

Despite the tremendously busy appearance schedule, and mediocre race results, Petty managed to qualify for all 29 races in 1992. On his final visit to each track, Petty would lead the field on the pace lap to salute the fans. Petty's final race was the season-ending Hooters 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race was notable in that it was the first career start for Jeff Gordon, and it was the 2nd closest points championship in NASCAR history, with six drivers mathematically eligible to win the championship. A record 160,000 spectators attended the race, which went down to the final lap with Bill Elliott winning the race, and Alan Kulwicki winning the championship by 10 points over Elliott after Davey Allison dropped out early after a crash.

Facing the intense pressure, Petty barely managed to qualify at Atlanta, posting the 39th fastest speed out of 41 cars. He would not have been eligible for the provisional starting position, and had to qualify on speed. On the 94th lap, Petty became tangled up in an accident, and his car caught fire. Petty pulled the car off the track, and climbed out of the burning machine uninjured. His pit crew worked diligently with less than 20 laps to go to get the car running again, and with two laps to go, Petty pulled out of the pits and was credited as running at the finish in his final race. He took his final checkered flag finishing in 35th position. After the race, Petty circled the track to salute the fans one final time in his trademark STP Pontiac.

The following year, he was back into a race car one more time. On August 18, 1993, NASCAR participated in a tire test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in preparations for the 1994 Brickyard 400. Petty drove several laps around the track, and then donated his car to the Speedway's museum.

Petty would again step into a race car in 2003 on the week of the final race under the Winston banner at Homestead-Miami Speedway and took a solo lap honoring his seven Winston Cup Championships for Winston's salute to the champions.

In 2009 at the Coke Zero 400 in Daytona, for the 25th anniversary of his final, 200th victory in 1984, Petty was behind the wheel of one of his 1980s Pontiac racecars during the pace laps, leading the field for the first pace lap. The field split him and he followed behind the field for one more pace lap before he pulled it in.

Petty as an owner

In later years of his career, Petty developed the career of crew leader Robbie Loomis, who was at the helm of Petty Enterprises as crew chief in the 1990s, and won three races—the 1996 Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix, the 1997 ACDelco 400 at North Carolina Speedway, both with Bobby Hamilton driving, and the 1999 Goody's Body Pain 500 at Martinsville Speedway, with John Andretti driving.

He remained as operating owner until his son Kyle Petty took over day-to-day operations a decade later.

However, in 2008, Kyle Petty was released by Petty Enterprises, and due to lack of sponsorship, Petty Enterprises was bought out by Gillett-Evernham Motorsports. The name was originally going to stay the same, but due to Evernham leaving the team, It was renamed Richard Petty Motorsports, despite George Gillett continuing to own the majority of the team.

In November 2010, an investment group including Medallion Financial Corp., Douglas G. Bergeron and Petty, signed and closed sale on racing assets of Richard Petty Motorsports.^[12][13] Andrew M. Murstein, president of Medallion, had been seeking a sports investment since 2008 when he formed a special purpose acquisition company together with Hank Aaron, a Medallion board member, and others.^[14][15]

Petty as a broadcaster

In 1995, Petty moved to the television broadcast booth joining CBS as a color commentator immediately following his retirement, but his career in television did not last long.

Sponsorship

Petty promised his mother not to accept alcohol sponsorship.^[16] Therefore, he never collected purses for the Bud Pole Award, and competed at the Busch Clash only once, in 1980. His team Petty Enterprises never competed at the Busch Clash.

Close calls

As well as his numerous victories, Petty is also remembered for three of the many incredible crashes that he survived:

• In the 1970 Rebel 400 at Darlington, Petty was injured when his Plymouth Road Runner cut a tire and slammed hard into the wall separating the track from the pit area. The car flipped several times before coming to rest on its side. This accident injured Petty's shoulder, and helped Bobby Isaac to win the 1970 Grand National Championship. During the accident, Petty's head hit the track pavement several times, which led NASCAR to mandate the installation of the Petty-developed safety net that covers the driver's side window.
• In a 1980 race at Pocono, Petty slammed the Turn 2 wall, nearly flipping the car. Petty barely escaped breaking his neck in the wreck and kept his injury hidden from NASCAR officials for the next races, knowing that another wreck could possibly kill him. Such an incident could never happen today, because of modern NASCAR rules requiring an official series medical liaison to clear a driver after a crash.
• In the 1988 Daytona 500, Petty's crash on Lap 106 hurled parts all over the front stretch at the Daytona International Speedway. After several flips, Petty walked away with no serious injuries, except for temporary sight loss due to excessive g-forces. The crash was similar to the accident suffered by Bobby Allison during the 1987 Winston 500 at Talladega Superspeedway and Carl Edwards 2009 Talladega crash in that all three cars became airborne after turning sideways, and both cars damaged the spectator fencing (though Petty's crash did much less damage to the fencing). Petty's car became airborne despite the use of the carburetor restrictor plate, which was mandated by NASCAR for races at Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway just prior to the start of the 1988 season.

Career awards

• He was inducted into the first class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame on May 23, 2010.
• In 1997, he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.
• He was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998.
• He was sole stock car representative in the first class inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1989.
• He was awarded the Medal of Freedom by President George Bush in 1992, the first motorsports athlete ever to be honored with this award.

Life after racing

Petty is currently a spokesman for Liberty Medical, Cheerios and GlaxoSmithKline products Nicorette and Goody's Headache Powder. He had also been featured on Brawny towels during a limited time when the company replaced their image with several "real Brawny men". Petty and his son Kyle have lent their talent to host "Lifting It Right" a lift safety training DVD produced and distributed by the Automotive Lift Institute (ALI); it is used in high school vocational programs and community colleges. He has recorded public service announcements for Civitan International, a nonprofit organization of which he is a former member.^[17] He is usually seen wearing his trademark sunglasses and a Charlie One Horse cowboy hat, with a large snakeskin hat band and a plume of rooster feathers at the front. Petty has established a summer camp known as "Victory Junction", which is intended to give seriously ill children the outdoors experience and experience of summer camp, and is staffed by round the clock medical staff to be on hand in case of emergencies. Petty has been a long-time Republican, and in June 2016 he made an appearance on stage with Donald Trump.^[18] In 1996, he was the Republican nominee for North Carolina Secretary of State, but was defeated by State Senator Elaine Marshall in the general election. Petty was mistakenly seen as a shoo-in and his campaigning was sporadic. Following his loss, Petty stated "If I had known I wasn't going to win, I wouldn't have run."^[19] A cereal "43's" was created with Petty information on the boxes.^[20] Petty also played himself in the 2009 film Swing Vote, where he commends the film's protagonist by allowing him to briefly drive his famous "43" Plymouth.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Grand National Series

NASCAR Grand National Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60	61	62	NGNC	Pts	Ref
1958	Petty Enterprises	14	Olds	FAY	DAB	CON	FAY	WIL	HBO	FAY	CLB	PIF	ATL	CLT	MAR	ODS	OBS	GPS	GBF	STR	NWS	BGS	TRN	RSD	CLB	NBS	REF	LIN	HCY	AWS	RSP	MCC	SLS	TOR 17																																37th	1016	[21]
		42																																	BUF 11	MCF	BEL 9	BRR	CLB	NSV	AWS													ATL 35
		2																																								BGS 20	MBS 16	DAR	CLT	BIR	CSF	GAF	RCH	HBO 31	SAS 22	MAR	NWS 23
1959		24		FAY 13	DAY																																																													15th	3694	[22]
		43				DAY 57	HBO	CON	ATL	WIL 3						MAR 7	TRN 12	CLT 19	NSV	ASP	PIF	GPS	ATL 2	CLB	WIL	RCH	BGS 24	AWS			CLT 12	MBS 27	CLT 20
		42									BGS 9	CLB	NWS	REF	HCY
		43	Plymouth																										DAY 26	HEI				NSV 29	AWS 26	BGS	GPS	CLB	DAR 4	HCY	RCH	CSF	HBO 3	MAR 15	AWS 5	NWS 3	CON 7
1960				CLT 12	CLB 6	DAY 10	DAY	DAY 3	CLT 1	NWS 18	PHO	CLB 6	MAR 1	HCY 3	WIL 7	BGS 4	GPS 3	AWS 9	DAR 2	PIF 11	HBO 6	RCH 6	HMS	CLT 55	BGS 4	DAY 11	HEI 2	MAB 2	MBS 5	ATL 20	BIR 2	NSV 6	AWS 15	PIF 13	CLB 2		BGS 9	DAR 6	HCY 12	CSF	GSP 7	HBO 1*	MAR 22	NWS 6	CLT 2	RCH 4	ATL 7																			2nd	17228	[23]
		42																																		SBO 6
1961		43		CLT 11	JSP 4	DAY 16	DAY	DAY DNQ	PIF 2	AWS 4	HMS	ATL 24	GPS 2		BGS 3	MAR 8	NWS 3	CLB 6	HCY 20	RCH 1*	MAR 23	DAR 32	CLT 1	CLT	RSD	ASP	CLT 30	PIF 15	BIR	GPS 16	BGS 5	NOR	HAS 17	STR 4	DAY	ATL 3	CLB 7	MBS 17	BRI 4	NSV 14*	BGS 5	AWS 11	RCH 9	SBO 20	DAR 26				ATL 5	MAR 17		CLT 2	BRI 23		HBO 10											8th	14984	[24]
		42												HBO 2																																HCY 17	RCH 18	CSF			NWS 3			GPS 4
1962				CON 13																																				CHT 4*				STR 1					HCY 10	RCH 4	DTS 11															2nd	28440	[25]
		43			AWS 7	DAY	DAY 4	DAY 2	CON 2	AWS 8	SVH 14	HBO 2	RCH 20	CLB 7	NWS 1*	GPS 11	MBS 2	MAR 1	BGS 5	BRI 16	RCH 3	HCY 6	CON 9*	DAR 15	PIF 3	CLT 4	ATL 23	BGS 3	AUG 3	RCH 19	SBO 3	DAY 30	CLB 20	ASH 3	GPS 1	AUG 2	SVH 3	MBS 16	BRI 3		NSV 2	HUN 1*	AWS 7		BGS 1	PIF 1	VAL 2	DAR 5*					MAR 2	NWS 1*	CLT 16	ATL 4
		41																																																		AUG 2
1963		43		BIR 2	GGS 1*	THS 11	RSD 41	DAY 12	DAY	DAY 6	PIF 1	AWS 1	HBO 3	ATL 8	HCY 2	BRI 4	AUG 2			SBO 1*		MAR 1	NWS 1*						CLT 36		ATL 12	DAY 8			DTS 11		ASH 2	OBS 16	BRR 1*	BRI 2		NSV 4	CLB 1*	AWS 2	PIF 2	BGS 2	ONA 10	DAR 12	HCY 15					THS 1	CLT 6			RSD 36								2nd	31170	[26]
		41																RCH 6	GPS 4		BGS 11			CLB 1	THS 13		ODS 1	RCH 2		BIR 1*			MBS 15								GPS 1									RCH 6	MAR 5		NWS 26			SBO 1*
		42																								DAR 3*								SVH 15		BGS 8																DTS 4					HBO 6
1964				CON 3		JSP 5*																																																												1st	40252	[27]
		43			AUG 19*		SVH 1*	RSD 26	DAY	DAY 3*	DAY 1*	RCH 2	BRI 8	GPS 16	BGS 3	ATL 7	AWS 17	HBO 12	PIF 15	CLB 15	NWS 7	MAR 6	SVH 3	DAR 10	LGY 17	HCY 3	SBO 1*	CLT 2	GPS 2	ASH 2	ATL 2	CON 1	NSV 1*	CHT 2	BIR 2	VAL 13	PIF 1	DAY 16*	ODS 8	OBS 3	BRR 13		GLN 21		BRI 2*	NSV 1*	MBS 2	AWS 25	DTS 3	ONA 1*	CLB 17	BGS 2		DAR 3*	HCY 5			HBO 16	MAR 2	SVH 2	NWS 19	CLT 3*			JAC 2
		41																																								ISP 3		LIN 2									STR 15			RCH 3	ODS 3						HAR 1*	AUG 25
1965		43		RSD	DAY	DAY	DAY	PIF	ASW	RCH	HBO	ATL	GPS	NWS	MAR	CLB	BRI	DAR	LGY	BGS	HCY	CLT	CCF	ASH	HAR	NSV	BIR	ATL	GPS	MBS	VAL	DAY	ODS	OBS	ISP	GLN	BRI 17	NSV 1*	CCF 2	AWS 1*	SMR 3*	PIF	AUG	CLB 2	DTS 3	BLV 20	BGS 2	DAR	HCY 1	LIN 19	ODS 1	RCH	MAR 2	NWS 33	CLT	HBO	CAR 36	DTS								38th	5638	[28]
1966		42		AUG 1																																					CLB 2	AWS 18	BLV 20	BGS 2		HCY 2	RCH 12	HBO																		3rd	22952	[29]
		43			RSD 25	DAY 2*	DAY	DAY 1*	CAR	BRI	ATL 25	HCY 10	CLB 6	GPS 2	BGS 3	NWS 11	MAR 3	DAR 1*	LGY 1*	MGR 1*	MON	RCH 2	CLT 22	DTS 18	ASH 17	PIF	SMR	AWS 1*	BLV 21	GPS	DAY 29	ODS	BRR	OXF 3	FON 2	ISP 15	BRI 2*	SMR 29	NSV 1*	ATL 1*					DAR 2*				MAR 23	NWS 26	CLT 38	CAR 28
1967				AUG 1*	RSD 21	DAY	DAY 5	DAY 8	AWS 1*	BRI 34	GPS 19	BGS 2*	ATL 22	CLB 1*	HCY 1	NWS 7	MAR 1	SVH 2	RCH 1*	DAR 1*	BLV 2*	LGY 1*	CLT 4	ASH 3	MGR 1*	SMR 1*	BIR 3	CAR 1*	GPS 1	MGY 2	DAY 11	TRN 1*	OXF 2*	FDA 1*	ISP 1	BRI 1*	SMR 2	NSV 1*	ATL 17*	BGS 1*	CLB 1	SVH 1*	DAR 1*	HCY 1	RCH 1*	BLV 1*	HBO 1*	MAR 1	NWS 1*	CLT 18	CAR 28	AWS 2														1st	42472	[30]
1968				MGR 2	MGY 1*	RSD 10	DAY 8	BRI 2	RCH 17	ATL 6	HCY 1	GPS 1	CLB 5	NWS 26	MAR 15*	AUG 18	AWS 3	DAR 3	BLV 14*	LGY 6	CLT 38	ASH 1*	MGR 3	SMR 1*	BIR 1*	CAR 26	GPS 1	DAY 21	ISP 4*	OXF 1*	FDA 1*	TRN 22	BRI 24	SMR 1*	NSV 2*	ATL 5	CLB 21	BGS 2*	AWS 26	SBO 1*	LGY 2	DAR 20	HCY 4	RCH 1*	BLV 3	HBO 1*	MAR 1*	NWS 1*	AUG 3	CLT 32	CAR 1*	JFC 2														3rd	3123	[31]
1969				MGR 1*	MGY 2*																																																													2nd	3813	[32]
			Ford			RSD 1*	DAY	DAY 6	DAY 8	CAR 5	AUG 2	BRI 7	ATL 9	CLB 3	HCY 2	GPS 5	RCH 2	NWS 7	MAR 1	AWS 23	DAR 11	BLV	LGY	CLT 19	MGR 3	SMR 20	MCH 3	KPT 1	GPS 3	NCF 2	DAY 5	DOV 1*	TPN 25	TRN 29	BLV 1	BRI 23	NSV 1*	SMR 1*	ATL 3	MCH 3	SBO 3	BGS 1	AWS 23	DAR 9	HCY 3	RCH 19	TAL Wth	CLB 2*	MAR 1	NWS 2*	CLT 27	SVH 2	AUG 2	CAR 32	JFC 3	MGR 6	TWS 21
1970			Plymouth	RSD 5	DAY 6	DAY	DAY 39	RCH 2*	CAR 1*	SVH 1*	ATL 5	BRI 24	TAL 7	NWS 1*		DAR 18	BLV	LGY	CLT	SMR	MAR	MCH 28*	RSD 1*	HCY	KPT 1*	GPS 19	DAY 18	AST 1*	TPN 2	TRN 1*	BRI 5	SMR 1*	NSV 16	ATL 1*	CLB 2	ONA 1*	MCH 14	TAL 7	BGS 1*	SBO 1*	DAR 5	HCY 2	RCH 1*	DOV 1*		NWS 2*	CLT 23	MAR 1*	MGR 1	CAR 6	LGY															4th	3447	[33]
	Robertson Racing														CLB 1*																														NCF 1*
1971	Petty Enterprises			RSD 20	DAY 3	DAY	DAY 1*	ONT 3	RCH 1*	CAR 1*	HCY 1*	BRI 2*	ATL 2	CLB 1	GPS 7	SMR 1*	NWS 1	MAR 1	DAR 20	SBO 2	TAL 38	ASH 1*	KPT 17	CLT 4	DOV 3	MCH 6	RSD 13	HOU 7	GPS 1	DAY 2	BRI 3	AST 1*	ISP 1*	TRN 1*	NSV 1*	ATL 1*	BGS 2	ONA 1*	MCH 2	TAL 2	CLB 1	HCY 3	DAR 2	MAR 3	CLT 4*	DOV 1	CAR 1	MGR	RCH 1*	NWS 3*	TWS 1*															1st	4435	[34]

Winston Cup Series

NASCAR Winston Cup Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	NWCC	Pts	Ref
1972	Petty Enterprises	43	Plymouth	RSD 1	DAY 26	RCH 1	ONT 4	CAR 2	ATL 6	BRI 3	DAR 2	NWS 1	MAR 1					RSD 23*			BRI 2	TRN 3				NSV 2		RCH 1*	DOV 2	MAR 1	NWS 1		CAR 2		1st	8701.4	[35]
			Dodge											TAL 5	CLT 19	DOV 2	MCH 3		TWS 1*	DAY 2			ATL 2	TAL 7	MCH 4		DAR 3					CLT 10		TWS 3
1973				RSD 21	DAY 1	RCH 1*	CAR 23	BRI 2	ATL 34	NWS 1*	DAR 7	MAR 21	TAL 35	NSV 13	CLT 13	DOV 4	TWS 1	RSD 2	MCH 3	DAY 2	BRI 21	ATL 33	TAL 14	NSV 2	DAR 4	RCH 1*	DOV 7	NWS 2*	MAR 1	CLT 2	CAR 35				5th	6877.95	[36]
1974				RSD 2	DAY 1	RCH 2	CAR 1*	BRI 23	ATL 6	DAR 20	NWS 1*	MAR 2	TAL 3	NSV 1	DOV 3	CLT 2	RSD 25	MCH 1*	DAY 2	BRI 3	NSV 13*	ATL 1	POC 1*	TAL 1	MCH 2	DAR 35	RCH 1*	DOV 1*	NWS 2	MAR 29	CLT 2	CAR 3	ONT 15*		1st	5037.75	[37]
1975				RSD 7	DAY 7	RCH 1*	CAR 3	BRI 1*	ATL 1*	NWS 1*	DAR 26	MAR 1*	TAL 19	NSV 7	DOV 3	CLT 1*	RSD 1	MCH 2	DAY 1	NSV 2	POC 2	TAL 2	MCH 1	DAR 2*	DOV 1*	NWS 1*	MAR 22	CLT 1*	RCH 28	CAR 35	BRI 1*	ATL 3	ONT 16		1st	4783	[38]
1976				RSD 25	DAY 2	CAR 1*	RCH 2	BRI 27	ATL 28	NWS 2	DAR 23	MAR 4	TAL 4	NSV 2	DOV 6	CLT 2	RSD 9	MCH 4	DAY 22	NSV 2	POC 1	TAL 20	MCH 3	BRI 2	DAR 2	RCH 3	DOV 2	MAR 4	NWS 3	CLT 8	CAR 1*	ATL 28	ONT 27		2nd	4449	[39]
1977				RSD 3	DAY 26	RCH 6	CAR 1*	ATL 1	NWS 2	DAR 3	BRI 3	MAR 3	TAL 20	NSV 5	DOV 3	CLT 1*	RSD 1*	MCH 2	DAY 1*	NSV 3	POC 2	TAL 11	MCH 8	BRI 22	DAR 4	RCH 2	DOV 23	MAR 4	NWS 24*	CLT 32	CAR 2	ATL 6	ONT 2		2nd	4614	[40]
1978				RSD 16	DAY 33	RCH 22	CAR 4	ATL 26	BRI 25	DAR 5	NWS 2	MAR 3	TAL 11	DOV 7	CLT 8	NSV 3	RSD 2	MCH 6	DAY 4	NSV 23	POC 30	TAL 7													6th	3949	[41]
			Chevy																				MCH 14	BRI 5	DAR 3	RCH 20	DOV 27	MAR 6	NWS 4	CLT 27	CAR 6	ATL 2	ONT 34
1979				RSD 32		CAR 32	RCH 5		NWS 2*		DAR 2	MAR 1*		NSV 2*		CLT 2	TWS 6	RSD 3	MCH 5		NSV 5	POC 2		MCH 1	BRI 2	DAR 9	RCH 6	DOV 1	MAR 2	CLT 4	NWS 3	CAR 1	ATL 6	ONT 5	1st	4830	[42]
			Olds		DAY 1			ATL 11		BRI 4			TAL 4		DOV 30					DAY 5			TAL 4
1980			Chevy	RSD 3		RCH 3	CAR 2	ATL 33	BRI 8	DAR 9	NWS 1*	MAR 3		NSV 1	DOV 2	CLT 4	TWS 2	RSD 8	MCH 5		NSV 5	POC 33		MCH 5	BRI 4	DAR 9	RCH 2	DOV 17	NWS 18	MAR 15	CLT 27	CAR 14	ATL 21	ONT 30	4th	4255	[43]
			Olds		DAY 25								TAL 31							DAY 5			TAL 18
1981		42	Chevy	RSD 5																															8th	3880	[44]
		43	Buick		DAY 1	RCH 3	CAR 3	ATL 38	BRI 29	NWS 1	DAR 33	MAR 28	TAL 39	NSV 4	DOV 19	CLT 24	TWS 4	RSD 3	MCH 6	DAY 3	NSV 9	POC 2	TAL 40	MCH 1*	BRI 24	DAR 30	RCH 11	DOV 10	MAR 18	NWS 21	CLT 30	CAR 4	ATL 26	RSD 7
1982			Pontiac	DAY 27	RCH 2	BRI 7	ATL 2	CAR 30	DAR 31	NWS 5	MAR 15	TAL 27	NSV 9	DOV 24	CLT 8	POC 7	RSD 36	MCH 26	DAY 25	NSV 7	POC 2*	TAL 3	MCH 2	BRI 26	DAR 2	RCH 13	DOV 30	NWS 4	CLT 8	MAR 3	CAR 6	ATL 15	RSD 31		5th	3814	[45]
1983				DAY 38	RCH 8	CAR 1	ATL 5	DAR 25	NWS 10	MAR 17	TAL 1*	NSV 6	DOV 7	BRI 5	CLT 2	RSD 10	POC 3	MCH 11	DAY 33	NSV 19	POC 10	TAL 4	MCH 6	BRI 9	DAR 12	RCH 6	DOV 9	MAR 9	NWS 12	CLT 1	CAR 26	ATL 5	RSD 10		4th	4042	[46]
1984	Curb Racing			DAY 31	RCH 15	CAR 4	ATL 4	BRI 8	NWS 12	DAR 7	MAR 12	TAL 6	NSV 7	DOV 1	CLT 34	RSD 23	POC 13	MCH 34	DAY 1	NSV 25	POC 27	TAL 23	MCH 9	BRI 17	DAR 29	RCH 5	DOV 37	MAR 8	CLT 9	NWS 18	CAR 15	ATL 8	RSD 14		10th	3643	[47]
1985				DAY 34	RCH 26	CAR 8	ATL 13	BRI 8	DAR 33	NWS 21	MAR 7	TAL 27	DOV 7	CLT 26	RSD 7	POC 33	MCH 30	DAY 29	POC 27	TAL 6	MCH 37	BRI 8	DAR 12	RCH 3	DOV 9	MAR 22	NWS 8	CLT 10	CAR 33	ATL 10	RSD 8				14th	3140	[48]
1986	Petty Enterprises			DAY 36	RCH 20	CAR 3	ATL 11	BRI 14	DAR 7	NWS 29	MAR 28	TAL 7	DOV 6	CLT Wth†	RSD 6	POC 19	MCH 13	DAY 22	POC 34	TAL 37	GLN 10	MCH 18	BRI 7	DAR 40	RCH 4	DOV 12	MAR 16	NWS 3	CLT 35	CAR 8	ATL 2	RSD 21			14th	3314	[49]
	U.S. Racing	6	Chevy											CLT 38
1987	Petty Enterprises	43	Pontiac	DAY 3	CAR 15	RCH 23	ATL 14	DAR 3	NWS 6	BRI 2	MAR 22	TAL 16	CLT 4	DOV 36	POC 29	RSD 6	MCH 12	DAY 26	POC 8	TAL 37	GLN 14	MCH 11	BRI 5	DAR 3	RCH 5	DOV 9	MAR 13	NWS 9	CLT 5	CAR 17	RSD 4	ATL 30			8th	3708	[50]
1988				DAY 34	RCH 3	CAR 41	ATL 23	DAR 41	BRI 6	NWS 6	MAR 32	TAL 20	CLT 15	DOV 15	RSD 6	POC 26	MCH 24	DAY 20	POC 28	TAL 21	GLN 17	MCH 39	BRI 8	DAR 33	RCH 34	DOV 38	MAR 27	CLT 38	NWS 18	CAR 25	PHO 35	ATL 36			22nd	2644	[51]
1989				DAY 17	CAR 16	ATL 27	RCH DNQ	DAR 15	BRI DNQ	NWS DNQ	MAR 24	TAL 23	CLT 19	DOV 20	SON 26	POC 25	MCH 30	DAY 20	POC 38	TAL 21	GLN 13	MCH 18	BRI DNQ	DAR 35	RCH 33	DOV 30	MAR 24	CLT 34	NWS 32	CAR 34	PHO 42	ATL 28			29th	2148	[52]
1990				DAY 34	RCH 35	CAR 32	ATL 25	DAR 21	BRI 26	NWS 29	MAR 20	TAL 29	CLT 27	DOV 21	SON 26	POC 38	MCH 11	DAY 36	POC 9	TAL 29	GLN 18	MCH 33	BRI 29	DAR 34	RCH 21	DOV 16	MAR 29	NWS 17	CLT 20	CAR 21	PHO 23	ATL 17			26th	2556	[53]
1991				DAY 19	RCH 11	CAR 15	ATL 38	DAR 37	BRI 17	NWS 16	MAR 14	TAL 40	CLT 20	DOV 17	SON 34	POC 11	MCH 35	DAY 22	POC 31	TAL 18	GLN 9	MCH 23	BRI 12	DAR 16	RCH 24	DOV 20	MAR 30	NWS 19	CLT 12	CAR 16	PHO 41	ATL 22			24th	2817	[54]
1992				DAY 16	CAR 16	RCH 21	ATL 16	DAR 32	BRI 27	NWS 31	MAR 29	TAL 15	CLT 41	DOV 20	SON 21	POC 16	MCH 15	DAY 36	POC 20	TAL 15	GLN 28	MCH 18	BRI 16	DAR 20	RCH 16	DOV 28	MAR 18	NWS 27	CLT 27	CAR 25	PHO 22	ATL 35			26th	2731	[55]
† – After his backup car was deemed inelligble to race, Petty bought the race slot from D.K. Ulrich

Daytona 500

Year	Team	Manufacturer	Start	Finish
1959	Petty Enterprises	Oldsmobile	6	57
1960		Plymouth	19	3
1961			DNQ
1962			10	2
1963			23	6
1964			2	1
1966	Petty Enterprises	Plymouth	1	1
1967			2	8
1968			2	8
1969		Ford	12	8
1970		Plymouth	11	39
1971			5	1
1972			32	26
1973		Dodge	7	1
1974			2	1
1975			4	7
1976			6	2
1977			3	26
1978			6	33
1979		Oldsmobile	13	1
1980			4	25
1981		Buick	8	1
1982		Pontiac	21	27
1983			6	38
1984	Curb Racing	Pontiac	34	31
1985			8	34
1986	Petty Enterprises	Pontiac	10	36
1987			11	3
1988			34	34
1989			34	17
1990			11	34
1991			3	19
1992			32	16

International Race of Champions

(key) (Bold – Pole position. * – Most laps led.)

International Race of Champions results
Season	Make	1	2	3	4	Pos.	Pts	Ref
1973–74	Porsche	RSD 7	RSD 10	RSD 10	DAY	10th	NA	[56]
1974–75	Chevy	MCH 10	RSD 5	RSD 10	DAY	10th	NA	[57]
1975–76		MCH 6	RSD 6	RSD 11	DAY	10th	NA	[58]
1976–77		MCH 6	RSD 3	RSD 9	DAY 4	6th	NA	[59]
1977–78		MCH 4	RSD 2	RSD 5	DAY 8	5th	NA	[60]
1989	Chevy	DAY 9	NZH 12	MCH 11	GLN 12	12th	16	[61]

Film and TV appearances

• In May 2011, Petty was chosen to be the Grand Marshal for the 2011 STP 400 of the Sprint Cup Series.^[62]
• In 2011, Petty was featured in the show Modern HotrodZ. Petty's Garage now builds Custom cars for the general public, most of which are Limited Edition.
• He appeared as himself in the movie Swing Vote driving in his famous blue No. 43 car, and letting Bud drive his car to Air Force One to meet the President.
• Petty voiced Strip Weathers, also known as "The King", in the Disney/Pixar animated movie Cars (2006). His car, the Road Runner Superbird with the distinctive "Petty Blue" tint and the number 43, is also the model used for the car in the movie. The King's accident at the end of the film was also a re-creation of Petty's real-life Daytona 500 accident in 1988 with the exception that it was not caused by a deliberate crash. The bit in which Lightning McQueen assists him to the finish line is based on the 1976 incident, albeit by the pit crew. Petty's wife Lynda voiced The King's wife, a 1976 Chrysler Town & Country station-wagon (based on Petty's family car), in that movie as well.
• Petty appeared in the Tom Cruise movie Days of Thunder (1990).
• He appeared in the Burt Reynolds movie Stroker Ace (1983).
• Petty appeared as himself in the movie 43: The Richard Petty Story (1972) (a Victory Lane Production, released by Video Gems, distributed by United American Video in 1986).
• In 1989, Petty appeared as himself in the movie Speed Zone, driving in his famous blue No. 43 car.
• In 1967, Petty appeared in the Elvis Presley movie Speedway that was shot and filmed at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. This movie was released in 1968.
• He was in Petty Blue, a documentary by NASCAR.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Richard Petty.

• Official website
• Richard Petty driver statistics at Racing-Reference
• Richard Petty Gives a Tour of Petty Enterprises

Sporting positions
Preceded by Joe Weatherly David Pearson	NASCAR Grand National Champion 1964 1967	Succeeded by Ned Jarrett David Pearson
Preceded by Bobby Isaac Benny Parsons Cale Yarborough	NASCAR Winston Cup Champion 1971, 1972 1974, 1975 1979	Succeeded by Benny Parsons Cale Yarborough Dale Earnhardt
Achievements
Preceded by Tiny Lund Fred Lorenzen Pete Hamilton A.J. Foyt Bobby Allison Buddy Baker	Daytona 500 Winner 1964 1966 1971 1973, 1974 1979 1981	Succeeded by Fred Lorenzen Mario Andretti A.J. Foyt Benny Parsons Buddy Baker Bobby Allison
Preceded by Darel Dieringer	Southern 500 Winner 1967	Succeeded by Cale Yarborough
Preceded by David Pearson David Pearson	World 600 Winner 1975 1977	Succeeded by David Pearson Darrell Waltrip
Awards
Preceded by Shorty Rollins	NASCAR Rookie of the Year 1959	Succeeded by David Pearson