September 15 - This day in Petty history - part 3

1974 - Richard starts second in the Delaware 500 at Dover, dominates the race by leading 491 of 500 laps, and wins by 3 laps over the 2nd place finisher to capture his 164th win.

Source: Motor Racing Programme Covers

Former Petty Enterprises teammate, Buddy Baker, won the pole in Bud Moore's Ford. Baker led the first two laps before the 43 STP Dodge passed him for a 30-lap segment. The King let a few drivers have some fun by leading a handful of single laps. But Petty soon returned to the front, put his Charger in the wind, and led the final 461 laps to claim the win.

Baker finished second - albeit 3 laps down to the winner. Canadian Earl Ross had a nice day with a third place finish. Ross had five career top 5 finishes - all in 1974. Also, he coincidentally had one of each in the numerical sequence: a win at Martinsville, 2nd at Michigan, his P3 at Dover, a 4th at North Wilkesboro and a 5th in the World 600 at Charlotte.

#85768410 / gettyimages.com

Courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

TMC
Edited September 14, 2014

September 15 - This day in Petty history - part 2

1968 - Richard scores his 88th career victory by winning from the pole in the Hillsboro 150 at Orange Speedway in Hillsboro NC as the legendary Curtis Turner makes his final Grand National start.

Orange Speedway was originally known as Occoneechee Speedway. Say it with me now: Oh-Ko-Knee-Chee. Also, I've seen the town where the track was located spelled as Hillsboro and Hillsborough. The speedway was a 9/10 mile dirt track and was one of the original tracks sanctioned by NASCAR for its Grand National series.

Courtesy of Chris Hussey

As the series experienced growing pains from the late 60s through the early 70s, Orange Speedway disappeared from the schedule as another superspeedway - Talladega - opened in 1969. However, a group of committed fans and former racers have labored hard to keep the memories of the speedway alive with the formation of the Historic Speedway Group.

In his book, Silent Speedways of the Carolinas, author and fellow RacersReunion.com member Perry Allen Wood writes:

When the green sent the boys on that last journey, Petty led (David) Pearson and the others for 74 laps. With some spine-tingling, door-to-door banging, Pearson led for 11 laps before they swapped it a couple of more times. In the meantime, (Buddy) Baker made only five laps before losing the drive shaft and on lap 116, Curtis Turner rolled into the dusty pits with a blown engine. Four laps later, Pearson parked it, and after 11 more (Bobby) Isaac hung it up. Even (G.C.) Spencer conked out. and Petty coasted to a yawner of a seven-lap victory... (p. 122)

Photo courtesy of Ray Lamm

Photo and article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

TMC
Edited September 15, 2014

September 15 - This day in Petty history - part 1

1967 - Richard wins from the pole in the Maryland 300 at Beltsville Speedway for his seventh win in a row in 1967.

Petty and third-place starter Bobby Allison swapped the lead frequently for much of the the first two-thirds of the race. With 135 laps to go, however, the 43 Plymouth took the lead again and sailed the rest of the way to the win.

Courtesy of Chris Hussey

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

TMC
Edited September 15, 2014

September 14 - This day in Petty history

1975 - Richard wins his 174th race the hard way and in dramatic fashion in the Delaware 500 at Dover. He leads much of the race and builds a sizable lead. But with about 150 laps to go, he has problems, pits, and is lapped eight times. Yet he un-laps himself down the stretch and still manages to win the race.

Source: Motor Racing Programme Covers

Greg Fielden writes in Forty Years of Stock Car Racing - The Modern Era:

Buddy Arrington, running over 50 laps behind, parked his Plymouth in a turn in an effort to bring out the day's fifth and final caution flag with less than 15 miles remaining. NASCAR officials decided Arrington's car was out of the main racing groove and left the green light on. Arrington drove the car to the pits and after talking with his pit crew, drove back on to the track and parked in the upper groove in the third turn. He waited there until NASCAR dropped the yellow flag. The caution period enabled Petty to close the gap on leaders Dick Brooks and Benny Parsons... After the yellow flag came out, Arrington drove to the pit area where NASCAR black-flagged him for the day. But the damage had been done. Petty, manning the fastest car in the race, drove around Brooks and Parsons with nine laps to to go and won going away... Arrington had just purchased a car-hauler from Petty Enterprises..."I couldn't have won without that last caution flag," Petty admitted. "I don't know anything about that, so I'd best not say anything about it." pp. 140-141

The King closes the gap on Bobby Allison in his #16 American Motors Matador and Jabe Thomas in #25.

Photo credit to and courtesy of Lee Greenawalt at RacersReunion.com

Source: Free Lance Star via Google News Archive

TMC
Edited September 14, 2014

September 13 - This day in Petty history

1970 - Richard wins his 115th Grand National race by dominating the Capital City 500 at Richmond Fairgrounds Speedway. He wins the pole and then leads 487 of the 500 laps.

Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

TMC
Edited September 13, 2015

September 10 - This day in Petty history - part 3

1972 - Richard wins the Capital City 500 at Richmond Fairgrounds Speedway to earn his 146th career win. He had to do it the hard way by waging a tough battle with Bobby Allison all day.

And as Petty was leading, Buddy Baker got into the back of the 43. The King's STP Plymouth rode the guardrail for a while, popped off, never lost the lead, and went on to win the race.

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

TMC

September 10 - This day in Petty history - part 2

1967 - Richard Petty wins his 71st career race and his sixth in a row in 1967 in the Capital City 300 at Richmond.

Heavy rains pounded Richmond's dirt surface before the teams arrived. Qualifying was scrapped because of the track's poor condition, and the drivers drew for starting position instead. Long-time independent driver Earl Brooks drew P1, and Petty drew the second starting spot. Three more independents - Soapy Castles, Jabe Thomas and Elmo Langley - drew for the remainder of the top 5.

The race began under a green-yellow condition where the lap count began as the cars circled to help compact the clay. (The last time I recall this happening was the start of the 1979 Daytona 500. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.) From his top starting spot, Brooks paced the field for the first 24 laps.

When the field finally got a legitimate green flap, the King got by Brooks to lead a single lap. On the next lap, Paul Goldsmith - who started 12th - somehow managed to bully his way by everyone to take the top stop and then stay there for 64 laps.

For about the next 40 laps, Petty, Sam McQuagg, Dick Hutcherson and Bobby Allison took turns leading. On lap 131, however, things turn a turn for the worse for Allison. His Chevelle broke a tie rod as he came off turn 4. Perhaps as a foreshadowing of his legendary wreck at Talladega 20 years later, Allison then began to flip. The car jumped a guard rail, tore through chain link fencing and came to rest by the scorers' pad which was positioned on the outside of the track by the starter's stand - a pad on which Allison's wife Judy was seated. Fortunately, Bobby, Judy and the other scorers were not injured.

When racing resumed, Petty picked up where he left off when the caution flew for Allison's wreck. The 43 Plymouth led the final 163 laps en route to the checkered flag.

Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch

Article courtesy of Jerry Bushmire

Source: Free Lance Star via Google News Archive

TMC
Edited September 10, 2014