NASCAR Hall of Fame inducts five new members

NASCAR Hall of Fame inducts five new members

  CHARLOTTE—It’s done—the membership in the NASCAR Hall of Fame has officially doubled.

 Stock car racing’s legends and stakeholders gathered Monday night to induct five new members into the Hall of Fame: drivers David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Ned Jarrett and Lee Petty, along with car owner/crew chief Bud Moore.

 The emphasis was on extended family, as the Hall of Fame welcomed its second class of five into NASCAR’s most exclusive family.

 The inductions opened with an introductory video featuring Tom Brokaw, former network news anchor and author of “The Greatest Generation,” who welcomed Moore into the Hall of Fame. Motor Racing Network anchor Barney Hall, a close friend of Moore, took the stage to handle the induction itself.

 Hall noted that it was Moore’s task to groom Dale Earnhardt into the superstar he would become in later years, and indeed, Moore fielded cars for more than 30 drivers, many of them legends of the sport. All told, he won 63 races, 43 poles and two championships as a car owner, to go with the title he won with Buck Baker as a crew chief.

 “It means a lot to see my contribution as a car owner recognized like this,” said Moore, winner of five Purple Hearts during his service in World War II.

 Lee Petty’s grandsons, Richie, Kyle, Tim and Mark, did the honors for the founder of the organization that has achieved more success in NASCAR racing than any other. “He was the glue that kept us all together,” Richie Petty said.

 Kyle Petty emphasized Lee Petty’s work ethic and his determination.

 “This sport, for my grandfather, was not a sport—it was a way of life,” Kyle said. “He raced to put food on the table.”

 Brothers Richard and Maurice Petty accepted the Hall of Fame ring on behalf of their father, who died in 2000.

 “I always said that he was the leader,” said Richard Petty, who was inducted last year as a member of the Hall of Fame’s inaugural class. “He should have been here way before I was.”

 Jarrett, who won 50 races and championships in 1961 and 1965, was inducted by his three children—1999 Cup champion Dale Jarrett, Glenn Jarrett and Patty Makar.

 Glenn Jarrett pointed out that his father has now been inducted into 15 Halls of Fame.

 “Tonight is the ultimate memory,” Glenn said.

 After receiving the ring, Ned Jarrett exclaimed, “Wow. This is the NASCAR Hall of Fame—and now I’m in it. … I am truly humbled by this huge honor—I don’t take it lightly.”

 Presenting the Hall of Fame ring to 84-time winner and 1983 champion Bobby Allison was his brother, 1967 Cup rookie of the year Donnie Allison.

 “He loved his wife, he loved his kids. He never neglected any of ’em. But I always said his first love was racing,” Donnie said.

 As far as Allison is concerned, the familial atmosphere stopped at the asphalt. Allison is often asked why he didn’t let his son Davey win when they ran 1-2 in the 1988 Daytona 500.

 “I’m here to tell you—he wouldn’t have let his mother win,” Donnie said.

 Last to receive his ring was David Pearson, who is second only to Richard Petty in races and poles won during his Cup career. Pearson won 113 poles and took the checkered flag 105 times in 574 career starts. His cunning on the racetrack earned him the nickname “Silver Fox.”

 “He doesn’t care to be in the spotlight,” said former Darlington Raceway PR director Russell Branham, a close friend. “You won’t find any of his trophies in his home—they’re all stored in an old building on his property. … The Hall of Fame is for heroes. Mine enters the Hall of Fame tonight.”

 Pearson asked one of his former crew chiefs, Leonard Wood of Wood Brothers Racing, to join Branham in inducting him.

 Wood described Pearson as “all you ever want in a racecar driver. He had such a great feel for what the racecar was doing. He always qualified faster than he practiced. He had more self-confidence than anybody I’ve ever seen.

 “If the car wasn’t working, you’d better work on it, because it sure wasn’t the driver.”

 Wood recalled that Pearson won 43 Cup races with the Wood Brothers.

 “Nice number,” Wood said, with a sly glance at Richard Petty.

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 (May 23, 2011)

BOBBY ALLISON

(b. 12-3-37)
Hometown: Hueytown, Ala.
Competed: 1961-88
Starts: 718
Wins: 84
Poles: 58
Bobby Allison, the 1983 champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, ended his career with 84 victories – tied for third on the all-time victory list with Darrell Waltrip.

A charter member of the “Alabama Gang,” the longtime resident of Hueytown, Ala., has become one of NASCAR’s most beloved former competitors, in large part because of his remarkable resilience after a career-ending accident at Pocono Raceway in 1988 – just several months after he won the Daytona 500.Allison continues to be cherished by the millions of fans who remember his long list of accomplishments:

• His three (1978, ’82 ’88) Daytona 500 victories – especially the third, when he beat his son Davey to the finish, earning what would be his last victory;
• His two NASCAR Modified Division championships, in 1964 and 1965; 
• His two NASCAR Modified Special Division titles in 1962-63;
• And his fantastic 1972 season when he won 10 races, had 12 second-place efforts and 11 poles, in the process finishing second to Richard Petty in the series championship standings.

Fittingly, Allison was named one of NASCAR’s “50 Greatest Drivers” in 1998.

 STATISTICS

LEE PETTY

(b. 3-14-14 – d. 4-5-2000)
Hometown: Randleman, N.C.

Competed: 1949-64

Starts: 427

Wins: 54

Poles: 18It took a while – three whole days – for officials to declare Lee Petty the winner of the first Daytona 500.So in many ways, we have Petty to thank for the yearly spectacle that is “The Great American Race.” That’s because he created the very first spectacle.On the final lap, Petty and Johnny Beauchamp barreled toward the finish line, in what would become one of the closest finishes in the prestigious race’s history. So close, in fact, that race officials put a hold on the results for three days. A photo snapped at the finish line confirmed Petty’s win, his first in another championship winning season.But that first Daytona 500 is only one of many Petty accomplishments. His career was a long list of “firsts” and “mosts.” Along with winning the first Daytona 500, Petty also was the first driver to capture three championships in what now is the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.And up until the time his own son, Richard, caught and passed him, Lee won more races than any other driver – 54. That number still ranks ninth all-time.But maybe his greatest legacy is his own name – and lineage. Petty, who started Petty Enterprises, is the father of “The King” Richard Petty and the grandfather of Kyle Petty.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Statistics

Year Age Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Rank AvSt AvFn RAF Miles LLF 1949 35 6 of 8 1 3 5 0 890 1 3 7.0 6.3 5 595.4 2 1950 36 17 of 19 1 9 13 0 1558 43 6 5.8 7.7 15 1441.7 1 1951 37 32 of 41 1 11 19 0 1103 99 7 7.3 10.9 32 1087.3 2 1952 38 32 of 34 3 21 27 0 5094 191 4 10.6 6.6 27 3478.9 8 1953 39 36 of 37 5 26 32 0 3021 209 3 3.2 4.8 35 2248.3 8 1954 40 34 of 37 7 24 32 3 5903 595 2 1.9 5.6 31 4032.7 11 1955 41 42 of 45 6 20 30 1 6524 769 3 8.9 8.3 32 4541.5 11 1956 42 47 of 56 2 17 28 1 7407 246 8 9.4 10.2 32 4949.3 5 1957 43 41 of 53 4 20 33 3 7466 449 4 7.4 7.8 35 4614.0 8 1958 44 50 of 51 7 28 43 4 9315 439 1 5.2 6.3 45 6074.0 14 1959 45 42 of 44 11 27 35 2 8278 1010 1 7.2 6.2 34 5229.6 14 1960 46 39 of 44 5 21 30 3 7518 514 6 7.7 8.6 30 5520.5 13 1961 47 3 of 52 1 2 2 1 433 126 107 9.7 6.3 2 290.5 1 1962 48 1 of 53 0 1 1 0 499 0 75 5.0 5.0 1 262.5 0 1963 49 3 of 55 0 1 2 0 291 0 82 10.7 9.3 2 178.5 1 1964 50 2 of 62 0 0 0 0 28 0 114 18.5 19.5 0 31.6 0 16 years   427 54 231 332 18 65328 4691   7.8 8.1 358 44576.3 99

All Business: Lee Petty Turned Modest Operation Into Powerhouse Team

All Business: Lee Petty Turned Modest Operation Into Powerhouse Team

(Note: This is the first release in a series on the five 2011 inductees into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C. The induction ceremony is scheduled for May 23. Bobby Allison, Ned Jarrett, Bud Moore, David Pearson and Lee Petty are the inductees. This installment spotlights former driver and owner Lee Petty.)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 27, 2011) – Lee Petty was single-minded when it came to stock car racing as both driver and owner.

It would be his business – and he would make it a successful one.

Petty, born in 1914, grew up dirt poor in rural North Carolina. He sold biscuits and operated a trucking company, but Petty’s overriding passion was automobiles. Gifted as a mechanic – he would tell his wife Elizabeth he was “just improving” cars – perhaps it was pre-ordained that Petty would create a racing dynasty from the humblest of beginnings.

And oh could he drive, although you might not have guessed Petty would become NASCAR’s first three-time premier series champion based on his performance in the organization’s 1949 inaugural race in Charlotte, N.C.

Petty, already age 35, borrowed an unsuspecting friend’s Buick Roadmaster, enticed by the race’s $6,000 purse. He wound up rolling and demolishing the car when a part broke.

It may have been an expensive lesson but one well-learned.

The thrill of competition, the pre- and post-race camaraderie with friends and fellow competitors and the cheers of the crowd brought many to the sport but not Petty. The only way to survive was to win and you couldn’t win if you didn’t finish.

His son, Richard, a seven-time NASCAR premier series champion and member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s inaugural class, remembers his father saying, “There ain’t no second place. You win or you lose. That’s the only two parts there are to racing.”

That said, Petty outworked and outraced his rivals bringing his sons Richard and Maurice, the engine building whiz, along for the ride. Petty was not always popular with his rivals – he even spun out his son during one race – and many proclaimed him the most difficult driver to pass during that era.

But all gave Lee Petty his due.

“There wasn’t anybody better than Lee Petty in his day,” said NASCAR Hall of Fame member Junior Johnson.

Fellow competitor Glen Wood, a NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee, said, “There might have been more colorful drivers but when it came down to winning the race, he had as much as I’ve ever seen. He was one of the toughest competitors there was at the time.” 

As a driver, Petty won 54 races – which is still tied for ninth all-time – beginning in 1949 at Heidelberg Raceway near Pittsburgh. He won on Daytona Beach’s famed road-beach course and the inaugural Daytona 500 in a finish that required three days to determine the winner. He won NASCAR premier series championships in 1955 and 1958-59.

But Petty’s Hall of Fame driving career was just the opening act at Petty Enterprises. Lee Petty was anything but retired as the owner of what became a flagship for Chrysler Corp. during the 1960s and 1970s and later entered Fords and General Motors cars. Petty Enterprises fielded more than 2,800 entries over a 60-year period, ending in 2008 winning 268 races and 10 championships.

Until Petty’s death in 2000, there was no doubt who was at the organization’s helm.

“Richard had his job to do and I had mine,” said son Maurice. “And then Lee told us what he wanted us to do and that’s what we did.”