While Richard ‘The King’ Petty’s record victories and other stats attest his greatness, the indomitable spirit with which he raced seals his place as a Titan in the sport. His larger-than-life drive was best exemplified when he was hospitalized with a broken neck after a crash in 1980. During the treatment, the doctors realized there was another neck fracture that was already healed. Petty had raced with it, and won even. One of his record 200 victories on the track.
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So, when NASCAR on NBC kicked off a discussion on X by asking fans who the greatest driver of all time was, Petty’s name shone through. That too amongst legends like Dale Earnhardt, Jimmie Johnson and others. As fans picked their favorites, stating reasons behind their choice, the words of one fan, describing Petty, stood out from the rest. And it was noticed by the great Mark Martin.
The comment, which reflected the greatness of The King, explained how Petty had to beat other legends like David Pearson, Bobby Allison, and Cale Yarborough to secure his seven Cup Series championships.
Petty raced with intensity as well as passion, all while doing his duties as a team owner, and working on cars in the garage. None of the drivers mentioned in the greatest of all time debate possibly came close to matching this deep a involvement in the sport.
Recognizing this, Martin wrote, “Never forget the King.” Well, how can anyone possibly forget.
Never forget the King. https://t.co/bxWPIloxBG
— Mark Martin (@markmartin) December 1, 2024
Petty’s legend hit the immortal realms after the incident surrounding the broken neck. It was after a wreck at Pocono in 1980. Petty was racing hard until he rammed his car into the catch fence.
The King had broken his neck, the x-rays revealed later. But Petty was taken by surprise when the doctors asked him whether he had suffered another fracture before. Richard had driven with injuries and pain so many times that he would have missed this small detail — a fracture in the neck. He just kept racing.
Besides the record victories, he has the most number of poles (123), most wins in a season (27), most consecutive wins (10), most Daytona 500 wins (7), and the most starts in the top tier (1,185) in the sport. Not to mention a longer list of other records that he tops.
Naturally, fans crowded behind Martin to show respect to the legend.
One follower mentioned that he was tired of people ignoring Petty’s records. He wrote, “Yeah honestly I’m sick and tired of people basically dismissing the King’s stats because of the era he raced in.”
Sure, stock car racing was not at its zenith in popularity back in Petty’s time. But that does not mean that the drivers in that era had it easy. They were many great racers, pioneers even, who were battling each other at the time. And Petty stood out amongst them.
One fan added, “And he did it all while being the king for the fans too. My late daddy always reminded me of that fact.”
Petty’s kindness to fans is one of the reasons he is regarded as highly as he is. He is often spotted at race tracks even now, taking pictures and signing autographs for the fans.
One comment, rightly, bottom-lined the discussion, “He is The King for a reason.”
