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They don’t call him the King for nothing. Richard Petty dominated NASCAR like no one has before or likely ever will again, bringing the sport from obscurity to popularity. Although he won many events for many years, the race he will be forever tied to is the Daytona 500.

Petty was such an icon at Daytona that he got more attention for losing a race (in 1976) than most drivers get for winning. Coming out of the final turn Petty crashed with David Pearson as Petty was going for the pass. Pearson was able to limp across the finish line, but Petty’s car was done. It that hadn't been the case he very well may have ended up with an eighth trips to victory lane at the Daytona 500.

His dominance goes beyond his impressive number of victories. Not only did Petty win seven times (next most in wins is Cale Yarborough with four), he also led in 20 races and notched 16 top-10 finishes.

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