Kyle Petty Born In Randleman, North Carolina - June 2, 1960

June 2, 1960

Kyle Petty

Born in Randleman, North Carolina, USA.

Now retired, he formerly competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series as both a driver and team owner. He is the son of Richard Petty, grandson of Lee Petty, and father of Adam Petty.

Petty began racing at a young age and made his major-league stock car debut at the age of 18. He won the very first race he entered: the 1979 Daytona ARCA 200, in one of his father's mothballed 1978 Dodge Magnum race cars; at the time becoming the youngest driver to win a major-league stock car race. Later in the season, he made his Winston Cup Series debut; again driving a passed down STP Dodge Magnum numbered #42 for his family's team. He ran five races and had a ninth-place finish in his first series race at Talladega.

Kyle had a NASCAR Cup Series career consisting of 829 races run over 31 years. He finished with 8 wins, 173 top tens and 8 poles.

Kyle Petty co-drove the No. 45 Porsche/Fabcar Daytona Prototype in the 2004 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race along with Paul Newman, Gunnar Jeannette, and Mike Brockman.

(Photo;commons.wikimedia.org)
Petty's 2004 - 24 Hours of Daytona Porsche

Any time he appears on television on Speed he wears a hat with a number 45 with a black line across the number in memory of his son Adam. He appears on NASCAR Trackside, NASCAR Victory Lane and NASCAR RaceDay as a television personality.

Petty is active in many charitable causes, such as the Victory Junction Gang Camp for terminally-ill children, which he established to honor his late son, as well as an annual charity motorcycle ride across the country called the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America.

(Photo;sportingnews.com)