A seven-time champion racing for his eighth world title. All the things goes properly, and he almost wins the race, when a controversial rule change fully decimates their championship hopes. No, we’re not speaking concerning the 2021 Method 1 season. did it way back, and on a way more advanced and technically respectable scale. Such was the rule that no protests may very well be staged towards it.
In a somewhat poetic style, was racing for his fifth NASCAR Cup Sequence title (then referred to as the Winston Cup Sequence). All the things seemed so as–Petty had six wins in the course of the season–fairly sufficient to safe the title, even by at the moment’s requirements. However to everybody’s shock, and Richard Petty’s disappointment, the 1973 Winston Cup Sequence champion was Benny Parsons.
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You is perhaps questioning, how can this occur?! One possible reply is perhaps that Petty was inconsistent and couldn’t win the championship due to subpar outcomes outdoors of his six victories. However no, he had 15 Prime-5 finishes in 28 races all through the season. As a matter of truth, Petty was really solely P5 within the drivers’ championship. So, what’s the catch right here?
The NASCAR championship system that modified every little thing for Petty
Sure, NASCAR solely adopted and Playoffs system within the twenty first century. However put together your self, their factors system in the course of the 70s was even stranger than at the moment. It was an period the place the reliability of the automobiles was a a lot greater difficulty. Therefore, the game awarded factors to drivers on the premise of the miles that they had accomplished in the course of the race.
The factors system awarded drivers bonus factors for each lap raced. Based on the size of the NASCAR monitor, every extra lap added the next factors to the motive force’s tally:
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Throughout the 70s, NASCAR was all about survival in the course of the race. Profitable didn’t matter greater than going the gap. For those who accomplished an extended race with out your automotive breaking down, you have been thought-about a proficient driver. Profitable in any respect prices would usually result in breakdowns. As an alternative, a driver needed to be sensible and hold the automobile for so long as potential.
In a approach, NASCAR mirrored the endurance racing system. The one distinction was that the races have been a lot shorter. Now, Benny Parsons, who was the 1973 Cup Sequence champion, was capable of make the most of this method very successfully.
He completed out of the Prime-10 in solely eight out of the 28 races that season. In that method, he was capable of declare the factors, in addition to the bonus for finishing the laps and clocking in additional miles than different drivers. Petty’s P5 was nothing in comparison with one of many different legendary drivers that season.
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David Pearson was capable of win 11 out of the 18 races he participated in 1973. But, he might handle a meager P13 within the drivers’ championship. Ultimately, Richard Petty misplaced out to Benny Parsons by 800 miles. The most important issue that led to his loss was the ten DNFs he encountered in the course of the season, main to an enormous level deficit.
However such was the dominance of Richard Petty in these years that even a P5 was his ‘lowest’ rating within the driver standings since 1965. However, NASCAR noticed the error of its methods and instantly modified its guidelines to a full-season championship format in 1975. In consequence, Richard Petty gained the championship as soon as once more, ending his sixth profitable NASCAR marketing campaign.
Think about how the NASCAR followers of that period felt once they noticed their favorites successful races however dropping championships with none obvious motive.
On that word, it will be a criminal offense to overlook the ultimate race of the 1973 Cup Sequence season…
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The ‘rebuild’ that rebuilt Benny Parsons’ championship
Going into the ultimate race of the season, the American 500 at North Carolina Motor Speedway, Benny Parsons was solely inches forward of the competitors. He ran out of luck fairly quickly, ending up in a disastrous accident throughout lap-13, however someway stored his Chevy transferring ahead.
The affect, nonetheless, took extra out of the automotive than he would have imagined. Your entire right-side sheet metallic of his automotive was torn off, and his roll-cage have been severely broken. When all hope appeared misplaced, L.G. DeWitt’s crew and volunteers from different groups took on the unimaginable process of performing CPR on his dying Chevrolet.
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In consequence, Parsons was at the very least capable of full 308 out of 492 laps. It earned him a P28 end within the race. Paired with Richard Petty’s engine failure, his efforts have been sufficient to safe the crown of the 1973 Cup Sequence season.
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