All hail
Richard Petty firmly established himself as “The King” in NASCAR after recording seven Premier Series championships. He struck this pose at Daytona International Speedway in 1979, the year he earned his last title.
Check out photos from each of The King's seven championship seasons:
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Doubling down
Petty with the trophy after winning the Daytona 500 in 1964, when he would go on to earn title No. 1.
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Title ride
Petty with his No. 43 car after running in 61 of 62 Premier Series races in 1964, when he won nine races and registered 43 top-10 finishes to secure his first championship.
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Battling Pearson
Petty battles one of his fiercest rivals in David Pearson at Asheville-Weaverville Speedway in 1967.
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Sweet Southern 500
Petty in Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway after winning the Southern 500 in 1967, one of a record 27 wins in 48 starts on the season that Petty registered to run away with his second championship.
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Family affair
Petty celebrates winning the Daytona 500 once again in 1971, with wife Lynda (left), daughters Sharon and Lisa and son Kyle (far right).
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Third time's a charm
Petty in the No. 43 during the Miller High Life 500 at Ontario Motor Speedway in '71, when he won 21 of 46 starts to take title No. 3.
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STP on board
One year later at Ontario, Petty sported what would become the iconic STP-sponsored paint scheme on the No. 43.
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New schedule, old result
Petty poses with the 1972 Winston Cup championship trophy, his fourth, after NASCAR cut the schedule for the series back to 31 races. He won eight of them.
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Firecracker fireworks
Petty celebrates in Victory Lane at Daytona after winning the Fourth of July Firecracker 400 in 1975, with Miss Hurst Linda Vaughan and his son, Kyle, to his left.
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Iconic car
Petty's STP-sponsored No. 43 was the main attraction in Victory Lane after he won the '75 Firecracker 400 at Daytona. He won 13 of 30 races on the season to grab his sixth championship.
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Winning smile
Petty flashes his winning smile after winning another Daytona 500, his sixth (of what would be seven total in his career), in 1979.
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Cousin crew chief
Dale Inman (left), Petty's cousin, celebrates with the driver after they won the American 500 at North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, North Carolina, in 1979. Petty won his seventh and final championshiip that year on the strength of 27 top-10 finishes in 31 starts, with five wins.
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