73 days until Daytona: Controversy swirled around first 500 and No. 73
It’s getting closer: The Daytona 500 is now only 73 days away, with the green flag set to fly on Feb. 26, 2017 on FOX.
And in honor of the 73-day countdown, we take you back to the very first Daytona 500, way back in 1959. In one of the most famous races in NASCAR history, Petty family patriarch Lee Petty famous won in a photo finish over Johnny Beauchamp.
Petty drove his No. 42 Oldsmobile to victory over Beauchamp’s No. 73 Ford Thunderbird, although the race did not become official until the following Wednesday, after NASCAR officials carefully reviewed still photographs and newsreels from Hearst News of the Week.
Later that year, Beauchamp would win at Atlanta in the No. 73 Ford, and a year later he won again at Nashville, this time in the No. 73 Chevrolet.
Sadly, Beauchamp and Petty would be involved in drama at Daytona again in 1961, but not in a good way. The two crashed after 37 laps in a 40-lap qualifying races, with both their cars flying over the wall and out of the track.
DAYTONA BEACH, FL — February 24, 1961: Lee Petty (No. 42) starts to crash through the guard railing after tangling with Johnny Beauchamp (No. 73) on lap 37 of the second qualifier for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup race at Daytona International Speedway. … DAYTONA BEACH, FL — February 24, 1961: Lee Petty (No. 42) starts to crash through the guard railing after tangling with Johnny Beauchamp (No. 73) on lap 37 of the second qualifier for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup race at Daytona International Speedway. Both cars eventually ended up outside the speedway. It was a strange twist, as both drivers had been involved in the famous photo finish at the end of the first Daytona 500 in 1959. Beauchamp was declared the winner but a check of the finish-line photos showed that Petty had actually won the event. (Photo by ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images)
Petty was seriously injured and for all intents and purposes, the three-time NASCAR Premier Series champion’s career was over. Although his injuries were far less serious than Petty’s, Beauchamp never raced again.
It was a brutal end for two drivers who had made history at Daytona just two years earlier.