There were two Petty wins on October 17th. One was The King's victory in the Delaware 500 at Dover. I blogged about it and posted a recap on RacersReunion back in 2011 here:
http://racersreunion.com/community/forum/stock-car-racing-history/9487/october-17-1971-petty-wins-delaware-500
And on October 17, 1954, Lee Petty wins at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia after starting from the pole in his #42 Chrysler. The race was scheduled for 200 laps and 100 miles; however, officials displayed the checkered flag at 165 laps because of darkness.
The record books indicate Petty won the pole; however, the rest of the starting line-up is unknown. Papa Lee dominated the shortened race by leading 157 of the 165 laps. The remaining 8 laps were led by ageless Hershel McGriff who finished second.
The victory was also meaningful for Petty because it clinched him his first of three NASCAR Grand National series championships.
Read on for more:
https://bench-racing.blogspot.com/2013/10/october-17-1954-lee-petty-masters.html
| Fin | Driver | Car |
| 1 | Lee Petty | '54 Chrysler |
| 2 | Hershel McGriff | '54 Oldsmobile |
| 3 | Buck Baker | '54 Oldsmobile |
| 4 | Dick Rathman | '54 Hudson |
| 5 | Jim Reed | '52 Hudson |
| 6 | Jim Paschal | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 7 | Don Oldenberg | '54 Mercury |
| 8 | John Dodd, Jr. | '51 Hudson |
| 9 | Lou Figaro | '54 Hudson |
| 10 | Bill Blair | '53 Hudson |
| 11 | Bob Welborn | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 12 | Clyde Minter | '50 Mercury |
| 13 | Joe Eubanks | '51 Hudson |
| 14 | Bud Harless | '53 Hudson |
| 15 | Eddie Skinner | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 16 | Herb Thomas | '54 Hudson |
| 17 | Arden Mounts | '53 Hudson |
| 18 | Jimmie Lewallen | '54 Mercury |
| 19 | Marvin Panch | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 20 | Gifford Wood | '49 Hudson |
| 21 | Carl Burris | '53 Packard |
| 22 | Ted Chamberlain | '50 Plymouth |
| 23 | Gober Sosebee | '52 Oldsmobile |
| 24 | Jim Gillette | '52 Plymouth |
| 25 | Joe Bill O'Dell | '49 Ford |
| 26 | Jim Cooper | '49 Ford |
| 27 | Dick Ross | '51 Studebaker |
| 28 | Ken Pace | '49 Hudson |
| 29 | Fred Dove | '51 Hudson |
| 30 | Joel Million | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 31 | Ray Duhigg | '50 Plymouth |
| 32 | Dave Terrell | '54 Dodge |
| 33 | Junior Johnson | Cadillac |
| 34 | Chuck Hansen | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 35 | Ralph Liguori | '54 Dodge |
| 36 | Hassell Reid | '50 Plymouth |
| 37 | George Parrish | '53 Studebaker |
| 38 | Billy Minter | '54 Chevrolet |
| 39 | Blackie Pitt | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 40 | Dink Widenhouse | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 41 | Glen Wood | '50 Oldsmobile |
| 42 | Cotton Owens | '50 Oldsmobile |
| 43 | Bill Widenhouse | '53 Oldsmobile |
| 44 | Walt Flinchum | '51 Plymouth |
--
Schaefer: It's not just for racing anymore.
updated by @tmc-chase: 10/17/20 01:30:06PM
