Bubba Wallace to Pay Tribute to Team Owner and NASCAR Legend Richard Petty

In NASCAR circles, Richard Petty is one of the most iconic names in the sport and he is fondly nicknamed ‘The King’. Although he is no longer racing, he is still present in the paddock, because of his team, Richard Petty Motorsports. Ahead of the first playoff race at Darlington, Bubba Wallace is planning something special for Petty.

NASCAR’s throwback weekend at Darlington is slowly approaching and this year’s theme is to honor the sport’s champions. As the man, the myth, the legend, Richard Petty is a great person to pay tribute to. Now, Wallace is set to team up with CashApp to come up with a throwback paint scheme for the occasion.

Wallace said, “An interesting set of circumstances landed Richard Petty in a bright green and white Chevrolet for the Coca-Cola 600.”

Recounting what happened that day, Richard Petty revealed that he had qualified on pole but crashed in practice. At that time, there were no backup cars, so he had to borrow DK Ulrich’s No.6 Chevrolet. Truthfully, it was not such a great race for Petty, since he retired later in the race.

What happened to Richard Petty after that incident?

Apparently, the team tried to convince the driver to not race, but he was adamant. As it turned out, Petty’s team put their own engine in the car instead of the No. 6’s original engine. So, when the car suffered an engine failure, it was not the Chevy’s original engine.

A week later, in spite of some soreness, Richard Petty managed to finish the race in 6th place. This memory sticks out in Petty’s mind because it was the only time he ever drove a car with any other number than his iconic 43.

To that end, Bubba Wallace is going to a throwback to that particular race and use that same livery. Of course, the number will still be 43, and not 6, like it was in 1986.