Tuesday, May 08, 2012

NASCAR Hall Of Fame Profile: Benny Parsons

BENNY PARSONS – Driver (b. 7/12/41 – d. 1/16/07)

Hometown: Detroit, Mich.
Competed: 1964-88
Starts: 526
Wins: 21
Poles: 20 

Benny Parsons, a Wilkes County, N.C. native who called Detroit home after driving a taxi for a living during his years in the northern city, won the 1973 NASCAR premier series championship in one of the most dramatic fashions in series history.  

Parsons could be called an everyman champion: winning enough to be called one of the sport’s stars but nearly always finishing well when he wasn’t able to reach Victory Lane. He won 21 times in 526 career starts but finished among the top 10 283 times – a 54 percent ratio. 

One of Parsons’ biggest victories came in the 1975 Daytona 500. He also was the first driver to qualify a stock car at more than 200 mph (200.176) in 1982 at Talladega Superspeedway. He was named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998. 

Parsons also was known as a voice of the sport making a seamless transition to television following his NASCAR career. He was a commentator for NBC and TNT until his passing on Jan. 16, 2007, at the age of 65. 

This is the latest in a series of GodfatherMotorsports.com biographies profiling the 25 nominees for the 2012 class of the NASCAR Hall Of Fame. Each of the 25 candidates will be profiled in the coming weeks, in alphabetical order.

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous4:02 PM

    Sinply a great man. I still miss his commentary. And there isn't a lot more to say. I hope he is elected.


    Doug from NJ

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  2. I got to meet him in his role as an announcer at TMS some years back. Not only is he a great candidate for the HOF, and obviously a large figure in NASCAR's history as a driver and personality - he was a heck of a nice guy besides. Sure miss him.

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  3. Had a voice like a warm cup of cocoa, and a charm that won't be replaced. Sure miss me some B.P.

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