IN MEMORY OF ADAM PETTY

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Before Adam Petty finished his first American Speed Association race in 1998, he was already a part of sports history. By entering the race, the then 17-year-old member of one of the most famous families in racing became the first fourth-generation athlete in all of professional sports.  Adam is now a vital part of the Petty racing legacy. The 19-year-old recently announced a new, three-year sponsorship agreement with Sprint that includes a newly designed No. 45 Chevrolet, owned by Petty Enterprises.  Behind the wheel of his new car in 2000, Adam will run a full season in the NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Division. Additionally, Adam is making his NASCAR Winston Cup Series debut, marking the first time Adam will race against his father, Kyle Petty.  While Adam's profession may be unique to others his age, he enjoys many of his peer's same interests. When he's not racing, Adam finds time to work out, race on line and hang out with family and friends. He also enjoys outdoors activities like jet skiing and riding four-wheelers on off-road trails.  Adam is also involved in many of his family's charitable activities including the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America.

By REBECCA MAHONEY Associated Press Writer -- LOUDON, N.H. (AP)--NASCAR's most famous driving family has lost its youngest star.  Adam Petty, stock car racing's first fourth-generation driver, died after a crash during practice Friday, five weeks after the family buried patriarch Lee Petty, his great grandfather.  The 19-year-old driver appeared to brush the wall in Turn 3 before spinning out and smashing sideways into the concrete as he prepared for qualifying for Saturday's Busch 200 on the 1.058-mile New Hampshire International Speedway oval.  The red-and-blue No. 45 Sprint PCS Chevrolet, which had been traveling at close to 130 mph, did not catch fire, but Petty was trapped inside for about 20 minutes before rescue workers cut through the roof to free him.  He was taken to Concord Hospital, where he died of head trauma, spokeswoman Jennifer Dearborn said.  A yellow tarp was draped over the car as it was taken off the rack on a flatbed truck.  "I knew it was a hard hit," said spectator David Henderson, who was at a nearby concession stand. "At first, everybody thought it was just a crash. Then it was like the whole place went silent."  Another fan, Andrew Watson, had tears in his eyes after learning the crash was fatal.  "There's no way this was his fault," said Watson, who said he knew Petty. "He was a nice guy, a real nice guy. He was just following in his family's footsteps."  Lee Petty, one of the pioneers of NASCAR, died April 5 at age 86 from complications of a stomach aneurysm several weeks after surgery. Adam Petty had made his Winston Cup debut just three days earlier in Fort Worth, Texas, finishing 40th.  Adam Petty is the grandson of seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty and the son of Kyle Petty, a regular on the Winston Cup circuit.  "That's two big losses in the last month for that family," said driver Randy Lajoie. "We know when we leave pit row we may not come back. I thank God every night I'm alive. Tonight, I'll thank him twice."  NASCAR president Bill France said the organization was praying for the Petty family.  "It is difficult to express our sadness over the passing of Adam Petty," France said. "The Pettys are an integral part of the sport of NASCAR. The entire NASCAR community will miss Adam Petty."  In the Petty family hometown of Level Cross, N.C., state and American flags were lowered to half staff. Adam's father, Kyle, was out of the country on a personal trip, and the rest of the family was gathering in a private place, according to a statement from Petty Enterprises.  "I know his family has a strong faith, and I'm with them right now," driver Tim Fedewa said, his voice quavering with emotion as he spoke to reporters at the Loudon speedway, where he won the pole for the race with a lap at 130.247.  Adam Petty's death was the first on-track fatality in NASCAR since John Nemechek was killed in a Craftsman Truck race in Homestead, Fla., in 1997.  The last death in Busch competition was that of Clifford Allison, the son of another NASCAR Hall of Famer, Bobby Allison. Clifford Allison was killed during practice for a race in Brooklyn, Mich., in 1992.  Lee Petty won 55 races, still seventh-best in NASCAR history, and three Grand National--now Winston Cup--championships. In 1959, he become the photo-finish winner of the first Daytona 500.  His son Richard became the king of stock car racing with a record 200 victories and seven championships.  Richard's son, Kyle, is in his 20th year as a Winston Cup regular, and has taken over the day-to-day business of running the family's team.  Adam Petty's entry into racing made the Petty Enterprises team the first with four generations of NASCAR drivers.  It was his second season as a Busch Series regular and he planned to drive in five Winston Cup races this season in preparation for a shot at the rookie title in 2001.  He was 20th last year in the Grand National points race and third in the rookie-of-the-year standings, finishing a career-best fourth in Fontana, Calif., in May.  He had planned to drive full time next year on the Winston Cup circuit in one of the new Petty Enterprises' Dodges as a teammate of his father and John Andretti.  Adam Petty first got serious notice in racing in September 1998 when he won the ARCA race in Charlotte, N.C., at age 18, becoming the youngest driver to win a race in that series. He also ran the full American Speed Association season that year.  In 1999, Kyle Petty was asked about his son's decision to join the family racing tradition.  "I think it's like any parent when your 16-year old leaves the driveway for the first time. It's like, Ugh, are they gonna make it back?" he said.  Besides his grandfather and father, Adam Petty is survived by his mother, Pattie; his grandmother, Lynda; and his great-grandmother, Elizabeth.  Petty's death was one of several involving NASCAR drivers in the last eight years. Clifford Allison's older brother, Davey, a Winston Cup star, was killed in a helicopter crash at Talladega Superspeedway in 1993. A few months earlier, 1992 series champion Alan Kulwicki died in a plane crash in Tennessee.  Winston Cup Drivers Neil Bonnett and Rodney Orr were killed after crashing before the Daytona 500 in 1994.  

AP-NY-05-12-00 1905EDT - Copyright 2000, The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP Online news report may not be published, broadcast or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

LOUDON, New Hampshire (Ticker) -- Adam Petty, the fourth-generation driver of NASCAR's first family of stock car racing, died today after crashing into a wall during a practice session at New Hampshire International Speedway. He was 19.  Petty was airlifted to Concord Hospital after the accident, but died of head trauma early this afternoon, according to a hospital statement.  The crash occurred shortly after noon EDT during the second practice session of qualifying for Saturday's Busch 200.  Petty is the son of driver Kyle Petty, the grandson of the legendary Richard Petty and the great grandson of Lee Petty, who died on April 5.  Ironically, Adam Petty competed in his first Winston Cup race at the DirecTV 500 three days before Lee Petty died. He finished 40th.  "It is difficult to express our sadness over the passing of Adam Petty," NASCAR president Bill France said. "The Pettys are an integral part of the sport of NASCAR. The entire NASCAR community will miss Adam Petty."  Adam Petty was in his second season in the Busch Series and planned on moving to the Winston Cup circuit full-time next year. He had three top-five finishes and four top-10 showings overall in 29 starts last year. His best finish in 1999 was fourth at the Auto Club 300 at California Speedway.  This season, his best performance was a 12th-place finish at the Touchstone Energy 300 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama on April 15. Petty earned $141,930 this season.
5:30 p.m. ET 05/12/00