1954 Season Recap

Lee Petty, a NASCAR pioneer and the patriarch of the most famous family in racing, won the first of his three NASCAR Grand National (now known as the NASCAR Winston Cup Series) championships in 1954. His title completed a natural progression in the final point standings as Petty had finished fourth in 1951, third in 1952, and second in 1953.

Lee Petty broke away from defending NASCAR Grand National champion Herb Thomas and headed down the final stretch of the season with an almost insurmountable lead.

FIVE RACES TO GO: Charlotte, NC - Last year's points runner-up, Lee Petty, came into the season's 33rd race with a sizable advantage in the point standings on defending champion Herb Thomas. At Southern States Fairgrounds in Charlotte, Petty added to his lead by finishing in the runner-up position behind winner Herschel McGriff. McGriff, who also won last week's race, moved to sixth place in the point standings despite missing the first half of the season. The top six drivers in the point standings made up the top six at Charlotte: Buck Baker finished third, Dick Rathmann fourth, Joe Eubanks fifth, and Thomas came in sixth.

FOUR RACES TO GO: Langhorne, PA - With four races remaining in the 1954 season, Lee Petty enjoyed a 402-point lead over Herb Thomas. Thomas won at Langhorne Speedway, setting a track record and reaching a milestone with his 40th career victory. However his deficit in the point standings did not shrink much, due to the fact that Petty finished second in the race. Buck Baker led until Thomas passed him with 99 laps to go and relegated Baker to a fourth place finish. Herschel McGriff continued his hot streak and kept climbing in the point standings with his third place finish. Dick Rathmann and Joe Eubanks both finished in the top 10 as well, coming in seventh and tenth, respectively.

THREE RACES TO GO: LeHi, AR - At the brand new Memphis-Arkansas Speedway, Buck Baker looked to put some distance between himself and the drivers challenging him for third place in the point standings. He did so with a victory at the new 1.5-mile dirt track, taking the lead with 17 laps remaining. Points leader Lee Petty jumped to an early lead and appeared to be on his way to an easy victory when his axle broke while he was leading the 150th lap. Petty finished six laps down which was still good enough for a third place finish. Dick Rathmann played runner-up to Baker, while Herb Thomas finished fourth, Herschel McGriff ninth and Joe Eubanks 32nd in the field of 52 drivers.

TWO RACES TO GO: Martinsville, VA - Lee Petty clinched his first NASCAR Grand National title in grand fashion by winning the race at Martinsville Speedway. Herschel McGriff challenged Petty on the last lap but did not enough and came home second. Buck Baker, who was locked in a battle for third in points with Dick Rathmann, finished third with Rathmann a spot behind in fourth. Herb Thomas, who had clinched the runner-up position in the point standings, finished 16th. It was the fourth consecutive year in which Thomas had finished either first or second in the standings.

FINAL RACE: North Wilkesboro, NC - With the championship decided, Lee Petty was not concerned with his last place performance at the season finale in North Wilkesboro. A broken hub got the better of Petty only 12 laps into the event. Buck Baker captured third place in the final standings with his runner-up finish to Herschel McGriff. McGriff, who took the lead from Dick Rathmann on lap 85, won his fourth event of the year and finished sixth in the point standings with only 24 starts, as opposed to the 34 starts that the leaders had. Dick Rathmann finished fifth at North Wilkesboro Speedway and was fourth in the standings. Joe Eubanks finished tenth in the race which was good enough to clinch a spot in the top five in the points race. Despite his 12-win season, Herb Thomas fell 283 points short of Petty, who finished in the top 10 in 32 of the 34 races he entered.