1973 season recap

1973 saw a season-long upset as Benny Parsons took the crown from the mighty King, Richard Petty. A consistent driver racing for a relatively small-time operation, Parsons only won one race on the season. Richard Petty won six, David Pearson won 11, and Cale Yarborough won 4, but Parsons was at the front all year long and it captured him the 1973 title.

Benny Parsons held the points lead during most of the second half of the season, but a late season surge by four-time and defending champion Richard Petty looked to threaten his position at the top of the standings.

FIVE RACES TO GO: Dover, DE - With his fourth place finish at Dover Downs International Speedway, underdog Benny Parsons found himself atop the point standings with a 211.75-point lead over Cecil Gordon, who finished the race in 27th. James Hylton and Cale Yarborough also struggled as they were contending for the championship, finishing 19th and 25th, respectively. Defending champion Richard Petty was also in the running for the title and came in seventh at Dover.

FOUR RACES TO GO: North Wilkesboro, NC - Points leader Benny Parsons scored a fifth place finish at North Wilkesboro Speedway as contenders Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough, Bobby Allison and Cecil Gordon all finished in the top ten. James Hylton slipped to 12th place and it cost him in the standings, falling to fourth place.

THREE RACES TO GO: Martinsville, VA - As he took the checkered flag at Martinsville Speedway, defending champion Richard Petty moved into second place in the point standings. He was 201.35 points behind Benny Parsons, who finished sixth. Cale Yarborough finished in the runner-up position and Bobby Allison was third. Cecil Gordon and James Hylton were also in the top ten at the 7th and 8th positions.

TWO RACES TO GO: Charlotte, NC - Benny Parsons continued his quiet consistency with a fourth place effort at Charlotte. Richard Petty, who was mired behind Parsons in the standings, finished second to Cale Yarborough. Cecil Gordon finished ninth and James Hylton came in 13th. Parsons headed into the season finale with a 194.35-point lead over Richard Petty.

FINAL RACE: Rockingham, NC - Benny Parsons saw his championship hopes start to fade as he was involved in a lap 13 crash and his car was heavily damaged. He took to the pits to muster whatever he could out of the car and hope for a top five finish in the final standings. The rest of the garage was hoping to see the underdog unseat the mighty Richard Petty and joined in to help Parsons' crew put the car back together. Parsons miraculously got back on the track 136 laps later and completed enough laps to finish 28th and take the 1973 championship. Richard Petty, with the championship in his sights after winning the pole and seeing Parsons' accident, had engine trouble and was relegated to a 35th place finish. The poor performance dropped Petty all the way to fifth in the final standings, as Cale Yarborough took the runner up spot on the season with his third place effort. He finished 67.15 points behind the champion. Cecil Gordon's 11th place finish was good enough for third in the standings and James Hylton finished 19th, enough to overtake Petty for fourth.