THERE WAS A SEISMIC SHIFT IN THE WORLD of racing at the start of 1969. Richard Petty, eventual seven-time series champion and 200-race winner, raced for Plymouth through 1968 and wanted to switch to Dodge to pilot the new aero-slick ’69 Daytona; Plymouth didn’t have a similar machine planned then. But one does not deny The King. Once he was turned down by management, Petty ditched Chrysler altogether in favor of cross-town rival Ford. It had been a decade since he raced for anyone other than Plymouth, so this came as a big surprise to plenty of fans and fellow racers alike.
On Saturday, February 1, 1969, Petty attended the season-opening 500 race at the Riverside, California, road course behind the wheel of a Ford Torino
