Rick Hendrick nearly signed Richard Petty in early days of Hendrick Motorsports

Hendrick Motorsports has come a long way. These days, it’s considered one of the top racing teams in the sport, but it wasn’t always that way. Rick Hendrick described a time when things were rough, missing out on a chance to sign legendary NASCAR driver Richard Petty.

In an interview on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Hendrick reminisced about a time early in the team’s life that it had a chance to ink a deal with “The King.” But, unfortunately, it never came to fruition.

“We were going down that road and we thought we had Richard and it blew up on us,” Hendrick said. “And then we didn’t have a sponsor. Then we had CK Spurlock at Gambler Chassis, and he was launching a new program, so it came apart. Here I was with Harry (Hyde) and myself and no sponsor, and you’re talking about a shoestring deal.

“I was running — when we built the cars, we put Chrysler transmissions, Chrysler rear ends and so we were running a Chevrolet with Chrysler gearboxes and Chrysler gears which I was renting from Harry. Renting the shop, renting equipment.”

🗣️ "We thought we had Richard, and it blew up on us."

Did you know that Rick Hendrick almost signed "The King" @therichardpetty to drive for the team in the early days of @TeamHendrick? 🤯

Listen to that full story and more on the @SIRIUSXM App → https://t.co/S6iNvWfGwe pic.twitter.com/Sjew4q73yL

— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) September 26, 2023

Hendrick has come quite a ways since those early days. The team has claimed 14 NASCAR Cup Series championships and has won 300 races on the circuit. It has also claimed three NASCAR Truck Series titles and an Xfinity Series championship.

In total, Hendrick Motorsports has won 359 checkered flags. It currently houses Cup Series drivers Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, William Byron and Alex Bowman.

Perhaps if Hendrick landed Petty, the team could be even more successful. The legendary driver is still considered the greatest of all time, running in 1,184 races in his career. He took his car to Victory Lane 200 times and ended his career with 712 top-10 finishes.

Petty also won seven NASCAR Cup Series championships, tied for most in the sport’s history with Dale Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson. He’s a member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

NASCAR heads to Charlotte

The NASCAR Cup Series playoffs continue this weekend at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course. It’s the final race in the Round of 12, with the field shrinking to the top eight drivers after Sunday.

The Bank of America ROVAL 400 is scheduled for a 2 p.m. ET start with coverage airing on NBC. The Round of 8 then gets underway on Sunday, Oct. 15 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Sunday’s race should provide plenty of entertainment with so much at stake.