Winning personality

Kyle Petty has won only eight times in more than 800 races during his three decades in NASCAR’s top series, yet he remains among the sport’s most popular drivers.

Petty, 47, typically draws some of the loudest cheers in pre-race driver introductions, is a favorite of autograph seekers and enjoys widespread respect among crew members in the Nextel Cup garage.

Why?

When he joined the Cup series in 1981, he inherited residual goodwill -- not to mention his beaming smile -- from his legendary father, Richard Petty, known as “the King” for his record 200 victories and from his grandfather, Lee Petty, who won three NASCAR championships.

But as the years went by, Kyle carved out his own popularity, first as a driver who maintained close ties to fans and then -- after losing a son to racing -- for his extensive work with children’s charities.

“I hope when a lot of people meet me they think, ‘He wouldn’t be a bad neighbor to have,’ ” Petty said. “I’ve always said that I may not be your favorite driver, but I’m probably your second-favorite driver.”

And although it’s unlikely Petty will visit Victory Lane again, his determination hasn’t ebbed. At Watkins Glen, N.Y., this month, his car was knocked out early and a frustrated Petty broke his right hand after slamming it on a hauler door.

“That’s just adrenaline, the passion of being in the moment and wanting to win a race,” he said after the incident. “Then all of a sudden it’s all over for you.”

He’s expected to be back in the car for Sunday’s Sharp Aquos 500 at California Speedway.

Now as his driving days are winding down, Petty is probably better known for being a goodwill ambassador for his sport than being in contention each week.

At the Coca-Cola 600 in May, for instance, he finished third for his first top-five finish in a decade, thanks mostly to a fuel-saving strategy that paid off. But when Petty arrived for the post-race news conference, he began by extensively praising winner Casey Mears, who had just earned his first Cup victory.

“A lot of [Petty’s popularity] is his personality, how he comes across to fans,” said Bobby Labonte, his teammate at Petty Enterprises and the 2000 Cup champion. “I don’t know if charisma is the right word, but he’s just one of those drivers people like.”

Petty gave up his seat in the No. 45 Dodge this summer to be a TV analyst for several Cup races, and drew favorable reviews for his candor and plain-spoken commentary.

But Petty said TV won’t be his next career.

“Not on a full-time basis,” he said. “Golly, it was a lot more work than I thought it would be. But it was very gratifying and gave me a different view of the sport.”

Asked about his rapport with fans, Petty replied, “I got that from my father.” And like Richard, he also talks quickly and often ends sentences with “you know what I mean?”

Otherwise, Kyle keeps a separate identity from Richard, even in appearance. While his dad is known for his trademark cowboy hat and wrap-around sunglasses, Kyle sticks with a goatee and long hair that he keeps tied in a ponytail at the track.

“It’s just that the way I was brought up is you are who you are and he is the way he is,” Kyle said. “You don’t come in and try to copy your father, with the cowboy hat or cowboy boots.”

But he does credit Richard with teaching him that drivers benefit from treating fans well in a sport where Kyle has earned $28 million in race winnings during his long career.

“It’s a circle,” he said. “I want to drive a race car. I have to have money from somebody and I get the money from, say, Coca-Cola. How does Coca-Cola get their money? By selling it to the guy on the street. I want that guy to watch racing, so I sign his autograph. So he buys the Coca-Cola, and they give the money to me. It’s just a circle.”

Most of Kyle Petty’s victories came in the 1990s, when he drove for the team owned by Felix Sabates.

“When I drove for Felix I loved Felix to death,” Petty said. “The only reason I left Felix was to start a team for [son] Adam” in 1997.

Adam, then 19, was the fourth-generation Petty to become a race car driver. But he was killed in May 2000, during a practice run at New Hampshire International Speedway. From that point on, Kyle Petty drove with Adam’s number, 45.

These days, the No. 45 Dodge is seldom near the front in most races -- “If I go out and run in the top 10 or top five, it’s been a great day,” Petty said -- but even a poor finish has its benefits.

“If I go out there and I touch somebody or we reach enough people, and use that as a platform [for his charity work] then I think it’s been a great day,” he said.

Petty and his wife, Pattie , work with several charities. They include his motorcycle Charity Ride Across America and the Victory Junction Gang Camp for terminally and chronically ill children, a camp they started in memory of Adam.

Petty, whose charities have raised several million dollars, was inducted into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame in June, its first inductee from NASCAR.

“He’s a very compassionate person and a tough race car driver,” said Richard Petty. “He got his notoriety by being in the car, but then got what he wanted by being outside of the car.”

But Richard said it is Kyle’s personality that makes him most proud.

“He’s a people person,” he said. “Whether he’s talking to you or the president of the United States, he talks on the same level.”

Asked whether Kyle inherited that trait from him, Richard flashed that famous smile and said: “No, probably from his mother.”

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james.peltz@latimes.com

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Road well-traveled

Kyle Petty’s career statistics:

*--* Year Age Races Win T5 T10 Pole Earnings Rank AvSt AvFn 1979 19 5 of 31 0 0 1 0 $10,810 37 30.4 17.2 1980 20 15 of 31 0 0 6 0 $36,045 28 24.0 17.2 1981 21 31 of 31 0 1 10 0 $117,433 12 16.9 19.1 1982 22 29 of 30 0 2 4 0 $126,285 15 18.3 20.1 1983 23 30 of 30 0 0 2 0 $163,848 13 19.7 18.5 1984 24 30 of 30 0 1 6 0 $329,920 16 22.4 19.5 1985 25 28 of 28 0 7 12 0 $296,366 9 12.3 13.7 1986 26 29 of 29 1 4 14 0 $403,242 10 18.6 14.8 1987 27 29 of 29 1 6 14 0 $544,437 7 14.0 12.9 1988 28 29 of 29 0 2 8 0 $377,092 13 17.1 17.0 1989 29 19 of 29 0 1 5 0 $117,027 30 22.4 17.9 1990 30 29 of 29 1 2 14 2 $746,326 11 12.0 15.5 1991 31 18 of 29 1 2 4 2 $413,727 31 10.1 17.3 1992 32 29 of 29 2 9 17 3 $1,107,063 5 13.2 11.2 1993 33 30 of 30 1 9 15 1 $914,662 5 16.0 13.5 1994 34 31 of 31 0 2 7 0 $806,332 15 26.8 18.9 1995 35 30 of 31 1 1 5 0 $698,875 30 23.6 25.6 1996 36 28 of 31 0 0 2 0 $689,041 27 23.6 22.6 1997 37 32 of 32 0 2 9 0 $984,314 15 26.4 19.1 1998 38 33 of 33 0 0 2 0 $1,287,731 30 27.8 27.4 1999 39 32 of 34 0 0 9 0 $1,278,953 26 24.8 22.5 2000 40 19 of 34 0 0 1 0 $894,911 41 27.3 29.3 2001 41 24 of 36 0 0 0 0 $1,008,919 43 27.5 31.2 2002 42 36 of 36 0 0 1 0 $2,198,073 22 25.8 22.1 2003 43 33 of 36 0 0 0 0 $2,293,222 37 33.2 29.8 2004 44 35 of 36 0 0 0 0 $2,780,131 33 31.2 27.7 2005 45 36 of 36 0 0 2 0 $3,465,687 27 32.9 24.5 2006 46 36 of 36 0 0 2 0 $3,655,539 32 31.0 27.4 2007 47 17 of 24 0 1 1 0 $1,784,286 38 34.2 28.6 *--*

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