Richard Lee Petty

Richard Petty is most known for winning a NASCAR record 200 races
during his career, including the Daytona 500 a record seven times. His
racing team, Richard Petty Motorsports, is one of the most successful
teams on the circuit.

 
The Ford Model T No. 2 was the first vehicle to cross the finish line

From left: driver Bert Scott and mechanic James Smith were in the second
car to arrive in Seattle, Washington and ultimately win the race.

On June 23, 1909, a Ford automobile arrived in Seattle from New York City in
23 days flat, completing one of the very early transcontinental automobile races
across North America. This Model T Ford arrives first but is later disqualified
because the drivers changed the axle during the race. The winner, the second
to arrive, is a Shawmut. The race was part of the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition
(A-Y-P).

Initially as many as 35 autos were entered in the race, but when it started in New
York City on June 1, 1909, at 3:00 p.m., the exact moment that President Taft
officially opened the race, only six vehicles crossed the start line. They were an
Itala, Shawmut, Acme, Stearns, and two Model T Fords.

With the speeds of the cars in those days, it took approximately seven hours 
for that first Indianapolis 500-Mile Race. There were a total of 46 entries and
80,000 spectators in attendance.

 
The finish line

 
Ray Harroun, 1911 Indianapolis 500 winner

Mario Gabriele Andretti 

Anddretti is a retired Italian American world champion race car driver, one of 
the most successful in the history of the sport. He is one of only two drivers to 
win in Formula One, IndyCar, NASCAR and World Sportscar Championship 
(the other being Dan Gurney). Andretti won the 1978 Formula One World 
Championship, four IndyCar titles (three under USAC–sanctioning, one under 
one under CART), and IROC VI. To date, he remains the only driver ever to
win the Indianapolis 500 (1969), Daytona 500 (1967) and the Formula One
World Championship, and, along with Juan Pablo Montoya, the only driver
to have won a race in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Formula One, and
and Indianapolis 500. He has a total of 109 career wins on major circuits.

 
  Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. (April 29, 1951 – February 18, 2001)

One of the best NASCAR drivers of all time, with a total of 76 races
over the course of his career, he earned 7 NASCAR Winston Cup
Championships. He died of head injuries when his car crashed 
into the outside retaining wall during the final lap of the 2001 
Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona
Beach, Florida.