2026 Daytona 500 Countdown

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When I began racing in 1974, Mike Baldwin was a friend and mentor that helped me a lot. Mike worked at Cycle Works in Stamford, CT, a small hole-in-the-wall dealership owned by Carl Otto, also a friend and mentor. Baldwin's nickname was "Mike The Bike," borrowing that handle from the legendary Mike Hailwood.

Mike Baldwin was a Racer (with a capital R)... supremely talented, totally committed, sterling work ethic. He won the AMA Formula 1 championship FIVE times, twice as a privateer and three times as a full-boat factory Honda rider. He won the Suzuka 8-Hour three times, the first rider to accomplish that feat (Suzuki 1978, Honda 1981, Honda 1984). And he's in the AMA Hall of Fame.

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There are numerous stories about the first application of Petty Blue paint to Lee Petty's number 42 Mopar. Various attributions of who did it and when it happened, etc. They all seem to agree about one detail... there was some leftover white paint and some leftover dark blue, but not enough of either color to paint Lee's whole car, and not enough time for a proper two-tone paint scheme. So the two remnants were mixed, the car won the next race, and the rest... as they say... is history. LOL.

What is actual history is that Lee Petty won 54 Grand National (i.e. Cup Series) races and three championships.

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