practice session at New Hampshire International Speedway. He is also the grandfather of Ritchie Petty, who ran a few races in NASCAR. His nephew Dale Inman worked for Petty Enterprises as Richard's crew chief from the early 1960s until 1981 and during the 1990s. Awards In 1990, Petty was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame. He was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1996. He was elected to the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame. He was selected as one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998 along with his son, Richard Petty. He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame on May 23, 2011. Teams Petty Enterprises (1949–1964) Gary Drake (1954) Carl Krueger (1955) Fred Frazier (1956) Death Petty died at 4:50 a.m. on April 5, 2000, at Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital in Greensboro, North Carolina, three weeks after his 86th birthday, several weeks after undergoing surgery for an abdominal aortic aneurysm—a tear in the aorta vessel near the stomach that grows until cardiac arrest. Despite the surgery, his condition deteriorated and he died of abdominal aortic dissection. He was buried at the Level Cross United Methodist Church Cemetery in Randleman, North Carolina. Lee died just three days after his great-grandson Adam made his Winston Cup Series debut; Adam would be killed at the age of nineteen years old just 5 weeks later from a practice race crash. Motorsports career results NASCAR (key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.) Grand National Series Daytona 500 References External links Lee Petty article from the International Motor Sports Hall of Fame 1914 births 2000 deaths Burials in North Carolina Deaths from abdominal aortic aneurysm International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees NASCAR Cup Series champions NASCAR drivers People from Randleman, North Carolina Petty family Richard Petty Racing drivers from North Carolina NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees