MOTOR RACING / SHAV GLICK : Honors Keep Coming for Petty

Richard Petty, who retired last year as the winningest driver in Winston Cup stock car history, will be honored Sunday night at the Burbank Hilton during the annual American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters banquet for their All-American team.

It will be the second official appearance of the NASCAR racing legend since he drove in his final race Nov. 15 at Atlanta. His first was to receive the Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor, from President George Bush last month at the White House. Petty was one of 10 Americans so honored. Others included Johnny Carson, singer Ella Fitzgerald, actress Audrey Hepburn, violinist Isaac Stern, journalist David Brinkley, diplomat Harry Shlaudeman, Gen. John W. Vessey (ret.), architect I.M. Pei and author Elie Wiesel.

“It’s just phenomenal, we do our thing and have a good time doing it, and then to get recognition like this--that’s above and beyond the call of duty,” Petty said. “I’m in a different world here, that’s for sure.

“I’ve heard tell of all these people. Then to be thrown into the same situation with them makes you feel good, makes you feel big and really proud of what’s going on.”

Along with Petty, his familiar No. 43 car number will also be retired. Rick Wilson, who will succeed Petty in the STP Pontiac, will carry No. 44, but the color scheme of Petty blue and STP red will remain. Petty will direct the team.

It will also be announced at the banquet that Petty will be the official starter for the 1993 season opener, the Daytona 500, on Feb. 14 at Daytona International Speedway.

Bobby Rahal, 1992 Indy car champion and American driver of the year, will head the 12 drivers to be honored at the banquet, which is open to the public. Others expected to attend include Juan Manuel Fangio II, the International Motor Sports Assn. Camel GT champion; Jack Baldwin, Sports Car Club of America Trans-Am champion; Joe Amato, National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel champion; Kenny Bernstein, first drag racer to exceed 300 m.p.h.; Irv Hoerr, IMSA Exxon Supreme GTO champion, and Rod Millen, champion of the Grand National sports truck class in the Mickey Thompson Off-Road Gran Prix series.

Unable to attend will be Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison, both of whom are testing for the coming Winston Cup series; Michael Andretti, who is in Europe testing for his debut in Formula One, and Steve Kinser, perennial World of Outlaw sprint car champion, who is racing in Australia and New Zealand.

SPORTS CARS--Dan Greenwood, former president of Riverside International Raceway and a member of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic executive committee, has been named president of the International Motor Sports Assn. Greenwood took over the reins at Riverside in 1984 and was there until ownership closed the track in 1988. One of his first jobs will be to find competitive GTP cars for the series’ top class. Both Nissan and Mazda have pulled out and Acura elected not to compete, leaving champion Toyota with little or no one to race. The 1993 season opens Jan. 31 with the Rolex 24-hour race at Daytona Beach.

MOTOCROSS--Sunrise Valley Raceway in Adelanto has become the new home of the Continental Motosport Club, which is sponsoring the Golden State Nationals for the 17th year. Open practice is held every Thursday and Saturday at Sunrise Valley--located 14 miles from Victorville on U.S. 395. . . . The Golden State series will be at Barona Oaks Raceway in Ramona Saturday and Sunday.

DRAG RACING--The Los Angeles County Raceway, near Palmdale, has switched sanctioning bodies, from the National Hot Rod Assn. to the International Hot Rod Assn. The IHRA, headquartered in Bristol, Tenn., will continue to run weekly sportsman and professional events, according to Bernie Longjohn, track manager. . . . Frank Pedregon, a veteran sprint car and midget racer and brother of NHRA funny car champion Cruz Pedregon, will switch to drag racing this year. He will make his debut in a top alcohol dragster entered by Al Reid of Upland in the Winternationals Feb. 4-7 at the Pomona Fairplex.

INDY CARS--Mike Groff will sign soon with Bobby Rahal to test the Truesports chassis and drive in selected races. Groff qualified a car in last year’s Indianapolis 500 for Scott Goodyear, then turned it over to the Canadian, who was the lead driver for Derek Walker’s team. Goodyear finished second to Al Unser Jr. in the closest race in Indy history. . . . Eddie Cheever, who drove for Chip Ganassi last year, has signed to drive a Penske-Chevrolet for P.I.G. Racing next season, it was announced by team owner Norm Turley of Long Beach.

STOCK CARS--Hershel McGriff, 64, was chosen as the most popular driver in the Winston West series for the 12th consecutive year. . . . Bill Sedgwick, 37, collected a record $133,707 in winning his second consecutive Winston West championship. Rick Carelli took rookie-of-the-year honors.

MISCELLANY--Driver Chad DeMarco of Huntington Beach and navigator Erick Hauge drove their Subaru Legacy to a third Group A championship in the SCCA’s Pro Rally series. . . . Lars Mendoza of Santa Maria, a finalist in the Jim Russell Drivers School world scholarship race, plans to campaign an Opel-Lotus in either the Benelux or the German Formula Opel-Lotus series this year.