By 
NASCAR's 75th anniversary season will go on without a familiar name.
Following a re-branding of Petty GMS Racing unveiled on Wednesday, the 2023 season will be the first in NASCAR history without a Petty family-branded race team. Going forward, Petty GMS racing will be called Legacy Motor Club.
The Petty empire in NASCAR began in the racing organization's first year, as Lee Petty (Richard's father) started five races. Lee Petty went on to win 54 races and three championships in a race career that that ran though 1964.
Richard Petty, who retired as a driver after the 1992 season, topped his dad with his 200 victories and seven championships. Since retiring as a driver in 1992, Petty has operated a race team bearing the family name.
Ironically, the Petty name is being dropped from the team in the same year that the series' other seven-time champion—Jimmie Johnson—has come on board as part of the team's ownership group.
The lineage of the new Legacy Motor Club includes:
• Petty Enterprises from 1992-2009
• Gillett Evernham Motorsports merged with Petty Enterprises in 2009 and became known as Richard Petty Motorsports.
• In 2021, the team merged with Maury Gallagher-owned GMS Racing and became Petty GMS Racing.
Richard Petty, 85, tweeted the news of the change on Wednesday.
“When I see the No. 42 & 43 cars, no matter who the driver was, is currently, or could be in the future, I want our fans to remember the Petty history that comes with them, and that history will continue to be made with LEGACY M.C.," Petty tweeted.
Johnson, who will driver a partial schedule in 2023 in the No. 84 car alongside teammates Erik Jones and Noah Gragson, said the new name is a salute to racing's past and future.
“After considering our team’s new name, Maury and I saw an opportunity to do something special and different,” Johnson said in a press release “We felt it was important to have a name that honors the past and recognizes the future. The term “motor club” is a nod to car clubs of the past. Legacy MC will be an inclusive club for the car racing enthusiasts. I am delighted to be part of a history so rich in tradition and look forward to creating a new legacy in this sport outside of racing.”
The 47-year-old Johnson, who raced in the NTT IndyCar Series the past two season, plans to race in the 2023 Daytona 500 in February.
