Richard Petty

I don’t now what situation they came from and I don’t know what they were offered to go somewhere else. It’s the times now, There’s not a any loyalty for anyone or anything – a whole lot. Wherever the money’s at, that’s where they’re going, so I don’t blame them. They’ve got just a few years to get it done and if they don’t get it done then, then they aren’t going to get it done.

He was at Richmond from the time I was a little boy. He was one of the originals in PR, in working with the drivers and the newspapers. He was one of the first to realize you don’t just stick up a sign and say we’re going to have a race Sunday. He went out, dug up PR and really got the job done. Any time we ran at Richmond, the place was always full.

If you keep running, you’ll get something.

At least when the race starts, he’ll know where they’re all at because they’ll all be in front of him.

There’s probably not a crew chief out there who hasn’t tried something that seemed like a good idea.

Cotton Owens was leading and daddy was second. They came up on me and I moved over to let them pass. Cotton went on, but daddy bumped me in the rear and my car went right into the wall.

I don’t like a tremendous amount of conflict. I don’t think that fighting and passion are the same thing.

Trump’s presidency is like one of his handshakes: it pulls you in whether you like it or not.

Music is all I know.

I read while the kids play. I can see them from the kitchen window. And I’m a fast reader.

Inside me there is a fat man dying to get out.

Fame always brings loneliness. Success is as ice cold and lonely as the North Pole.

It just was a gradual development over the years. I mean last year was ‘all you need is Love.’ This year, it’s ‘all you need is Love and peace, baby.’ Give peace a chance, and remember Love. The only hope for us is peace. Violence begets violence. You can have peace as soon as you like if we all pull together. You’re all geniuses, and you’re all beautiful. You don’t need anyone to tell you who you are. You are what you are. Get out there and get peace, think peace, and live peace and breathe peace, and you’ll get it as soon as you like.

I believe I was definitely sent down here to take people away for a little while, to make them happy.

I prayed to God for peace and love, I’m looking at you as a blessing. You told me life been looking up so take that past shit as a lesson.

I prefer being as far from the centre of celebrity as possible.

[on acting] Sometimes I think, ‘To hell with acting’ and then I realize I could be working at a shoe shop. Acting is much cooler.

When I was flying to Rome, we flew over London; I felt like bursting into tears. It’s part of me, so I can’t leave London behind for good.

Whatever the problem, be part of the solution. Don’t just sit around raising questions and pointing out obstacles.

Everyone asks me about being so worried or thinking about existence as if I’m the only person who can’t understand why a tree grows the way it does or why a person is in power when they’re not that great. These are questions everyone has.

It’s an idiotic thing that you have to be a college graduate to be an agent.