Countdown to Daytona: Lee Petty ruled NASCAR in the No. 42

DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 22: Lee Petty driver of the #42 Oldsmobile poses in front of his car before the first 1959 Winston Cup Daytona 500 race at the Daytona International Speedway on February 22, 1959 in Daytona Beach, Florida. He would win the first Daytona 500. (Photo by ISC Archives via Getty Images)

Forty-two days are all that remain before the running of the 2017 Daytona 500 live on FOX.

And while his famous son's car number ended up being one of the most iconic in NASCAR history, Lee Petty earned plenty of his own trophies in accolades in the No. 42 car before his son, Richard, even climbed into the No. 43 -- and kept doing so even for a time afterward.

Petty by far owns the most career NASCAR Premier Series victories in the 42. He piled up a total of 53 wins, 18 poles, 225 top-five and 325 top-10 finishes in 414 career starts in the car number.

Lee Petty was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2012 after getting voted in a year earlier.

The overall numbers for the car number in NASCAR history: a total of 70 wins an 49 poles in 1,470 starts. Kyle Larson, who owns one of those victories, currently drives the No. 42 Chevrolet for Chip Ganassi Racing in the Monster Energy Cup Series.

Another Petty, Richard's son Kyle, owns the second-most number of wins in the 42 -- with six wins and eight poles in 286 career starts.

And even Richard scored two wins in the No. 42 before switching to the No. 43, in which he went on to score 192 of his record 200 NASCAR victories.

The remaining wins in the number are spread out among four other drivers: Jim Paschal (four), Juan Pablo Montoya (two), Joe Nemechek (one) and Marvin Panch (one in just five career starts).

As for the 42nd running of the Daytona 500 in 2000, well, it was special, too.

Dale Jarrett won it from the pole while his father, Ned, emotionally called the race from the broadcast booth. Jarrett led a total of 89 laps and the TV broadcast drew 12.9 million viewers.