| Ricky Knotts | |
| Birth Name: | Benny Richard Knotts |
| Birth Date: | 23 May 1951 |
| Birth Place: | Paw Paw, Michigan, United States |
| Death Place: | Daytona Beach, Florida, United States |
| Death Cause: | Racing accident |
| Achievements: | Red Bud 300 (1979) |
| Awards: | Michigan Motorsports Hall of Fame (2017) |
| Total Cup Races: | 3 |
| Years In Cup: | 2 |
Benny Richard Knotts (May 23, 1951February 14, 1980) was an American ASA and NASCAR Winston Cup driver. The Paw Paw, Michigan[1] driver began his career in 1966 on Michigan short tracks and raced in various stock car series for 6 years before he died in a crash at Daytona in 1980.
Knotts was a Michigan short-track racer who raced Late Models, and by the late 1970's participated in touring series. He won three American Speed Association events during his career, at Toledo Speedway, Winchester Speedway, and Anderson Speedway. The 1979 Anderson win came in the Red Bud 300, a major event for short track racing, now a Champion Racing Association Super Late Model major[2], where he led 58 laps, beating Midwestern short track legends Dick Trickle and Mike Eddy (who led 57 laps), and future NASCAR Cup Series race winners Jody Ridley (who led 98 laps) and NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Mark Martin (who led 40 laps).[3]
In 1979, The Knotts family purchased an Oldsmobile 442 race car, attempting to make Cup Series starts without any prior ARCA or Sportsman experience on the longer circuits. The car made attempts at Michigan and Charlotte at the National 500, failing to qualify for both.
On February 14, 1980, Knotts was in the field for the first 125 mile heat race race at Daytona International Speedway, hoping to qualify for that Sunday's Daytona 500. His hopes dwindled as his Weaver powered Oldsmobile quickly lost position. On the 14th lap, Knotts hit the outside wall in the short chute just past the start finish line. His car spun off the track sideways across the infield grass and struck passenger side first against the inside concrete wall entering turn one. His seat mount broke and Knotts died instantly, aged 28.[4] Knotts had never started any race at a mile circuit or longer.
Incidents like Knotts, and other incidents such as those that infiltrated the Permatex 300 Sportsman race, led to eventual rule changes when the Sportsman race was upgraded to a national touring race in 1982.
Knotts had never competed in a race at an intermediate track in any series (ARCA or Sportsman), having failed to qualify for two intermediate track races in 1979. Current rules require intermediate experience before being allowed to test at Daytona or Talladega in the preseason test required before a national series race, and drivers cannot participate in the Daytona 500 unless they have raced in any of the development series races first. Drivers must test in the January test session for ARCA, then must participate in a developmental series practice session (Truck, Xfinity, ARCA) before being cleared to race in that series. Only after experience in those series and a Cup start in another oval will that driver be cleared for the Daytona Duels under current rules.
Knotts was inducted into the Michigan Motor Sports Hall of Fame in 2017. His daughter Toysa and her family were part of a November 2017 banquet celebrating his induction[5]
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Bold - Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics - Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)