Richard Petty was undeniably the top driver in 1964, securing his NASCAR Cup Series title through an overwhelmingly powerful performance. He was the face of Plymouth and the rising star of a sport beginning to capture the national imagination. As the sport expanded rapidly, Petty stood at the center of its rise, and he was backed by a powerful factory support and an engine program that set him apart from the field. But not for long.

However, as the 1965 season approached, the most iconic driver in America was absent from the starting grids of the Deep South. But his absence wasn’t due to injury or decline. It was the result of a bitter rule dispute with NASCAR leadership, a decision that forced Petty out of the sport and into a brief, tragic gap that nearly left him gone from racing.

The Hemi ban and the “Outlawed” Petty

​The conflict that sidelined Petty wasn’t about driving skill, but a power struggle between NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and Chrysler.

After Petty used the massive 426 Hemi engine to lap the field at Daytona in 1964, France feared the lopsided competition would ruin the sport. He grew concerned that Ford would withdraw if they couldn’t compete with Chrysler’s superior engineering.

He responded by banning the Hemi for 1965. Chrysler refused to back down and pulled its factory support, leading Petty to walk away from NASCAR entirely for the season. Chrysler, refusing to accept the sidelining of its prized technology, staged a massive corporate boycott.

Richard Petty, a loyal Plymouth soldier, was caught in the crossfire. As he recalled, “NASCAR in ’65 wouldn’t let us run the Hemi Plymouth said, ‘Okay, you’re working for us, we’re going to put you drag racing'”.

​Petty’s transition from the high banks of Darlington to the narrow strips of drag racing was a radical departure. He traded his stock car for a Plymouth Barracuda appropriately named “Outlawed.”

He traveled the country as a “match race” attraction, drawing huge crowds because he was the reigning champion who had been forced out. However, the transition was difficult.

Petty admitted, “We really missed going around and around,” noting that a race being over in just ten seconds felt wrong to a man used to 500-mile marathons. The rivalry between Chrysler and Bill France turned the top driver into a sideshow act, a situation that became worse on February 28, 1965.

The experiment turned into a nightmare that day at Southeastern Dragway in Georgia. A suspension part on the “Outlawed” car broke, sending the vehicle into a crowd of spectators standing just 15 feet from the track. An 8-year-old boy, Wayne Dye, was killed in the accident.

The tragedy devastated Petty. His family recalled him sitting in silence for days, struggling to “sort out what kind of tragedy had taken place”. Though they built another car to finish their contract, Petty said their “heart wasn’t in it” anymore.

The impact of this tragedy was long-lasting.

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The aftermath of the exile

The 1965 season remains a “what if” in the record books of NASCAR, representing a year where the sport’s most popular figure was effectively silenced by administrative decree.

The statistical impact was immediate: Petty, who had won nine races in 1964 and would go on to win many more in the following years, recorded zero NASCAR starts for a significant portion of the ’65 season. This absence allowed Ned Jarrett to cruise to a championship, though the season felt incomplete without the #43 Plymouth in the mix.

The standoff eventually ended when Bill France realized that a NASCAR without Richard Petty and the Hemi was a diminishing product, leading to a compromise that allowed the Hemi back into competition under specific weight restrictions for the following year.

​The legacy of this enmity serves as a pivotal moment in the professionalization of the sport. It demonstrated the immense power Bill France wielded over his “kingdom,” but also highlighted that some stars were too big to be cast out indefinitely.

When Richard Petty finally returned to full-time NASCAR competition in 1966, he did so by winning the Daytona 500 once again and reaffirming his status as “The King.”

The brief, dark chapter of drag racing and the “Outlawed” Barracuda became a somber reminder of what happens when the politics of the boardroom collide with the safety and passion of the racetrack.

Today, the 1965 season is remembered not just for who won, but for the absence of the man who defined the era, proving that even the strongest enmity must eventually bend to the will of the fans and the necessity of the sport.