Recipient of the Order of the Palmetto, the highest civilian honor awarded by the Governor of South Carolina, created in 1971 to recognize lifetime achievement and service to the State of South Carolina. September 16, 2006
Pioneer of Racing Award
Living Legends of Auto Racing
February 15, 2006
Presented with the Smokey Yunick Award for “Lifetime Achievement in Auto Racing” on May 28, 2000
Honored by the Vance County Tourism Dept., Henderson, NC with the “East Coast Drag Times Hall of Fame Motorsports Pioneer Award” on October 16, 2005
Recipient of the “Car Owner’s of the 1960s” award by the Old Timer’s Racing Club, 1996
1966 Winner NASCAR Grand National Championship (currently Sprint Cup) with David Pearson as driver
Earned Pontiac its first NASCAR win when Cotton Owens won on the old beach course at Daytona in 1957 driving a '57 Pontiac prepared by Ray Nichels. Since then, the manufacturer has earned a total of 154 Nextel Cup victories (2003)
Winner of more than 40 races as a NASCAR car owner, including the Southern 500 at Darlington
Years in NASCAR: 1950-1964 as driver,
1950-1973 as car owner
Cotton Owens won more than 100 NASCAR Modified Tour races during the 1950s before making the transition to the NASCAR Grand National (Nextel Cup) Series competition. For five straight years (1957-61), Owens captured at least one series win -- Owens claimed four wins in 1961, all of which were in his home state of South Carolina. His most successful season was in 1959 when he won two races, notched 22 top-10 finishes (through 37 starts) and ranked second in the series season-long points chase to Lee Petty. In 1970, Owens was inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association's Hall of Fame at Darlington (SC) Raceway.
Everett "Cotton" Owens was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers during NASCAR's 50th Anniversary celebration. Younger fans may not be as knowledgeable about the South Carolina native's career, but its safe to say he earned his place on that list.
His career began in what is now known as the Featherlite Modified Series in the early 50's. Racing on dirt seemed to come naturally to the young racer as he earned over 100 feature wins. Owens has said he preferred racing on dirt as opposed to competing on asphalt. He claims that he tried more than once to throw a car sideways into a corner on an asphalt track forgetting where he was.
Cotton's NASCAR (Grand National) career began in 1950 when he ran three races. He finished 13th in the point standings and pocketed $1,100. He'd enter a handful of races over the next several seasons without a win. His first trip to Victory Lane came in 1957 at Daytona Beach and he followed it up with another win in '58.
In 1959, Owens finished second to Lee Petty in the race for the championship. Though Cotton won only one race that season Cotton was making a name for himself as a racer. In 1961 he had his most productive season with 10 Top-5's and four wins in only 17 starts.
After retiring from driving, Owens became one of the leading car owners on the circuit and won the 1966 championship with David Pearson at the wheel. During their six seasons together Owens and Pearson combined for 27 wins in 170 races.
Cotton was fortunate to have some of the biggest names in the sport drive his cars over the years including David Pearson, Junior Johnson, Buddy Baker, Al Unser, Mario Andretti, Fireball Roberts, Ralph Earnhardt, Bobby Allison, Charlie Glotzbach, Pete Hamilton, Marty Robbins and many others. In total, as a car owner and as a driver, Owens' career statistics include 41 wins and 38 poles in 487 races.
Everett "Cotton" Owens was one of the few to find success at all levels of this sport: from a winning driver to a winning car owner, Cotton Owens was truly one of the 50 Greatest.
Cotton Owens Career NASCAR Car Owner / Builder Statistics
Year
Driver
Races
Win
T5
T10
Pole
Laps
Led
Earnings
Rank
Avg Start
Avg Finish
1950
Cotton Owens
2
0
0
0
0
131
0
1,100
13
10.0
15.0
1951
Cotton Owens
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
225
42
25.0
5.0
1957
Cotton Owens
17
1
3
6
1
2,300
179
12,784
14
8.6
16.4
1958
Cotton Owens
29
1
8
17
2
3,700
241
6,579
17
8.6
14.3
1959
Cotton Owens
37
1
13
22
2
6,733
209
14,639
2
9.4
10.4
1960
Bobby Johns
4
1
3
3
0
1,173
366
46,115
3
5.8
12.2
1960
Cotton Owens
13
1
5
5
2
2,121
185
14,065
39
5.2
15.4
1961
Ralph Earnhardt
7
0
2
5
0
1,602
90
11,473
17
7.1
7.6
1961
Cotton Owens
16
4
11
11
2
2,694
58
11,800
22
7.5
9.1
1961
Marvin Panch
1
0
0
1
0
262
0
30,478
18
11.0
10.0
1961
Fireball Roberts
1
0
1
1
0
496
2
50,266
5
8.0
4.0
1962
Junior Johnson
4
0
1
2
0
671
648
34,841
20
7.2
19.5
1962
Cotton Owens
16
0
7
8
1
2,000
36
5,905
30
7.0
13.6
1962
David Pearson
3
0
1
2
0
1,055
2
19,031
10
7.7
11.3
1963
Cotton Owens
1
0
0
1
0
170
0
175
114
10.0
8.0
1963
David Pearson
40
0
13
19
2
8,697
178
24,986
8
11.2
12.3
1963
G.C. Spencer
1
0
0
0
0
210
0
13,514
18
21.0
13.0
1963
Billy Wade
29
0
4
14
0
5,997
21
15,204
16
14.6
14.7
1964
Earl Balmer
10
0
2
4
0
2,771
1
5,795
35
13.0
15.3
1964
Bobby Isaac
3
0
2
2
0
727
0
26,733
18
6.3
7.7
1964
Cotton Owens
2
1
2
2
0
466
54
3,400
80
4.0
1.5
1964
Jim Paschal
9
0
3
7
0
2305
0
60,116
7
12.4
9.3
1964
David Pearson
61
8
29
42
12
13,225
2256
45,542
3
5.2
8.3
1964
Larry Thomas
2
0
0
0
0
403
0
21,226
8
14.5
18.5
1964
Billy Wade
3
0
1
2
0
485
0
36,095
4
6.0
9.3
1965
David Pearson
14
2
8
11
1
3242
744
8,925
40
4.1
8.7
1966
Mario Andretti
1
0
0
0
0
78
0
395
8.0
31.0
1966
Bobby Isaac
1
0
0
0
0
293
0
615
53
26.0
30.0
1966
David Pearson
42
15
26
33
7
10,781
3174
78,194
1
5.6
6.4
1967
Bobby Allison
9
1
7
8
0
1,971
51
58,250
4
5.8
6.8
1967
Buddy Baker
4
0
1
1
0
589
0
46,949
15
6.5
16.2
1967
Darel Dieringer
3
0
0
0
0
585
35
34,709
12
16.7
21.3
1967
Ray Hendrick
1
0
0
0
0
107
0
175
112
15.0
21.0
1967
Sam McQuagg
6
0
2
2
0
1,053
8
10,045
36
5.8
21.8
1967
David Pearson
10
2
4
6
0
2,066
340
72,650
7
5.6
11.0
1968
Buddy Baker
1
0
0
0
0
59
0
56,023
13
15.0
25.0
1968
Charlie Glotzbach
19
1
9
11
3
4,336
332
43,100
19
5.7
13.4
1968
Al Unser
1
0
1
1
0
200
1
6,250
8.0
4.0
1969
Buddy Baker
12
0
7
9
1
3,266
579
63,525
22
5.8
9.2
1969
Charlie Glotzbach
6
0
3
3
0
1443
82
37,515
37
4.0
14.5
1969
James Hylton
2
0
1
1
0
611
0
114,416
3
5.0
17.5
1970
Buddy Baker
17
1
6
8
0
3,605
485
63,778
24
6.6
13.7
1970
Sam Posey
1
0
0
0
0
82
0
900
9.0
28.0
1971
Pete Hamilton
20
1
11
12
2
4,407
224
60,440
24
5.0
13.6
1972
Charlie Glotzbach
3
0
2
2
0
709
0
26,175
65
9.0
11.0
1973
Dick Brooks
1
0
1
1
0
197
0
55,369
27
9.0
3.0
1973
Peter Gregg
1
0
0
0
0
34
0
775
120
7.0
37.0
23 years
487
41
201
286
38
87,242
9,952
1,323,837
7.7
11.5
Cotton Owens and Junior Johnson
Owens and Mitchell Coker's '60 Pontiac
February 17, 1957 Pontiac’s first stock car win came on February 17th, 1957 on the beach of Daytona (pictured at right). Cotton Owens drove a Ray Nichels'-prepared ’57 Pontiac to victory; beating runner-up Johnny Beauchamp by 55 seconds with the first-ever 100mph average lap on the sand. Pontiac has gone on to earn more than 154 NASCAR Nextel Cup victories since (2003).
May 6, 1961
Driving for Cotton Owens in the Rebel 300 at Darlington, South Carolina, Ralph Earnhardt, father of Dale Earnhardt Sr. and grandfather of Dale Earnhardt, Jr., makes his NASCAR Grand National debut.
