NASCAR state-by-state list, Part 8: David Pearson or Cale Yarborough for South Carolina?

Editor's Note: This is the eighth of a 10-part series picking the best all-time NASCAR racer from all 50 states.

Maybe it's a Carolina thing. We sure didn't have this issue with the Dakotas.

Just as North Carolina made us decide between Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, South Carolina is a battle of two absolute giants of stock-car racing: Spartanburg's David Pearson and Timmonsville's Cale Yarborough.

Pearson basically became a legend in his spare time. In 27 seasons as a Cup Series racer, just four times did he run enough races to have a legitimate shot at winning the championship. He won it three of those seasons, finished third the other year. His 105 wins and 113 poles are both second to Richard Petty on the all-time lists.

Somewhere along the way, a longtime observer said, "Listening to old racers talk about David Pearson's driving ability is like listening old ballplayers talking about Ted Williams' hitting."

Given all that, believe it or not, you still have to consider Cale. He debuted at age 18 in 1957 but he was 34 before his first full-time season. In eight seasons of full-time work, six of them with Junior Johnson, he won three championships (in succession, by the way) and finished runner-up three other times.

And 14 of his 83 career wins came after that, in part-time duty. There are precious few states Cale wouldn't represent with his career numbers. But he found one.

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Oklahoma: Christopher Bell (Norman)

Why Christopher: He has six Cup Series wins through his first four full-time seasons, and has reached the “Championship Four” each of the past two years. More to come, we imagine.

Others from Oklahoma: Troy Ruttman, Tanner Berryhill, Christi Passmore.

Fun fact: Bell is one of just a few racers on a first-name basis with the Victory Lane doorman. In 2017, he won five Truck Series races and the championship, and over the next two years he won a combined 15 races in the Xfinity Series.

Oregon: Herschel McGriff (Bridal Veil)

Why Hershel: It’s quite literally a career without end, and the NASCAR highlight came in 1954 when he recorded all four of his career Cup Series wins. In the early-’70s he dominated in what’s now known as the ARCA West Series. Ran his final Cup race at age 65 in 1993.

Others from Oregon: Mike Bliss, Bill Amick, Chuck Bown, Jim Bown, Don Waterman.

Fun fact: McGriff, now 96, indeed ran his last Cup race at age 65. But his final race came 25 years later — yes, at age 90 — when he completed 94 of 100 laps in an ARCA West race in Tucson … AFTER playing the national anthem on his trombone!

Pennsylvania: Jimmy Spencer (Berwick)

Why Jimmy: “Mr. Excitement” spent 18 seasons in the Cup Series and made plenty of headlines along the way, even though he posted just two wins. Those two Cup wins came three weeks apart in the summer of 1994, first at Daytona and then Talladega. He also had 12 Xfinity Series victories.

Others from Pennsylvania: Mario Andretti, Dick Linder, Kirk Shelmerdine, John Andretti, Andy Belmont, Norm Benning, Bobby Gerhart, Tighe Scott, Tommy Gale, Blaise Alexander.

Fun fact: It was tempting to give Pennsylvania to the great Mario Andretti, given his 1967 Daytona 500 victory. But he ran just 14 total Cup races (eight at Daytona) with two other top-10s. He did eventually win again at Daytona, however, in the ’78 IROC race, where he beat Darrell Waltrip to the line by a car length.

Rhode Island: Rob Rizzo (Providence)

Why Rob: It’s a rather low bar in Rhode Island. Rob gets the nod based on his 19 Truck Series starts and three top-10 finishes from 1996-99.

Others from Rhode Island: Rita Goulet, and a handful of racers from the sports-car and Indy-car world.

Fun fact: Rhode Island did produce one of the more recognizable figures in NASCAR — Dick Berggren, who raced modifieds and sprints before quitting to begin a career as magazine editor and TV reporter for auto racing coverage.

South Carolina: David Pearson (Spartanburg)

Why David: Recognized by most, including Richard Petty, as the most talented racer of his time, he finished second in overall wins (105) and won three championships in the four mostly full-time seasons he raced. For all Cup racers who started more than 230 races, his winning percentage of 18.29% is the highest ever.

Others from South Carolina: Cale Yarborough, Buck Baker, Buddy Baker, Sam Ard, Joe Littlejohn, Cotton Owens, Larry Pearson, Butch Lindley, Bob Dotter, Joe Eubanks, Jason Keller.

Fun fact: David Pearson subbed for Dale Earnhardt for four weeks in 1979 when Dale was out with an injured shoulder. The fourth of those races was at Darlington, where Pearson got the ninth of his 10 career Darlington wins. He'd win there again the next year in the No. 1 Hawaiian Tropic car, and his 10 Darlington victories are the most of anyone, including Earnhardt, who finished with nine.

Previously, Alabama through Ohio

Alabama: Bobby Allison, Alaska: Keith McGee, Arizona: Alex Bowman, Arkansas: Mark Martin, California: Jimmie Johnson

Colorado: Wally Dallenbach Jr., Connecticut: Joey Logano, Delaware: CJ Faison, Florida: Fireball Roberts, Georgia: Bill Elliott

Hawaii: Will Rodgers; Idaho: Brian Scott; Illinois: Fred Lorenzen; Indiana: Tony Stewart; Iowa: Dick Hutcherson

Kansas: Clint Bowyer; Kentucky: Darrell Waltrip; Louisiana: Skip Manning; Maine: Ricky Craven; Maryland: Timmy Hill

Massachusetts: Ralph Moody; Michigan: Brad Keselowski; Minnesota: William Sawalich; Mississippi: Ricky Stenhouse; Missouri: Rusty Wallace.

Montana: Tony Raines; Nebraska: Bob Burdick; Nevada: Kyle Busch; New Hampshire: Dale Shaw; New Jersey: Martin Truex Jr.

New Mexico: Tanner Gray; New York: Geoff Bodine; North Carolina: Richard Petty; North Dakota: Donny Schatz; Ohio: Ryan Blaney

Up next: South Dakota through Vermont

Our next five-pack of states included Tennessee and Texas, which means we'll be considering a Coo Coo and a Super Tex.

— Reach Ken Willis at ken.willis@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR list: 50 states, 50 racers; David Pearson over Cale Yarborough?