Pioneer car owner Raymond Parks inducted into Hall of Fame

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Raymond Parks, one of the first team owners in NASCAR, has been inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Parks was an Atlanta businessman who first entered NASCAR with drivers Lloyd Seay and Roy Hall. Paired with mechanic Red Vogt, his teams dominated in the 1940s and 1950s.

His career as a car owner was interrupted when Parks served in World War II, and he fought in the Battle of the Bulge. When he returned from the war, he was lured into NASCAR by founder Bill France Sr. and his teams won the first NASCAR title in 1948 and again in 1949.

Parks was presented by 2014 NASCAR champion Kevin Harvick, inducted by Kyle Petty and it was accepted by his granddaughter.