Former NASCAR racer Lennie Pond dies at 75

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Lennie Pond, who raced for 17 years in NASCAR's premier series, has died. He was 75.

The J.T. Morriss & Son Funeral Home in Chester, Virginia, said Pond died Wednesday but did not give a cause of death.

A native of Ettrick, Virginia, Pond was a regular competitor at Virginia short tracks and won five Late Model championships. He ran one race in NASCAR's top series in 1969 and 1970, then joined the sport full-time in 1973. He was the rookie of the year that season, beating out Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip.

Pond ran 234 career races at the Cup level, and garnered his only victory in the 1978 Talladega 500. He finished in the top five 39 times.

He drove his final Cup-level race in 1989.