Parsons was always on the lookout for new talent, and proved to have a keen eye when he discovered Greg Biffle and urged car owner Jack Roush to hire him sight unseen. Biffle went on to win championships in NASCAR’s Truck and Busch Series and is now a top Nextel Cup driver.

“It’s obvious he’s the only reason why I am here in this sport,” Biffle said. “I would still be in Washington racing local stuff if not for BP.”

Parsons’ death comes eight days after former Truck Series champion Bobby Hamilton lost his battle with cancer.

Born July 12, 1941 at a rural home that lacked running water and electricity, Parsons was raised by his great-grandmother near the community called Parsonsville. He eventually moved to Detroit, where he worked at a gas station and a cab company owned by his father. After winning ARCA titles in 1968-69, he returned to North Carolina in Ellerbe to become a full-time racer, often listing “taxicab driver” as his occupation on entry forms.

Parsons made 526 starts from 1964 until his 1988 retirement. He ended his career with 283 top-10 finishes, led at least one lap in 192 races and finished no lower than fifth in the points from 1972 to 1980 while earning more than $4 million.

His 1973 championship season was built on endurance and consistency: He won only one of the 28 races that season while second-place finisher Cale Yarborough won four times and David Pearson won 11. But Parsons finished the most miles that year to claim the crown.

He was honored as one of NASCAR’s 50 greatest drivers in 1998, and was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1994. He was inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association’s Stock Car Racing Hall of Fame in 1995.

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Parsons began broadcasting in the 1980s as a pit reporter for ESPN and TBS, when he was still racing a partial schedule. He moved into the booth for good in 1989 for ESPN and won a Cable ACE Award for best sports analyst in his first season in the booth. He also created the popular ESPN segment “Buffet Benny” on food available at race tracks.

“Benny was a beloved and widely respected member of the NASCAR community, and of the NBC Sports family,” NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol said.

“He was a great driver and a terrific broadcaster, but above anything else he was a kind and generous human being,” he said. “His character and spirit will define how he is remembered by all of us.”

Survivors include wife Terri, sons Kevin and Keith, a former sports writer for The Associated Press, and two granddaughters. Parsons was preceded in death by his first wife, Connie.

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