CONCORD, N.C. -- Bob Latford, NASCAR's unofficial historian and the man who invented its championship points system, died Wednesday after a long illness. He was 67.

Latford's best known legacy is the points system he invented in 1974, on a request from NASCAR head Bill France Jr.

"His passing leaves a giant void that connects our sport's past to the present,'' said H.A. "Humpy'' Wheeler, president of Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord.

In a career that ended with his retirement following the 2001 season, Latford worked in public relations at speedways in Charlotte, Darlington, Atlanta and Daytona. He wrote several books and published a racing newsletter.

Latford's formula gives a race winner 175 points. Each subsequent finisher gets incrementally fewer points. The formula also awards five points for leading a lap and five points for leading the most laps in a race.

Latford first drew up the formula on a cocktail napkin at the Boot Hill Saloon in Daytona Beach, Fla., near the NASCAR offices.

He later tested it on the previous three years of race finishes and liked the results.

Though often criticized, the system has been used since 1975 to determine the winner of the Winston Cup, given at the end of the season to the No. 1 driver in NASCAR's top racing series.

Asked to defend his formula, Latford told The Charlotte Observer, "I think the system has served the sport well. Every champion has been a deserving champion. Being a champion is not about how you did in races you won. It's about how you did in races you did not win.''

Information about Latford's survivors and funeral arrangements was not immediately available Wednesday.