Editor’s Note: In a nod to our 91 years of history, each week SPEED SPORT will look back at the top stories from 20, 40 and 60 years ago as told in the pages of National Speed Sport News.
20 Years Ago — 2006
News: Among the countless varieties of race cars in America today, few enjoy the mystique of the traditional, upright front-engine championship car. recently known as Silver Crown cars.
With a wheelbase of 96 inches and a heritage that literally dates to the genesis of auto racing, the cars remain a fan favorite.
However, earlier this year USAC made the transition to a new-generation Silver Crown design for the pavement portion of its schedule, leaving 50-some traditional cars to either collect dust or perhaps face the slow, inglorious fate of being parted out until they were nothing but a memory.
But two men — both with extensive links to the traditional cars — recently set out to save them from extinction. On May 17, their project comes to life as the Premier Racing Ass’n debuts with a 100-lap event at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
With its series tabbed The Big Car Series, PRA is a partnership between Jason Smith and Jason McCord. Smith spent eight years with USAC as national series coordinator, leaving in January. McCord made nearly 100 Silver Crown starts before retiring last year.
The new series is bound to raise some eyebrows, although Smith and McCord insist it will not conflict with USAC in any way.
USAC will continue to use the traditional cars at the dirt tracks, while only pavement venues comprise the PRA schedule, which today includes seven dates at six tracks, all scheduled during the middle of the week to further avoid potential conflicts.
Winners: Jimmie Johnson may be the new king of restrictor-plate racing. This year’s Daytona 500 winner passed Hendrick Motorsports teammate Brian Vickers on the final lap to win Monday’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway.
The race was postponed by rain on Sunday, but more than 150,000 fans returned Monday afternoon. Johnson, who triggered a massive crash last October at Talladega, drove a smart race and moved to the front when the moment was right. Johnson went lowto pass Vickers on the final lap, and Tony Stewart went with him to grab second. As the field charged out of the fourth turn, Johnson was able to maintain his lead. His Chevrolet crossed the finish line .120 second ahead of Stewart’s Chevy.
“The Hendrick Motorsports cars were good until the very end,” Johnson said. “I feel bad about Brian Vickers because he was on the verge of his first win, but I had to go by. I was able to fight my way through.”
Johnson regained the Nextel Cup championship lead and has a 21- point advantage over Matt Kenseth heading to Saturday night’s race in Richmond, Va.
Vickers finished third and Jeff Burton fourth. Chevrolet drivers swept the top four positions. Jamie McMurray’s Ford rounded out the top five.
40 Years Ago — 1986
News: Veteran Johnny Parsons and rookie Jan Lammers of Holland are to drive Dan Gurney’s new Eagle Cosworths in the Indianapolis 500, according to the Machinists Union Racing Team which is reviving the Gurney operation at the 500.
The sponsorship of Gurney’s AllAmerican Racers at the 500 was announced last week by team manager Andy Kenopensky, who suggested that Parsons, a veteran of 10 Indianapolis 500s, be named team driver.
However, Lammers, who completed the first four phases of his rookie test Sunday during USAC’s ROP session, explained he has a 17-race contract with Gurney for the season.
“Machinists Union is only the sponsors of the cars,” team spokesman John Barnes said Monday. “The suggestion of Parsons was made because of his vast 500 experience and In preparing new cars for the 500.”
Sunday, Lammers explained his intention to remain with the Gurney team by commenting, “They (Machinists Union) suggested it might be better to put Parsons in and that’s logical. What they didn’t realize is how strong my contract is with Eagle. Dan, in desperation for money, didn’t think about how strong our contract was. Later on, Dan realized the situation. As far as I understand, they are all now behind me.”
Winners: Lady Luck stood up with a machine gun and fired. When the clip was emptied, there was one survivor — Ricky Rudd.
And, of course, he came rambling through the battlefield that was Martinsville Speedway and won the 500-lap, 250-mile race Sunday afternoon.
Joe Ruttman, with a few scratches from shrapnel, was second in his Quaker State Buick, one lap down to Rudd’s Motorcraft Ford Thunderbird.
In third place and four laps behind was Terry Labonte’s Piedmont Airlines Chevrolet. Rookie
driver Alan Kulwicki, who was chasing down Labonte at the end, was an impressive fourth, followed by Kyle Petty.
Nineteen of 31 starters were running-or sputtering-around the half-mile track at the finish.
Many of the top names were sidelined, and the Winston Cup point standings did a shuffle. Darrell Waltrip, who experienced engine failure and finished 27th, maintained first place, but leads Dale Earnhardt by only five points.
Earnhardt also suffered engine problems and finished 21st.
Labonte’s third-place finish moved him from fifth to third in the standings. He trails Waltrip by 107 points. Rusty Wallace was one of the first to go. He ran only 56 laps and finished 30th, dropping from third to fourth in the standings, 43 points behind Labonte and 10 points ahead of Kyle Petty.
60 Years Ago— 1966
News: Veteran supermodified star Art Pollard had the honor of being the first rookie driver to pass his driver’s test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as drivers, mechanics and car owners prep tor the 50th anniversary running of the 500-mile speed classic on Memorial Day.
Pollard was one of eight drivers that ran Monday, three days after the track officially opened for the 1966 season. Driving the Compton rear-engine Offy, Pollard passed his 130 and 135 mph phases on Sunday before completing the test on Monday. Last year Billy Foster was the first rookie to complete his test, and it was in the same Rolla Vollstedt-built car.
Scotland’s new rookie star, Jackie Stewart, driving one of John Mecom’s three rear-engine Lolas, passed the 140 mph phase of his test on Monday, but ran into mechanical problems in the Ford before he could complete the test.
Defending National 110 Offy Midget Champion “Iron” Mike McGreevy passed his refresher test in his new supercharged Caves Buick Offy, as did Carl Williams in the Dayton Steel rear-engine Offy. Williams also turned in a lap speed of 150.050 on Monday, night after finishing the test.
Former motorcycle champion Joe Leonard turned in the fastest lap so far, with a speed of 151.413 mph in his Ford-powered Yamaha Eagle on Monday.
The official track opening on Saturday was a little on the soggy side as a drizzling rain came down most of the day. Fudging just a little, Roger McCluskey had the honor of becoming the first driver on the track.
Winners: Confident Richard Petty, trouble free and fast, walked off the Rebel 400 at Darlington Raceway Saturday afternoon with a record-breaking speed of 131.585 mph, good enough to put him almost 4.5 miles ahead of Paul Goldsmith and into Darlington’s winner’s circle for the first time.
The 29-year-old Daytona 500 winner stayed in complete command, leading 270 laps of the 291-lap affair, in his familiar electric blue 1966 Plymouth.
Goldsmith, in a Ray Nichels Plymouth or ’65 vintage, took second place money after turning back Dodge-driving David Pearson in a hair-raising duel shortly before the finish.
The 400-miler. the first major speedway scramble without the factory-backed Fords, drew an estimated crowd of 17,000. Track officials who reported the estimate, said it was the smallest crowd ever at the historic 1.33-mile layout.
Pearson, driving the only other car that made a serious challenge for the lead, wound up in third place, half a lap behind Goldsmith.
