Editor’s Note: In a nod to our 91 years of history, each week SPEED SPORT will look back at the top stories from 15, 30 and 60 years ago as told in the pages of National Speed Sport News.
15 Years Ago — 2010
News: Only a few years after moving to unleaded fuel, NASCAR’s three national touring series will use a 15 percent ethanol blend fuel beginning at Daytona Int’l Speedway in February.
Sunoco, NASCAR’s official fuel provider, will supply the series with Sunoco Green E15, which is blended using American-made ethanol from corn grown by American farmers.
The series switched from leaded to unleaded fuel at the start of the 2008 season.
“Our fans want to continue to see this sport evolve; be smart in every area when it comes to the environment, when it comes to things they care about,” said NASCAR Chairman Brian France. “The fuel that we’ve chosen and the fuel that was ultimately developed by Sunoco is going to be cleaner burning. It’s going to be, actually from a performance standpoint, we’re actually going to be better.”
Robin Pemberton, NASCAR’s vice president of competition, confirmed that teams have been testing the new ethanol blend fuel occasionally this season during tire tests.
Winners: Some drivers compete for decades in the CRALM hopes of winning the Winchester 400 and never realize that dream.
Fourteen-year-old Chase Elliott accomplished the feat in his first attempt Elliott showed the patience of a veteran. Running in the top 10 for the entire race and taking the lead for the first time on lap 295 at Winchester Speedway Sunday, Elliott led 69 of the final 1OO laps.
The victory was popular with the sold-out crowd at Winchester for the 39th running of the Winchester 400.
This was the third time Elliott has competed at Winchester Speedway and marked his first victory with the Champion Racing Ass’n. He competed in two previous 100-Iap CRA events at the track and is the youngest winner of the Winchester 400.
Following a restart with 29 laps remaining, Elliott was pulling away from David Stremme and polesitter John VanDoorn by as much as three seconds when the caution flag waved on lap 395 when Stremme bounced off the wall.
That set up a five-lap shoot-out among the three remaining cars on the lead lap, Elliott, VanDoorn and Brian Rievley. Rievley slowed on lap 397, ending a strong run where he came back from a lap down, and wound up fifth.
Elliott won by 1.117 seconds over VanDoorn. followed by Chuck Barnes. Jr., Mason Mingus and Rievley. Elliott and VanDoorn were the only drivers on the lead lap.
His father, Bill, NASCAR great. served as the spotter for his son and talked him through the final restart, urging him to be smooth.
“I was pretty excited,” Elliott said. “If my dad was more excited, I don’t know how he could have been.”
30 Years Ago — 1995
News: Speedway Motorsports Inc. closed Thursday on the purchase of a 950-acre tract of land on which the company has begun construction of Texas Motor Speedway. The purchase price was undisclosed.
Speedway Motorsports Inc. signed a purchase agreement with Ross Perot, Jr.’s Hillwood Development Corporation to purchase the land in March. Since the signing, Speedway Motorsports Inc. and Hillwood Development Corporation reached an agreement that allowed construction of the speedway to begin.
“We are about to begin moving ahead with 24-hour construction to speed up the project,” said Bruton Smith, chairman of Texas Motor Speedway. “Ross was very generous in agreeing to allow us to begin work even through we had not yet closed on the property. But with the magnitude of what we are about to do in terms of construction, it is appropriate for us to close at this time. Construction will speed up now to a fever pitch.”
Texas Motor Speedway is under construction at a site north of Fort Worth, located at the intersection of I-35W and Hwy. 114, just north of Alliance Airport. In its initial construction phase, Texas Motor Speedway will seat approximately 150,000 people and have 205 skybox executive suites surrounding the 1.5-mlle high-banked racing oval.
Winners: On this, one of Doug Kalitta’s greatest days, there was victory, there was euphoria, there was satisfaction. But there was also controversy.
Kalitta pulled off a very rare USAC doubleheader afternoon at Winchester Speedway, winning the midget and sprint features of the Payless Super Markets/Sammy Sessions Memorial.
But it was his Loctite sprint car victory that brought a calamitous, spectacular end to the day’s events, when contact between he and race leader Jason McCord sent McCord through a violent series of flips under the flag stand as the checkered was displayed.
McCord led the race at the outset, until series champion Tony Stewart drove past in the Niebel/Boles/TCI machine on the 18th circuit in traffic. Kalitta had started sixth, and had worked his way up to fourth.
The 33-lap race was halted on lap 26 when Bill Rose and Mark Cassella tangled on the front straightaway, and Cassella rolled onto his cage.
On the restart, Stewart slammed into the turn-four wall as he was to complete the 27th lap. The race was stopped as traffic piled up on the straightaway, involving the cars of Mike Blake, Steve Barth, and Ron Koehler. It is unclear if Stewart’s right front wheel broke prior to the impact or not, but car owner Glen Niebel said USAC will send the wheel to a laboratory later this week for further study.
McCord resumed the lead on the restart, trailed by Kalitta and Kenny Irwin, Jr. McCord looked as though he could hold the Contos Racing/ Payless machine in line for his first USAC career victory, but as he ‘came off turn four to take the checkered flag he and Kalitta touched.
McCord banged into the outside wall, spun across the front stretch, and began barrel-rolling. The car struck the inside retaining wall, riding on it as it flipped for several yards, coming to rest on its wheels near the pit exit.
Kalitta had crossed the line first, and was scored the winner. Irwin was second, and McCord officially third.
“I just hate It that It ended like this,” said Kallitta, who was visibly shaken as he approached the accident scene to check McCord’s condition. “I ran into four, I had a good run as high as I could and I diamonded off the corner and came off under him. But he came off in the middle groove, and when I got alongside him we touched.
“I feel really bad about it. We’re all running hard, but I think I’ve proven myself to be a clean driver. So all we can do is go on.”
60 Years Ago— 1965
News: Death has claimed Earl P. Cooper, one of the world’s auto racing greats. He was 79. Cooper died in his home Friday following a prolonged illness. He had been ill since suffering a series of strokes some weeks ago.
He leaves as the only survivor his widow, Jane Nickel Cooper. Cooper was a living legend in the world of auto racing. He began his career on the oval tracks in 1910 and drove in 12 of the Indianapolis 500-mile classics. First place was to elude Cooper but he did finish in the second spot once and fourth place on another occasion.
Cooper amassed more driving points than any racer who has ever been in competition and in and around the racing pits across the country his name and feats are discussed with respect that touches almost on awe and reverence.
He got his start In Indianapolis building cars with Henry Ford, later worked with the Duesenberg brothers and was a personal friend not only of Ford but of Louie Chevrolet and Harry Stutz, among many.
Cooper was not only one of the auto racing greats but considered a brilliant automotive engineer. He is credited with devising many innovations on the automobile including the oil pressure system, magneto and was one of the first to work on the hydraulic braking system.
For many years he served on the board of directors of the Indianapolis 500
Winners: Grandfather Don Branson, driving Bob Wilke’s Wynn’s Offy, showed the youngsters there is no substitute for experience as he won the 15th annual Golden State 100-mlle USAC National Championship at the mile dirt track or the State Fairgrounds.
At the green flag, Mario Andrettl copped the lead but lost out to Branson at the end or the second lap. On the sixth lap A. J. Foyt, who had turned in only one lap in qualifying, moved into sixth.
On the eighth lap Foyt got by Bob Unser for fifth. On the 15th lap Foyt got by George Snider for fourth. Foyt moved into third at 20 laps to get Jud Larson and was a half lap behind the front runners, with Bransons’ lead amounting to three seconds.
At 26 laps Bud Tinglelstad spun into the fence as the yellow came out. When the flag came out Foyt ran over the rear wheel or Carl Williams. Snider spun out and clipped the inside fence damaging a front spindle.
Before Foyt could regain control, Jud Larson took over third. Jim McEireath also spun in the first turn but got a push start before the wrecker could get there and the flag was out for four laps.
Branson had some handling problems as the front end started pushing and at 40 laps Andretti got by him. It was the 63rd lap before Branson was able to regain the lead which he held until the finish.
The contest finished under the yellow with Branson leading by a quarter lap.
Branson picked up $7,500 of the $28,579 purse going the 100-mile distance in 1:09.30 for an average speed of 86.355 mph.
At the finish, it was Branson, Foyt, Andretti and Bobby Unser.
