Racing History

Glory Days: Al Unser Doubles Down

Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser ended a three-month drought by winning the prestigious Hoosier Hundred at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Unser passed Mario Andretti for the lead on the third lap and held off seventh-starter George Snider by 5.3 seconds to claim the victory. However, Snider secured the USAC Dirt Championship with his runner-up […]

Racing History

GLORY DAYS: Tony Elliott

Indiana native Tony Elliott was one of the winningest and most popular sprint car drivers of the 1990s and early 2000s. Driving both his own cars and many of the top owners in the sport, Elliott won 40 USAC national victories (26 sprint car, 11 midget and five Silver Crown) and a pair of USAC […]

Racing History

70 Years Ago: Fangio & Maserati Win At Monza

Seventy years have passed since Juan Manuel Fangio celebrated his first and only victory of the Formula 1 season, winning the Italian Grand Prix at Monza on Sept. 13, 1953.

Racing History

Irwin Jr. Was Fast On The Track & Kind Away From It

“He’s one of the best I ever ran against,” Tony Stewart said about his friend, competitor and sometimes antagonist Kenny Irwin Jr. “If Kenny would’ve lived, he would’ve at least won a NASCAR championship, if not several. “Unfortunately, we lost him too soon.” Irwin died on July 7, 2000, during a NASCAR Cup Series practice […]

Racing History

GLORY DAYS: Bettenhausen Brothers

Merle and Gary Bettenhausen (pictured) were the elder of the three (Tony Bettenhausen Jr.) Bettenhausen brothers, all who raced Indy cars at some point in their careers. Merle Bettenhausen lost his right arm in a crash at Michigan Int’l Speedway in 1972, derailing his racing career almost before it got started. Gary Bettenhausen, meanwhile, was […]

Racing History

GLORY DAYS: Wolfgang Wins At Millstream

Doug Wolfgang completed a three-race sweep of World of Outlaws events in the state of Ohio with a triumph at Millstream Speedway. Wolfgang led early aboard the DP Motorsports Schnee, but gave up the lead to Frankie Kerr on lap nine. Wolfgang went back to the front five laps later and led the remainder of […]

Racing History

Mahoney’s Memories: Larson’s 4-Crown Sweep

Editor’s Note: In this monthly photo essay feature, National Sprint Car Hall of Fame photographer John Mahoney shares his memories and images from some of the most amazing and historic sprint car and midget races. 4-Crown Nationals, Eldora Speedway, Sept. 24, 2011 Last month’s look back at Jack Hewitt’s 1998 sweep of Eldora Speedway’s 4-Crown […]

Racing History

Glory Days: Hall Of Famer Joe Saldana

Born in Nebraska, Joe Saldana started racing stock cars in 1961 at the age of 17. He won his first race in 1964 and the victories continued for 20 years. Saldana’s signature victory came when he won the Knoxville Nationals in 1970 and also claimed the Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway track championship that season. He won […]

Racing History

GLORY DAYS: Ohio Sprint Car Ace Mark Keegan

Mark Keegan roared to 21 track championships and more than 160 sprint car victories during a fabulous more than 20-year racing career. Keegan won eight of his track titles and Fremont Speedway and also earned 12 championships at Attica Raceway Park and one at Atomic Speedway. Keegan, pictured at Fremont in 1993, won both the […]

Racing History

The Always Fast Sammy Sessions

Sammy Sessions excelled in every form of racing he attempted. He climbed to the top of short-track, open-wheel racing and wanted nothing more than a competitive shot at the Indianapolis 500. Unfortunately, he came along a decade too late to make the impact on the 500 that was indicative of his exceptional talent. He arrived […]