Elliott Sadler Born In Emporia, Virginia - April 30, 1975

April 30, 1975

Elliott Sadler

(Photo: Elliott Sadler via photopin (license))
Born in Emporia, Virginia, USA.

Sadler began racing in go-karts at the age of seven, and moved up to the Late Model stock car division at the local race track. His accomplishments include over 200 total wins, the 1983–84 Virginia State Karting Championship, and the North Carolina Gold Cup in 1991–92.

When he turned 18, he moved to the Winston Racing Series and ran full-time beginning in 1993. That same year, he achieved his first victory. In 1995, he was crowned track champion at South Boston Speedway, winning 13 races including a 6-race winning streak.


Sadler was a six-sport athlete in high school, participating in football, basketball, baseball, cross country, soccer, and golf. He was recruited by over 20 universities to play college basketball, and ended up accepting a basketball scholarship from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. However, he injured his knee before his freshman season and needed two surgeries, eventually quitting school to focus on racing.

The 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series "Most Popular Driver". He is the younger brother of former NASCAR driver Hermie Sadler. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports. Sadler is one of twenty-six drivers who have at least one win each of NASCAR's top three series.

Michael Waltrip Born In Owensboro, Kentucky - April 30, 1963

April 30, 1963

Michael Waltrip

(Photo: Michael Waltrip Photo by Ted Van Pelt via photopin (license))
Born in Owensboro, Kentucky, USA.
He is a NASCAR driver, co-owner of Michael Waltrip Racing, racing commentator, and published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASCAR champion and racing commentator Darrell Waltrip. Waltrip is a two-time winner of the Daytona 500, having won the race in 2001 and 2003. He is also a pre-race analyst for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and color commentator for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series broadcasts for Fox Sports. Waltrip is a two-time winner of the Daytona 500; having won the race in 2001 and 2003. He also competed in the 2011 edition of 24 Hours of Le Mans. He last raced in the 2017 Daytona 500, driving the No. 15 Toyota Camry for Premium Motorsports.

(Photo: AF Corse - Ferrari 458 Italia Driven by Robert Kauffman, Rui Aguas and Michael Waltrip via photopin (license))

AF Corse - Ferrari 458 Italia Driven by Robert Kauffman, Rui Aguas and Michael Waltrip.

When not racing, he is a commentator alongside his older brother Darrell for NASCAR on Fox. Waltrip is an avid runner. In 2000, he participated in the Boston Marathon.

Waltrip appeared on the two-part April 30, 2009/May 7, 2009 episode of My Name Is Earl entitled "Inside Probe."

On September 4, 2014, Waltrip was announced as one of the celebrities who would participate on the 19th season of Dancing with the Stars. He was paired with professional dancer Emma Slater. They were eliminated on November 3, 2014.

In 2001, Waltrip was hired by Dale Earnhardt to drive his team's new #15 NAPA Auto Parts-sponsored Chevrolet Monte Carlo entry. In his first race with the team, the 2001 Daytona 500, Waltrip broke his streak of 462 consecutive Cup races without a victory and won his first career points-paying Cup race. His teammate Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finished in 2nd. However, the win itself was largely overshadowed by Earnhardt, Sr.'s fatal crash on the last lap. In the movie The Day: Remembering Dale Earnhardt, Waltrip said that Earnhardt let him in line late in the race, which allowed him to take the lead, noting that Earnhardt "never let anyone in line". This is presumably because Earnhardt wanted Waltrip and Earnhardt, Jr. to finish in the top two spots, as both were members of his team.

Waltrip wrote a book published in 2011 called In the Blink of an Eye: Dale, Daytona, and the Day that Changed Everything. It became a New York Times best-seller.

Roland Ratzenberger Killed At San Marino - April 30, 1994

July 4, 1960 – April 30, 1994
Roland Ratzenberger

(Photo; www.ayrtonsenna.de)
Born in Salzburg, Austria.
During Saturday qualifying for the San Marino Grand Prix at the Imola, Austrian rookie Roland Ratzenberger was killed after the front wing of his Simtek-Ford broke entering the 190 mph (310 km/h) Villeneuve corner, sending the car into a concrete wall. Ratzenberger was pronounced dead on arrival at Maggiore Hospital in Bologna, having been airlifted there from the Imola circuit's medical centre, where he had initially been transferred to from the crash site by ambulance. The cause of death was a basilar skull fracture.

Ratzenberger was the first racing driver to lose his life at a grand prix weekend since the 1982 season, when Riccardo Paletti was killed at the Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Ratzenberger was also the first driver to die in an F1 car since Elio de Angelis during testing in 1986.

The following day on May 1, 1994, seven laps into the race, three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna was killed in another accident that brought the sport of Formula One under international scrutiny. The double tragedy was marked before the start of the next race in Monaco, with the front row of the grid left empty and the two slots painted with a Brazilian and Austrian flag.

When track officials examined the wreckage of Senna's racing car, they found a furled Austrian flag. Senna had planned to raise it after the race, in honour of Ratzenberger.

For more; Remembering Ayrton Senna

Dale Earnhardt Born In Kannapolis, North Carolina, USA - April 29, 1951

April 29, 1951 – February 18, 2001

Dale Earnhardt

(Photo: twm1340 via photopin cc)
Born in Kannapolis, North Carolina, USA.
Dale was the son of Ralph Lee Earnhardt, who was then one of the best short-track drivers in North Carolina. He is the father of former NASCAR driver Kerry Earnhardt and current NASCAR star Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Considered one of the best NASCAR drivers of all time, Earnhardt won a total of 76 Winston Cup races over the course of his career, including one Daytona 500 victory in 1998. He also earned 7 NASCAR Winston Cup Championships, which is tied for the most all time with Richard Petty. His aggressive driving style earned him the nickname "The Intimidator".

On February 18, 2001, at Daytona International Speedway, while participating in the Daytona 500, Earnhardt was involved in a last-lap crash and died of a basilar skull fracture. He has been inducted into numerous halls of fame, including the inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

For more see; Remembering A Legend - "The Intimidator" Dale Earnhardt

Bob Akin Dies From Racing Injuries - April 29, 2002

March 6, 1936 - April 29, 2002

Bob Akin

(Photo; www.grandtouringprototype.com)
Born In North Tarrytown, New York, USA.
Bob was a successful business executive, journalist, television commentator and champion sports car racing driver. He was educated at Hackley School in Tarrytown and later served on its board for 30 years and as president from 1980 to 1990. At Columbia University, he earned a bachelor's degree in engineering and a master's degree in business administration. He spent 40 years with the Hudson Wire Company in Ossining, N.Y., which was founded by his grandfather in 1901, and was president from 1974 until he retired in 1995. In 1989 the company was dominating the worldwide aircraft and aerospace wiring market when it was sold to the Phelps Dodge Corporation.

Akin began his racing career in 1957, competing in outboard boat racing and in drag racing in 1957 and 1958. He switched to road racing, acquiring his amateur SCCA national racing license in 1959 and hired legendary sports car racer John Fitch as his driving coach. Proving a quick study, he piloted an Alfa Veloce Spider to his first win in only his third race at Bridgehampton. He drove a front engine Volpini Formula Junior in 1960, then switched to a 1957 Ferrari 500 TRC for several races during the early part of the 1961 season, before retiring in July of that year, to concentrate on the family business.

Almost by accident, Akin returned to racing in 1973, after accepting an invitation from his friend, Sam Posey, to drive a few laps in his Mercedes-Benz 300SL, at the July 4th, 1973 Vintage Sports Car Club of America event at Lime Rock Park. Within a month, he was back at it in earnest, driving a Lotus 11 in vintage racing events until switching to the 1959 Cooper-Monaco that would prove to be his favorite racer, in 1975.

In 1978, he purchased a Porsche RSR Carrera thinking it would be fun to run in the 1978 12 Hours of Sebring. They ran what was considered to be a test run at Daytona, before the Sebring event, then continued on racing a full season that would include racing at Le Mans with a Porsche 935 Turbo. Now solidly back in the drivers seat, compiled an impressive list of achievements, highlighted by a 6-Hour win at Watkins Glen, '79 and '86 12 Hours of Sebring victories, two second-place finishes in the '81 and '82 24 Hours of Daytona, six appearances, including a fourth overall in '84, at Le Mans. He won the IMSA Camel GT series in 1986 and had four top-10 finishes in IMSA Endurance Championship points standings. He was also a member and former president of the prestigious Road Racing Drivers Club.

Akin retired from professional racing in 1991 but stayed quite active in the sport. He returned to racing his beloved vintage and historic cars, competed in the Fastmasters racing series, wrote articles for Road & Track magazine, and did on-air commentary for Speedvision, TBS and ESPN television. Following his retirement from Hudson Wire Company, in 1995, Akin also devoted his time to the management of Bob Akin Motorsports (Now Hudson Historics), which specializes in the restoration and race preparation of historic race cars.

On April 25, 2002, he was gravely injured in a violent crash while testing a powerful, 1988 Nissan GTP ZX-Turbo for the Walter Mitty Challenge for historic cars at Road Atlanta. His injuries included a broken neck, left leg, left shoulder and right arm, along with third-degree burns over 15 percent of his body. He was airlifted to Grady Memorial Hospital after the accident. After briefly rallying, the 66 year old succumbed due to complications from his injuries on April 29, 2002.

"Oldest Driver In NASCAR History" James Hylton Killed In Car Wreck - April 28, 2018

August 26, 1934 – April 28, 2018

(Photo; dodgecharger.com)

He was a two-time winner in NASCAR Winston Cup Series competition and was a long-time competitor in the ARCA Racing Series. Hylton finished second in points in NASCAR's top series three times.

He has 2 wins in the NASCAR Cup Series. Although he only had two wins, he collected 140 top 5s and 301 top 10s in 601 races. Hylton was in the championship hunt several times in the 1960s and 1970s, finishing second in points in 1966, 1967, and 1971. Hylton also holds the record as the oldest driver to start a race in NASCAR's top 3 series when he raced at Pocono in the Camping World Truck Series in 2011 at the age of 76.The oldest driver to race in each of NASCAR's three highest divisions, Hylton called it a career at Kansas Speedway after an ARCA race. The 1966 Grand National Series Rookie of the Year, Hylton spent the last several years of his career racing in the ARCA series.

Born on his family's farm in Virginia in 1934, Hylton's family had to work hard to make ends meet during the Depression. Hylton remembers toiling in the fields all day to help out.

He started driving in his father's Ford Model T, his brother taught him how to work the pedals. And from that humble beginning, Hylton embarked on a winding career in motor sports. He served as a mechanic for Rex White and then as crew chief for Ned Jarrett in the early days of NASCAR, then got back behind the wheel and placed second in the Cup standings in 1966.

Hylton also finished second in points to Richard Petty in 1967 and 1971, and won twice in more than 600 Cup starts, at Richmond in 1970 and Talladega in 1972. In all, the good-natured Hylton racked up 140 top-five finishes and 321 top-10s in the Cup series.

On April 28, 2018, James, his son James "Tweet" Hylton Jr., and the team's crew chief Terry Strange were driving home from the ARCA race at Talladega, and the team's hauler was in a traffic accident going northbound on Interstate 85 near Carnesville, Georgia. Both Hyltons died in the accident, while Strange survived with severe injuries. It is unclear how the accident occurred.

(Photo;nascarracemom.com)
Hylton Crash Site (from Jennifer Calandrillo Facebook Page)

"Motorcycle & Sportscar" Racer Kurt Kossmann Born - April 28, 1971

April 28, 1971

Kurt Kossmann

(Photo;kossmannracing.com)

Home:Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

He is known for being the first amputee to compete in the 24 Hours of Daytona. Kurt is a cancer survivor who lost his left leg, above the knee, to an osteosarcoma in 1988. Kurt underwent thirteen months of chemotherapy before making a full recovery. During his recovery Kurt designed a prosthetic leg specifically for operating the clutch system in a race car. This device allowed him to continue his racing career in the Barber Pro Series, Grand American Road Racing Championship, and eventually enter the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2009.

Kurt has worked with various charities and organizations to raise awareness and donations for childhood cancer. Since overcoming his illness, Kurt has teamed with Paul Newman's Hole in the Wall Gang Camp and One Lap of America for fundraising events.

Kurt was also the only amputee racer to ever compete in the BMW BoxerCup motorcycle series. He raced the American inauguration event at the Daytona International Speedway in 2003 during the annual Daytona Bike Week.

Jacques Villeneuve Scores First F-1 Victory - April 28, 1996

April 28, 1996

Jacques Villeneuve scored his first Formula One victory in his fifth Formula One start. Villeneuve started second and led all 67 laps of the 1996 Grand Prix of Europe at the Nurburgring in Nurburg, Germany. It had been a magnificent race with Jacques crossing the finish line just 0.762s ahead of Michael Schumacher's Ferrari. Half a minute behind them, David Coulthard gave McLaren-Mercedes a much-needed third place.

As Jacques crossed the line to win, Patrick Head came on the Williams radio and said: "The first of many." A nice gesture. He further commented "Jacques's car was not as quick as we would have liked it to be but he made good use of the car as it was. He didn't make any mistakes and to withstand the kind of pressure from Schumacher on his home territory showed considerable maturity."

(Photo;research-racing.de)

The podium at the Nuerburgring; Michael Schumacher, Jacques Villeneuve & David Coulthard.

Ayrton Senna Wins The "Grand Prix of San Marino" - April 28, 1991

April 28, 1991

(Photo: Pinterest)
Ayrton Senna finished 1.675 seconds ahead of McLaren teammate Gerhard Berger, to win the "Grand Prix of San Marino" at Autodromo Enzo & Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy.

Ayrton Senna claimed his 55th pole position from Riccardo Patrese, Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Gerhard Berger. However, the formation lap saw two dramatic incidents - Prost spun off the track at Rivazza Turn, followed by Berger, who was able to continue. However Prost stalled the engine and did not take the start.

At the lights, Patrese took the lead ahead of Senna, while Mansell, already slow off the line with gearbox problems, retired at the end of lap 1 after a collision with Martin Brundle. He was followed out by Nelson Piquet who spun on lap 2 and Jean Alesi who spun off on lap 3 attempting a rather foolhardy pass on Stefano Modena.

In a strong lead, Patrese pitted for originally what appeared to be an early stop to slicks turned out to be more serious - a misfire with a faulty camshaft sensor. He restarted last before retiring for good 9 laps later.

Berger was catching Senna, lapping 1.5 seconds quicker than his teammate. The lead was soon down to 5 seconds, with Modena a superb third from Satoru Nakajima and the two Minardis of Pierluigi Martini and Gianni Morbidelli.

Both McLarens pitted for tyres with Senna maintaining his lead. Just after setting fastest lap, Berger was delayed in traffic, held up by the trio of Maurício Gugelmin, Julian Bailey and Thierry Boutsen. Bailey himself moved past Andrea de Cesaris into 6th, whilst Nakajima retired with transmission problems.

Ivan Capelli spun into retirement from 4th to hand over to JJ Lehto's Dallara. Modena retired with transmission problems which meant that behind the two dominant McLarens, the order was now Roberto Moreno, Lehto, Eric van der Poele in for the little Modena team and Martini's Minardi.

Moreno's gearbox broke on lap 52 causing him to retire, whilst Senna was having problems with oil pressure caused by the special high-torque Honda V12. Berger put in a series of fastest laps to cut Senna's lead to just 1.7s at the line.


Lehto was overjoyed to gain the first podium place of his career for Dallara, with Martini 4th. Van de Poele's drive ended when a fuel pump broke on the last lap - he was classified ninth overall. The Lotus drivers of Mika Häkkinen and Bailey took 5th and 6th, both scoring their first world championship points, an unexpected result for the troubled team since their cars had barely managed to enter the grid with Häkkinen 25th and Bailey 26th.

Bob Bondurant Born In Evanston, Illinois - April 27, 1933

April 27, 1933

Bob Bondurant

(Photo;mshf.com)
Born in Evanston, Illinois, USA.
He is a former Formula One, Can-Am, NASCAR, Baja, Motorcycle, Sports Car racer and owner of the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving.

During his teens, Bondurant raced an Indian motorcycle on dirt ovals. In 1956 he switched to sports car racing with a Morgan and started to attract attention when he won the West Coast "B" production Championship, in a Chevrolet Corvette winning 18 out of 20 races.

Santa Barbara Chevrolet dealer Shelly Washburn hired Bondurant in 1961 to drive his #614 1959 Corvette. Some of the best Corvette racing duels were between him and David McDonald on the West Coast during the early 1960s. At the L.A. Times Grand Prix in October 1962, Bondurant drove Washburn's new 1963 Corvette Z06 Sting Ray. Between 1961 and 1963, he won 30 out of 32 races in Washburn's Corvettes.

In 1963 he became a member of Carroll Shelby's Ford Cobra team, winning his first race at the Continental Divide Raceway in Colorado, followed by an overall win at the LA Times Grand Prix GT race at Riverside in October 1963. For the 1964 FIA season after finishing 2nd in GT at Sebring, Bob was in Europe racing the new 289 FIA Cobras at the Targa Florio, Spa and Nurburgring. His best-known victory was winning the GT class at Le Mans 24 Hours in 1964 in Shelby's new Cobra Daytona Coupe with Dan Gurney co-driving. In 1965 Bondurant won the FIA Manufacturers' World Championship for Shelby American and Ford, winning seven out of ten races against the class dominating Ferrari 250 GTOs in Europe. In the same year he drove a works Ferrari Formula 1 car during the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen, and handled a Lotus 33 for Reg Parnell at the following Mexican race.

In 1966 Bob Bondurant served as a technical consultant for John Frankenheimer's film Grand Prix and trained the film's lead actor James Garner to drive Formula cars in the race sequences. Bob also drove BRMs in five Grands Prix for Team Chamaco Collect, finishing 4th at Monaco. He finished the Formula One season in North America in two races, driving an Eagle for Dan Gurney's Anglo American Racers.

For 1967 he drove in the Can-Am series and in a Corvette L88 Coupe at Le Mans, and led the GT class until a wrist pin failed putting the car out in the early morning. Later that month while driving a McLaren, at Watkins Glen, the steering arm broke at 150 mph approaching the Loop-Chute section of Watkins Glen. Bob sustained serious rib, leg, foot and, most seriously, back injuries in the subsequent accident in which his car flipped eight times. Doctors told him he would likely never walk again, but through courage and hard work he overcame his injuries.

While recuperating, Bondurant drafted an idea for a high performance driving school borrowing from the experiences he had while training James Garner for Grand Prix. The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving opened in early 1968 at Orange County International Raceway then moved to Ontario and later moved to Sonoma, where he was an important figure in the track's development. Nissan Motor Company was Bondurant's sponsoring partner in his school from its beginning at and continued in that role at the Sonoma Raceway driving school.

In the June 1969 run of the grueling off-road Baja 500 race, Bondurant with co-driver Tony Murphy took first place in the passenger car class driving a SC/Rambler for James Garner's "American International Racers" team that was sponsored by American Motors Corporation.

Bob Bondurant had four NASCAR starts, all at Riverside International Raceway, with his highest finish of 18th in 1981.

Following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake he moved the driving school to Phoenix, Arizona, where he enjoys close ties to General Motors and Goodyear Tires.

(Photo: Bob Bondurant's Camaro SS via photopin (license))
Bob Bondurant was a driving instructor to actors James Garner, Paul Newman, Clint Eastwood, Robert Wagner and Tim Allen as well as to Tom Cruise and Nicolas Cage.

Bob was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2003.

Austin Dillon Born In Lewisville, North Carolina - April 27, 1990

April 27, 1990
Austin Dillon

(Photo; fansided.com)
Born in Lewisville, North Carolina, USA.

He is the son of former driver and RCR general manager Mike Dillon, older brother of Ty Dillon and grandson of Richard Childress. He currently drives the No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. He also drives the No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro for RCR in the NASCAR Xfinity Series on a part-time basis. He also drives the No. 20 Chevrolet Silverado for Young’s Motorsports in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on a part-time basis.

After winning NASCAR Rookie of the Year in the Truck Series in 2010, Dillon won the Truck Series championship in 2011, and later the Nationwide Series championship in 2013, also one year after his Rookie of the Year title in 2012. He holds the record for most consecutive poles in the Nationwide Series with four. He is also the winner of the 2018 Daytona 500 where he won in overtime.

Dillon became engaged to former NFL cheerleader, Whitney Ward, on August 9, 2016. Austin and Whitney were married December 9, 2017 at Childress Vineyards. Dillon also played in the 2002 Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Jean-Pierre Beltoise Born In Paris, France - April 26 1937

April 26 1937 – January 5, 2015

Jean-Pierre Beltoise

(Photo; www.statsf1.com)
Born in Paris, France.
He was both a Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and Formula One driver. François Cevert was his brother-in-law. His two sons, Anthony and Julien, are both race drivers.

 Beltoise won 11 national motorcycle titles in three years. He competed in international Grand Prix motorcycle racing from the 1962 to 1964 seasons in the 50, 125, 250 and 500 cc classes. His best finish was a sixth place in the 1964 50 cc World Championship.

He competed in 88 Formula One Grand Prix, achieving one win and eight podium finishes. He later did most of the testing for the Ligier F1 team, and turned his attention to touring car racing in France, twice winning the French title for BMW before entering rallycross in an Alpine-Renault, with which he won the French title. In 1981 he returned to touring cars and raced for Peugeot throughout the 1980s. He was also a regular ice racer.

Beltoise died at his holiday home in Dakar, Senegal, on January 5, 2015, at 77 years of age, following two strokes.

"Smokey's Best Damn Garage In Town" Destroyed By Fire - April 25, 2011

April 25, 2011

(Photo; www.blackout.nu)

Yunick ran "Smokey's Best Damn Garage in Town" on Beach Street in Daytona Beach, Florida from 1947, when he opened the garage repairing trucks, until 1987 when he closed it, claiming that there were no more good mechanics. The garage, which was the last remaining sign of the innovative mechanic, erupted in flame on April 25, 2011 at about 7 p.m. and was destroyed. Little remains, except portions of the block walls.

Fof more see; Tribute To "Smokey" Yunick

Michele Alboreto Dies In Testing Crash - April 25, 2001

December 23, 1956 - April 25, 2001

Michele Alboreto

(Photo; www.audiworld.com)
Born in Milan, Italy.

  He is famous for finishing runner up to Alain Prost in the 1985 Formula One World Championship, as well as winning the 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans and 2001 12 Hours of Sebring sports car races. Alboreto competed in Formula One from 1981 until 1994, racing for a number of teams, most notably his five seasons driving for Ferrari.

In April 2001, Alboreto was performing straight-line speed tests in an Audi R8 at the Lausitzring, near Dresden, Germany. A tyre blow-out caused his car to veer off track and crash into a wall, killing him. At the time, Audi gave no reason for his death, citing that the R8 had "already completed thousands of test kilometres on numerous circuits without any problems". Alboreto's death brought much anguish among his family and friends. Michele's cousin Marisa told Italian news agency ANSA "You can't imagine what we're going through as a family. We're really distraught."

Fellow Italian Giancarlo Fisichella dedicated his podium finish at the 2005 Italian Grand Prix to Alboreto, "I know Alboreto was the last Italian on the podium at Monza before me. I was lucky enough to race together with him in touring cars, and he was a great person, really special. I want to dedicate the result to his memory."

Bob Akin Gravely Injured In Violent Crash - April 25, 2002

March 6, 1936 - April 29, 2002

Bob Akin

(Photo; www.grandtouringprototype.com)
Born In North Tarrytown, New York, USA.
Bob was a successful business executive, journalist, television commentator and champion sports car racing driver. On April 25, 2002, he was gravely injured in a violent crash while testing a powerful, 1988 Nissan GTP ZX-Turbo for the Walter Mitty Challenge for historic cars at Road Atlanta. His injuries included a broken neck, left leg, left shoulder and right arm, along with third-degree burns over 15 percent of his body. He was airlifted to Grady Memorial Hospital after the accident. After briefly rallying, the 66 year old succumbed due to complications from his injuries on April 29, 2002.

For more; Bob Akin

Felipe Massa Born In São Paulo, Brazil - April 25, 1981

April 25, 1981

Felipe Massa

(Photo; en.wikipedia.org)
Born in São Paulo, Brazil.
 Massa started his career in go-karting from the age of eight continuing in national and regional championships for seven years. He moved into Formula Chevrolet and claimed the championship. He moved in Italian Formula Renault in 2000 and won the title along with the European championship. Massa went into Euro Formula 3000 taking the championship.

Massa started his Formula One career with Sauber before joining Scuderia Ferrari as a test driver for 2003. He returned to Sauber for 2004 and 2005 before rejoining Ferrari where he won two races in 2006 including his home Grand Prix becoming the first Brazilian since Ayrton Senna to win the Brazilian Grand Prix. Massa won three races in 2007, finishing 4th in the Drivers' Championship. He finished second in the 2008 Drivers' World Championship after a long title battle with Lewis Hamilton. At the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, Massa was injured by a suspension spring off the Brawn GP car of Rubens Barrichello. Massa was forced to miss the rest of the season but returned in 2010. Massa suffered a dip in form in 2011 scoring no podiums but consistently scoring points. Massa contributed to Ferrari's Constructors Championships in 2007 and 2008 and was under contract to race for the team until the end of the 2013 season. On September 10, 2013, he confirmed he would be leaving Ferrari at the end of the 2013 season. On November 11, it was announced that Massa would replace Pastor Maldonado alongside Valtteri Bottas at Williams from 2014.

He finished the 2015 Formula One season in sixth place in the drivers' standings, achieving two podiums in Austria and in Italy.

On September 1, 2016 Massa announced that he would retire from Formula One at the end of the season. Massa finished the season 11th with 53 points. Following the abrupt retirement of 2016 Formula One Champion Nico Rosberg, Massa returned to Williams for a one year contract to partner rookie Lance Stroll for the 2017 season. On November 4, 2017, Massa confirmed that he would be retiring from Formula One at the end of the 2017 season.

Rolf Stommelen Dies Following Vicious Crash At Riverside - April 24, 1983

July 11, 1943 - April 24, 1983

Rolf Stommelen

(Photo; en.wikipedia.org)

Born in Siegen, Germany.

Stommelen participated in 63 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, achieving one podium, and scored a total of 14 championship points. He also participated in several non-Championship Formula One races.

One of the best endurance sports car racing drivers of the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s, Stommelen won the 24 Hours of Daytona 4 times; in 1968, 1978, 1980 and 1982 and the Targa Florio in 1967 in a Porsche 910.

Stommelen was killed in a vicious crash during an IMSA Camel GT event at Riverside International Raceway on April 24, 1983. He was running a John Fitzpatrick entered Porsche 935 with codriver Derek Bell. Stommelen had just taken over the car from Derek Bell and was running the car in second place when the rear wing broke, due to damage caused by a brush with a guard rail 2 laps earlier. The car became uncontrollable, slammed against a concrete wall, somersaulted and caught fire. Stommelen had no visible injuries after the accident but lost consciousness and was taken to hospital and died of a heart attack on the way there.

P. J. Jones Born In Torrance, California - April 23, 1969

April 23, 1969

P. J. Jones

(Photo; www.zimbio.com)
Born in Torrance, California, USA.
He has contested in multiple disciplines, including NASCAR, IndyCar, IMSA GT, ARCA, the American Le Mans Series, USAC, the Chili Bowl, and Stadium Super Trucks. His father is Indianapolis 500 winner Parnelli Jones and his brother Page Jones is a former racing driver.

Jones was runner-up at the GTP class of the IMSA GT Championship in 1993 and fourth in 1992. He also finished 4th at the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series race at Watkins Glen, and second at the 1999 CART race at Nazareth. In 2017, Jones returned to NASCAR, racing in the Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen International in Chris Cockrum Racing's No. 25 car.

Jones was a proficient ice hockey player, scoring ninety-eight goals in thirty games when he was just short of one decade old and playing peewee hockey in California. He and his team were state champions that year. Any ideas of a professional career in Jones' other sport were hindered by a surgery six years after the championship; following another two years of play, Jones ceased participation in ice hockey of all kinds.

"5-time NHRA Champ" Ronnie Sox Dies - April 22, 2006

 December 17, 1938 - April 22, 2006
Ronnie Sox 

(Photo; www.hemmings.com)

 Born in Burlington, Massachusetts, USA.

His family ran a Sinclair station on Church St. in Burlington, North Carolina, where Ronnie got his start in drag racing in the 1950s when the Police Club of Burlington began hosting races at an airport.

He raced at tracks throughout North Carolina and became a national sensation in the 1960s and early '70s. Sox won five National Hot Rod Association championships and more than 59 events. Together with racing partner Buddy Martin, Sox was the winningest Pro Stock driver in the 1970-72 "four-speed era". Initially Martin and Sox were competitors, but Martin approached Sox to drive his car after concluding that he just couldn't beat him. He drove a 1963 Chevrolet and then a factory AFX Mercury Comet in 1964. In 1965 he drove an Altered Wheelbase Plymouth. 

He started the 1966 season in an injected, nitro-burning Barracuda Funny Car. 

(photo credit: twm1340 via photopin cc)

Later that season he drove Plymouths in the Pro Stock class of NHRA and had "Clinic" cars with Plymouths. He then drove a Mercury Comet in IHRA Pro Modified for a few years before retiring from drag racing. 

Sox was ranked 15th on the National Hot Rod Association Top 50 Drivers, 1951-2000. He died of prostate cancer at the age of 67, in Richmond, Virginia, USA.

Greg Moore Born In New Westminster, British Columbia - April 22, 1975

April 22, 1975 – October 31, 1999
Greg Moore

Born in New Westminster, British Columbia.
Moore lived in Maple Ridge, British Columbia. His early racing career progressed through kart racing, winning the North American Enduro Kart Championships in 1989 and 1990. Moore also played ice hockey while growing up in and around Vancouver. He played on the same peewee team as future NHL star Paul Kariya. Moore was assigned the number 99 when he first started racing go-karts, and would later use the number on his racecar during his CART career. Moving up to Formula Ford cars in 1991, Moore was named the Esso Protec Formula Ford 1600 Rookie of the Year after winning one race and placing fourth in the overall championship. In 1992, he won four races and took four pole positions. He was the USAC Formula 2000 West Champion and Rookie of the Year.

The following year, Moore began racing in the Indy Lights circuit. Despite racing with an under-funded, family-run team, he placed ninth in the 1993 Indy Lights Championship. At the age of 18, Moore became the youngest driver ever to win a CART-sanctioned race when he won the 1994 Indy Lights season-opener at Phoenix. He won three Lights races in 1994 and finished third in the championship.

Moore joined the Player's Forsythe racing team and won the 1995 Indy Lights Championship with a spectacular record-setting season that saw him win 10 of 12 races, including five in a row.

After Indy Lights Greg moved to CART. He was fatally injured in a violent crash on the tenth lap of the CART season finale, the Marlboro 500, at the California Speedway in Fontana, California on October 31, 1999.

For more see; "Remembering" Greg Moore

Kelly Collins Born In Sun Valley, Idaho - April 21, 1965

April 21, 1965

Kelly Collins

(Photo; grand-am.com)

Born in Sun Valley, Idaho, USA.
Kelly Collins began racing motorcycles at age seven. He came through the ranks of off-road motorcycles before progressing into Formula Ford and Formula Mazda racing in 1987, where he enjoyed six wins. In 1988 he progressed into the Barber Saab Series where he raced until 1990.

In 1992 Collins earned his first endurance race win in 12-hour Firestone Firehawk race at Sebring. From 1993 to 1996 Collins drove a Honda to 8 wins in the IMSA Sport Championship, for 1997 and 1998 he raced a Porsche in the PSCR GT Championship.

In 1999 he won the GT3 Class at the Rolex 24 Hour race at Daytona in a Porsche 911 RSR for Alex Job Racing finishing sixth overall. For Sebring 1999 Collins drove for Alex Job Racing and had another GT Class win before moving on to Martin Snow Racing and driving a Porsche 911 Turbo in the GTS class for four rounds.

Collins first race for Corvette Racing was at Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in 1999, he then returned to Martin Snow Racing for the remaining two rounds in the ALMS.

Highlights of Collins' career include multiple victories at Petit Le Mans, Rolex 24 at Daytona, and 12 Hours of Sebring. Kelly also scored four podium finishes at the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans with teammates Andy Pilgrim, Frank Freon, and Oliver Gavin. In 2001, Collins helped write history by teaming with the legendary Dale Earnhardt, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Andy Pilgrim in the 2001 Rolex 24 at Daytona. Collins and Pilgrim's road racing expertise helped Dale and his son take their first and only podium finish together in a Corvette C5-R.

"1970 Daytona 500 Winner" Pete Hamilton Dies - March 21, 2017

July 20, 1942 - March 21, 2017

Peter Hamilton

(Photo;"Pete Hamilton with his Petty Enterprises 1970 Plymouth Superbird." by Skeensss)

Born in Newton, Massachusetts, USA.

Pete began racing in the street division in 1962 at Norwood Arena. In 1965, he was the Thompson World Series Twin 50s champion. He won the NASCAR National Sportsman division in 1967.

He started racing in the NASCAR Grand National division in 1968, and was the series Rookie of the Year. In 1969, he competed in NASCAR's Grand American division, a division of smaller pony cars. He won 12 of 26 races that year.

He had 3 wins in 1970 for Petty Enterprises in the #40 Plymouth Superbird with Maurice Petty as his crew-chief. He won the 1970 Daytona 500 and both races at Talladega Superspeedway. He won his fourth race of the season at the July Daytona race driving for Cotton Owens.

In 1971 Hamilton won one of the Twin 125 mile qualifying races for the Daytona 500. He retired from full-time racing later in 1971 because of a neck injury suffered in a Grand American race in 1969. Hamilton later won the 1974 Snowball Derby in his own late model car.

After he retired, he became a successful car builder. He was inducted in the New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame in 1998, its first class.

Hamliton died on March 21, 2017 at the age of 74.

This Day In Motorsport History - Home Page

Phil Hill Born In Miami, Florida - April 20, 1927

April 20, 1927 – August 28, 2008

Phil Hill

(Photo; philhill.com)

Born in Miami, Florida, USA.

He is only American-born driver to win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship (Mario Andretti, an American driver, won the World Drivers' Championship in 1978, but was not born in the United States). He also scored three wins at each of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 12 Hours of Sebring sports car races.

Following his retirement, Hill built up an award winning classic car restoration business in the 1970s called Hill & Vaughn. Hill also worked as a television commentator for ABC's Wide World of Sports. Hill had a long and distinguished association with Road & Track magazine. He wrote several articles for them, including road tests and retrospective articles on historic cars and races. He shared his "grand old man" status at R&T with '60s racing rival Paul Frère, who also died in 2008.

Hill, in his last years, devoted his time to his vintage car collection and judged at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance more often than any other individual. 2007 was the 40th time he had judged the event.

Hill was married to Alma, and had three children: Derek, Vanessa and Jennifer. Derek raced in International Formula 3000 in 2001, 2002 and 2003, but was forced to retire when Hill became ill with Parkinson's Disease.

After traveling to the Monterey Historic Automobile Races in August 2008, Hill was taken to a hospital, where he died after a short illness from complications of Parkinson's Disease in Salinas, California on August 28.

Hill was described as a "thoughtful, gentle man" and once said, "I'm in the wrong business. I don't want to beat anybody, I don't want to be the big hero. I'm a peace-loving man, basically."

Danica Patrick wins the "Indy Japan 300" at Motegi, Japan - April 20, 2008

April 20, 2008

(photo credit: via photopin (license))

Danica Patrick, then 26 years old and competing in her 50th IndyCar Series race, won the "Indy Japan 300" at Twin Ring Motegi in Motegi, Japan, making her the first female winner of a major United States sanctioned open-wheel race.

Gordon Smiley Born In Omaha, Nebraska - April 20, 1946

April 20, 1946 – May 15, 1982

Gordon Smiley

(photo credit: ©David Hutson)

Born in Omaha, Nebraska, USA.

Driving his first race at age 19, Smiley was an accomplished road racer. He raced SCCA Formula Ford, Formula Atlantic, Trans-Am, Can-Am, Formula 5000 and Formula Super Vee. In 1979, he raced in the British Formula One Series for the Surtees Team, and in 11 races he had eight top-10 finishes, including a win, which is the last by an American in an FIA sanctioned event, at Silverstone, England in 1979.

Smiley raced in the Indianapolis 500 twice, in 1980 and 1981, and was killed while trying to qualify for a third in 1982. In the 1980 Indianapolis 500, Smiley qualified Patrick Racing's Valvoline Phoenix/Cosworth in 20th position. His race ended when the turbocharger blew on lap 47, causing him to finish 25th. In the 1981 Indianapolis 500, Smiley qualified the Patrick Racing Intermedics Wildcat VIII/Cosworth, qualifying 8th and led 1 lap, but finishing 22nd after a crash on lap 141. His crash set up the controversial finish to the Indy 500 between teammate Mario Andretti and Bobby Unser.

In 1982, record speeds were being set during qualification for the 1982 Indianapolis 500. Both Kevin Cogan and Rick Mears set new single lap and 4-lap records in their attempts. Smiley went out for a qualifying attempt an hour later. On the second warm up lap his car began to oversteer while rounding the third turn, causing the car to slightly slide. When Smiley steered right to correct this, the front wheels gained grip suddenly, sending his car directly across the track and into the wall nose first at nearly 200 mph (320 km/h). The impact shattered and completely disintegrated the March chassis, causing the fuel tank to explode, and sent debris, including Smiley's exposed body, tumbling hundreds of feet across the short-chute connecting turns 3 and 4. The impact of Smiley's car against the wall was so violent and so extreme, and the destruction of the car was so finite and total, that the crash looked like that of an aircraft crash, the amount of pieces of debris strewn across the track was in the thousands. Smiley died instantly from massive trauma inflicted by the severe impact. His death was the first at Indy since 1973 when Art Pollard and Swede Savage were killed during that same weekend, and to date, the last driver to die during qualifying.

Smiley's funeral was held on May 20, 1982 and he was buried in his birth location in Nebraska. He was inducted into the Nebraska Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2000.

"2-Time Indy 500 Winner" Al Unser Jr Born - April 19, 1962

April 19, 1962

Al Unser Jr

(Photo; en.wikipedia.org)

Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.

Nicknamed "Little Al", "Al Junior" or simply "Junior" he is a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner. He is the son of Al Unser and the nephew of Bobby Unser, both Indianapolis 500 winners themselves. By the age of 11, Al Junior was racing sprint cars. After high school, he was already in the World of Outlaws series of sprint car racing. He soon moved into road racing, winning the Super Vee title in 1981 and the Can-Am title in 1982.

In 1982, Unser made his debut on the CART circuit. A year later, he competed in his first Indianapolis 500, finishing tenth. Unser continued racing on the CART circuit, becoming one of the series' rising stars. He finished second in the CART championship point standings in 1985, losing to his father by just one point. He began competing in the IROC championship in 1986, winning that championship with two victories in four races. At the age of 24, Unser was the youngest IROC champion ever. Unser won the 1988 and 1986 IROC championships. Unser won the 24 Hours of Daytona, also at age 24 for the first time in 1986 and again in 1987.

Unser Jr. continued to improve on the CART circuit, finishing fourth in the points standings in 1986, third in 1987, second in 1988 and finally winning the series for the first time in 1990. In 1989, Unser Jr. was on the verge of winning his first Indianapolis 500, but while battling with Emerson Fittipaldi for the lead, the two touched wheels and Unser spun out, hitting the wall and ending his chances. This race is remembered for a remarkable show of sportsmanship, as Little Al climbed out of his wrecked racecar and gave Fittipaldi the "thumbs up" as he drove by Unser Jr. under caution. Unser would have his day at Indy in 1992, however, defeating Scott Goodyear by 0.043 of a second, the closest finish in Indianapolis 500 history. During the off-season he drove in the 1993 Daytona 500 for Hendrick Motorsports finishing 36th in what would be his only NASCAR start. He ran well in the race, running with the lead pack all day, until a late race crash with Kyle Petty and Bobby Hillin Jr.

In 1994, Unser again won at Indy, this time with Penske Racing. His teammates were Emerson Fittipaldi, the man whom he battled with five years before, and Paul Tracy. Unser Jr. turned in a dominant season-long performance, winning eight of 16 races on his way to his second CART championship, as well as being named ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year that year.

 In 1995 Unser, along with teammate Emerson Fittipaldi, failed to qualify at Indianapolis, and he would later point to this as the trigger event for his descent into alcoholism and the breakup of his marriage. He would finish second to Jacques Villeneuve in CART championship points in 1995, but after finishing fourth in 1996, 13th in 1997, 11th in 1998 and 21st in 1999. Little Al's decline in performance coincided with the Penske team's struggles with the Penske chassis and his teammates suffered similar results during this time. Team Penske began abandoning the maligned in-house Penske chassis for customer Lola chassis during the 1999 season. Unser Jr. would eventually leave CART to join the budding Indy Racing League for the 2000 campaign. Unser Jr. won a total of 31 races during his 17 seasons in CART. His career win total including IRL stands at 34, which is currently the sixth-most all time in American open wheel racing, as of 2013. As a two-time Indy 500 and two-time overall points champion, Unser Jr. enjoyed a decorated career as one of the most dynamic and successful drivers in American auto racing.

On May 18, 2007, Unser spoke publicly for the first time about his battle with alcoholism when he joined forces with LIVE outside the Bottle, a national educational campaign to help the public understand the need for addressing and treating alcoholism.

During the race weekend of the 2009 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, Little Al confirmed that his IndyCar career was in fact over. During the weekend, he returned to the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race that he won in 1985, and scored his second in the event and his eighth Long Beach victory overall. 

In 2010, Unser started the Race Clinic for Paralysis charity. Unser is on the board of Baltimore Racing Development and helped announce plans for the 2011 Baltimore Grand Prix on Monday, August 17, 2009. Unser was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2009.

On September 29, 2011, Unser was arrested in Albuquerque, New Mexico on charges of reckless driving and aggravated driving while intoxicated. Charges stemmed from an incident where Unser reportedly drag raced his Chevrolet Suburban SUV at speeds of over 100 mph. He was placed on indefinite suspension from his role with IndyCar.

In 2013, Unser entered a sportscar race at Thunderhill Raceway Park, the legendary 25 Hours of Thunderhill, racing with his son Al III as teammates.

In 2014, once again at Long Beach, he came out of retirement to again participate in the Pro/Celebrity race, while finishing fifth, he was 6.115 seconds behind winner Brett Davern and four other celebrities, he was handicapped by a 30-second disadvantage assessed to professionals. As the top-finishing professional, it was his ninth Long Beach victory overall, extending the "King of the Beach" nickname. Later that year, Unser raced again at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, participating in the Indy Legends Charity Pro/Am race, during the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association's Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational event. This two-driver race included an Indianapolis 500 veteran in each car. Unser won the race, along with Peter Klutt, driving Klutt's 1969 Chevrolet Corvette. In so doing, Unser became the second driver to win on both the oval and road course at the Speedway.

In 2015, Unser participated in several Goodguys AutoCross competitions and also the Sports Car Club of America Solo National Championship, placing second in his class in the latter.

Legendary NASCAR Team Owner Robert Yates Born - April 19, 1943

April 19, 1943 - October 2, 2017

Robert Yates

(Photo;foxsports.com)

Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.

 He was a NASCAR engine builder and former owner of the Sprint Cup Series team Yates Racing, owned since 2007 by his son Doug. The son of Rev. John Clyde Yates, he grew up as one of nine children in Charlotte, North Carolina. He has a twin brother, Richard. As a youth, he raced his own dragster in the late 1950s. In 1964, Yates graduated from Wilson Technical College in North Carolina, earning a degree in mechanical engineering.

He purchased the team from Harry Ranier in 1988, with driver Davey Allison. The team finished second in its first race, the 1988 Daytona 500, being edged by Allison's father and NASCAR legend Bobby Allison.

In 1991, Larry McReynolds joined the team as crew chief and led Allison to five victories. In 1992 the Yates Racing started the season with a bang with Allison winning the Daytona 500, joining his father Bobby a three time Daytona 500 winner. The win also put the Allisons in an exclusive club, joining Lee and Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr as the only father/son winners of the Daytona 500.

In 1992 Allison again had another dominant year winning five races again, despite a broken hand suffered at Pocono in June and a cracked rib. Allison also experienced a personal tragedy in August when his brother Clifford was killed in the Busch Series race at Michigan International Speedway. Going into the last race at Atlanta all Allison had to do was finish sixth or better to clinch the Winston Cup title, but a collision with Ernie Irvan on the 251st lap damaged Allison's car and knocked him from contention. Allison completed 34 more laps and was running at the finish. With Allison eliminated from title contention it was down to a two-man race between Bill Elliott and Alan Kulwicki, Elliott won the race, but Kulwicki led one more lap than Elliott to win the title by ten points. Allison would finish third in the final points standings.

In 1993 the team struggled, although Allison did win the Pontiac Excitement 400 at Richmond in March. They then experienced tragedy as Allison was killed in a helicopter crash in July. Ernie Irvan, who was driving for Morgan-McClure Motorsports, wanted to replace his friend and after several weeks Yates was able to bring him aboard. With Irvan behind the wheel the team won at Martinsville in a car set up by Allison, the team also won at Charlotte in the Mello Yello 500 when Irvan led all but six of the race's 334 laps.

In 1994 the team got off to a fast start with Irvan finishing second to Sterling Marlin at the Daytona 500, two weeks later Irvan won at Richmond just like Allison did the year before, Irvan would follow that win up a week later by winning the Puralator 500 at Atlanta. In May 1994 the team won at Sonoma, California. In August Irvan came within ten laps of winning the Inaugural Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, before cutting a tire and handing the race to Jeff Gordon. Irvan was in contention for the Winston Cup title before he was critically injured in practice crash at Michigan a week later. Kenny Wallace finished out the year in the No. 28 Ford Thunderbird.

In 1995 with the team in need of a full-time replacement while Irvan was sidelined, Yates brought Dale Jarrett from Joe Gibbs Racing to drive the #28. Jarrett won at Pocono in July. In October Irvan returned to the track driving a second Yates car No. 88 in a race at North Wilkesboro, N.C. Irvan led six laps and finished sixth.

In 1996 Yates expanded to two full-time teams with Irvan back behind the wheel of the No. 28 Ford and Dale Jarrett driving the No. 88 car. The new team wasted no time showing its muscle with Jarrett, under the leadership of rookie crewchief Todd Parrott won the Busch Clash at Daytona and the Daytona 500. Irvan secured the outside pole for the Daytona 500 alongside Dale Earnhardt Sr. who was in his eighteenth attempt to win the Daytona 500. Irvan also won his Gatorade Twin 125 Qualifying Race. Jarrett also won the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and the Brickyard 400 and at Michigan in August and finished third in the final Winston Cup points standings behind Hendrick Motorsports teammates Terry Labonte and Jeff Gordon.

Yates was given his first championship as a NASCAR owner in 1999 with Dale Jarrett. His engines had won championships with him as an engine builder before, notably 1983 with Bobby Allison and DiGard Motorsports, and also with Darrell Waltrip.

After that season the team began to slump a little. Eddie D'Hondt joined the team as Manager after leaving Evernham Motorsports and the team seemed to be heading in the right direction with the hiring of Mike Ford. Ford hired several key members including Russ Salerno, as his Pit Crew Coordinator.

Shortly after that RYR found itself with a team that was improving and becoming a contender again. Elliott Sadler joined Robert Yates Racing for the 2003 season and won two races for Yates in 2004. As of July 2007, Yates' last win was with Dale Jarrett at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2005. Yates retired as a NASCAR Sprint Cup Team Owner after 2007, giving Yates Racing to his son, Doug. In 2010 he came out of retirement to form a new company, Robert Yates Racing Engines, with his son-in-law Chris Davy as his partner.

On May 24, 2017, Yates was voted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame's Class of 2018.

Since November 2016, Yates has been undergoing treatment for liver cancer. Yates said he was told by a doctor in early August to gather his family and make plans for hospice because “you’re done in four weeks.” Four hours later, Yates’ future looked much better. Another doctor told Yates, who is battling liver cancer, that the terminal diagnosis was wrong. “I need both doctors, but I need a little cheerleading, too,’’ said the 74-year-old. On October 2, 2017, Yates died due to liver cancer.

(Photo;nascar.nbcsports.com)

"1970 Formula One World Champ" Jochen Rindt Born - April 18, 1942

 April 18, 1942 - September 5, 1970

Jochen Rindt

(Photo; Lothar Spurzem Rindt,_Jochen_1968.jpg)

Born in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Rindt is the only driver to posthumously win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship, after being killed. He competed in 62 Grands Prix, winning six and achieving 13 podium finishes. Away from Formula One, Rindt was highly successful in other single-seater formula, as well as sports car racing. In 1965 he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, driving a Ferrari 250LM in partnership with Masten Gregory from the United States of America. He was a close friend to Jackie Stewart, and was a neighbor to the Scotsman in Switzerland.

For more;Tribute To Jochen Rindt

Geoff Bodine Born In Chemung, New York - April 18, 1949

April 18, 1949

Geoff Bodine

Born in Chemung, New York, USA.
He is the oldest of the three Bodine brothers, with Brett Bodine and Todd Bodine. Bodine's racing career seemed to be on track right from the start as his father and grandfather, Eli Bodine Jr. and Sr. built Chemung Speedrome just a year after he was born. He began learning his racing skills at this track in the micro-midget division when he was only five years old. He had such an itch to race that he disguised himself as a lady and entered a Powderpuff Division Race when he was 15.

Bodine was quite an accomplished driver before he hit the big-time in NASCAR's premier division, the Winston Cup series with his first start in 1979. By this time, Bodine was well known as a Modified driver in the Northeast, racing against popular drivers like Richie Evans, Jerry Cook, Jimmy Spencer, Ron Bouchard, and others. Bodine earned Modified championships at Stafford Speedway, Shangri-La Speedway, Spencer/Williamson Speedway, and Utica-Rome Speedway. He has won many of the big races in Modifieds including the Lancaster 200 (1978, 1981), Race of Champions (1972 - Trenton, 1978 - Pocono), the Stafford 200 (1978), the Trenton Dogleg 200 (1979), the Thompson 300, the Spring Sizzler (1980 - Stafford Speedway), Oswego Classic (1981), Cardinal Classic (1975 - Martinsville Speedway), Oxford 250 (1980, 1981), and other modified events.

In 1978, Bodine won more races than any other Modified driver in recorded history. Driving cars owned by Dick Armstrong with Billy Taylor and Ralph Hop Harrington as crew chief, Bodine started 84 feature events and won 55 of them. Among the most prestigious of these victories were the Race of Champions at Pocono, the Spring Sizzler at Stafford, the Budweiser 200 at Oswego, both major events at Martinsville, the Thompson 300, and a sweep of the six-race Yankee All-Star League series. For these fifty-five victories, Bodine is credited in the Guinness Book of World Records with "Most wins in one season".

Bodine's racing background also included wins in the Late Model division, Nationwide Series division, and others. He has six Busch Grand National wins to his credit.

 In October 2012, Bodine announced through TheRacingExperts.Com that he was retiring from NASCAR after 27 seasons. He finished with a total of 575 Cup series races run over 27 years, with 18 wins, 190 top ten finishes and 37 pole positions.

Achievements & Awards; 1986 Daytona 500 Winner, 1987 IROC Champion, 1994 The Winston Winner, 1992 Busch Clash Winner, 1982 Winston Cup Series Rookie of the Year, Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998, Named one of NASCAR's Modified all-time Top 10 Drivers and listed in the Guinness World Records for "Most wins in one season".

Bodine said he was retiring to spend time with his family and do charitable deeds. In June 2012 he opened a Honda Power Sports dealership in West Melbourne, Florida, where he currently resides.

Riccardo Patrese Born In Padua, Veneto, Italy - April 17, 1954

April 17, 1954

Riccardo Patrese

(Photo; en.wikipedia.org)

Born in Padua, Veneto, Italy.

He became the first Formula One driver to achieve 200 Grand Prix starts when he appeared at the 1990 British Grand Prix, and the first to achieve 250 starts at the 1993 German Grand Prix. Patrese entered 257 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix and started 256 races making him the seventh most experienced F1 driver in history, after Rubens Barrichello, Michael Schumacher, Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Räikkönen and Felipe Massa. He was runner-up in the 1992 Formula One season and third in 1989 and 1991. He won six Formula One races, with a record gap of over six years between two of these, the 1983 South African Grand Prix and 1990 San Marino Grand Prix.

Patrese also competed at the World Sportscar Championship for the Lancia factory team, finishing runnerup in 1982 and collecting eight wins.

Arnie Beswick "First NHRA Funny Car Under 10 Seconds" - April 17, 1965

April 17, 1965

www.risesales.com
Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick becomes the first NHRA Funny Car driver to run the quarter-mile in under 10 seconds, with a time of 9.97 seconds during a meet in York, Pennsylvania, USA.

Frank Williams Born In South Shields, England - April 16, 1942

April 16, 1942

Frank Williams

(Photo; f1.wikia.com)

Born in South Shields, County Durham, England.
He is the founder and team principal of the Williams Formula One racing team. In the late 1950s a friend gave Williams a ride in his Jaguar XK150 and young Frank was immediately hooked on fast cars.

After a brief career as a driver and mechanic, funded by his work as a travelling grocery salesman, Williams founded Frank Williams Racing Cars in 1966. He ran drivers including Piers Courage and Tony Trimmer for several years in Formula Two and Formula Three. Williams purchased a Brabham Formula One chassis, which Courage drove throughout the 1969 Formula One season, twice finishing in second place.

In 1970 Williams undertook a brief partnership with Alejandro de Tomaso. After the death of Courage at the Dutch Grand Prix that year, Williams's relationship with de Tomaso ended. In 1971 he raced Henri Pescarolo with a chassis he had purchased from March Engineering. 1972 saw the first F1 car built by the Williams works, the Politoys FX3 designed by Len Bailey, but Pescarolo crashed and destroyed it at its first race.

In 1976, Williams short on cash took on a partner in oil magnate Walter Wolf. Though the team continued functioning, it no longer belonged to Frank Williams and he left in 1977 along with one of his old employees, engineer Patrick Head. The two acquired an empty carpet warehouse in Didcot, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom and announced the formation of Williams Grand Prix Engineering. This same team and partnership still competes in Formula One and is known as Williams F1.

The team's first win came in 1979 when Clay Regazzoni drove the Cosworth powered Williams FW07 to victory at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Their first Drivers' and Constructors' championships both came in 1980 with Australian Alan Jones winning the drivers' championship and the team winning the constructors title by 54 points. Between 1981 and 1997, the team won six more drivers' championships and eight more constructors' championships.

A car accident on March 6, 1986, in France resulted in Williams sustaining a spinal cord injury and becoming tetraplegic. While driving a Ford Sierra rental car from the Paul Ricard Circuit to Nice airport, Williams lost control of the car which then rolled over causing him to be pressed between his seat and the roof resulting in a spinal fracture between the 4th and 5th vertebra. He had not been wearing his seat belt at the time of the accident. Williams' passenger and the team sponsorship manager Peter Windsor sustained only minor injuries. Since the accident, Williams has used a wheelchair.

In May 1994, following the death of Ayrton Senna in a Williams at Imola, he was charged with manslaughter in accordance with Italian law, but was cleared after several years. Since Senna's death, all his F1 cars have carried a little tribute to Senna featuring the Senna "S" logo. The Williams FW33, FW34, FW35, and FW36 all have this on their front wing supports.

On March 2, 2012, Williams announced he would be stepping down from the board of Williams F1 and will be replaced by his daughter Claire, although he would still remain with the team in the role of Team Principal.

Honours received over the years include; In 1987, the Queen awarded Williams the title of CBE. He was knighted in 1999. He has been made a Chevalier of France's Legion d'honneur, this honour accorded for his work with Renault engines. In 2008, Williams was awarded the Wheatcroft trophy. On December 19, 2010, he was awarded the Helen Rollason Award for "outstanding achievement in the face of adversity" at the BBC Sports Personality of The Year Awards. On October 15, 2012, the main road through the new Great Western Park development in Didcot was named "Sir Frank Williams Avenue" with Williams unveiling its name plate.

In 1974, Frank Williams married Virginia Berry. They had two sons, Jonathan and Jaime and a daughter, Claire. Virginia was diagnosed with cancer in 2010 and died on March 7, 2013, at the age of 66.

Virginia Williams wrote an autobigraphical book, A Different Kind of Life. It that describes her experiences in the formula one team's formative years as well as her husband's near-fatal accident in 1986.