There’s nothing new about Indy car stars in NASCAR.
Wednesday, November 14th, 2007By: Drew Hierwarter
It seems as though the hottest trend in NASCAR’s Nextel Cup Series these days is hiring drivers from the open wheel ranks. Sam Hornish, Jr. is the latest former Indy 500 winner and successful open wheel racer to be signed to a full season of stock car racing. The most recent race on the NASCAR schedule, the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway boasted no fewer than four open wheel stars, three of whom are also former winners of the Indy 500, and two with Formula 1 experience. While the racing media has made a big deal of this phenomenon, it really isn’t anything new.
The last time three winners of the Indianapolis 500 competed in the same NASCAR event was in the 1976 National 500, held in October of that year at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. (Today called Lowes Motor Speedway) A.J. Foyt; (four-time Indy winner, ’61, ’64, ‘67, and ’77), Gordon Johncock; (two-time Indy winner, ’73 and ’82), and Johnny Rutherford; (three-time winner, ’74, ’76, and ’80) all competed in the race that day. The best result of the three of them was turned in by Rutherford who finished 31st. Foyt was 38th and Johncock was 39th. Today’s open wheel guys didn’t do much better. Montoya was the highest finisher in Phoenix with a 17th place. But he also has the benefit of the most experience of the four having driven the entire 2007 season so far. Sam Hornish, who failed in six previous qualifying attempts, made the race this time and finshed in 30th place. Patrick Carpentier wound up in 33rd, and Jaques Villenueve finished in 41st.
But even going back to the 1976 Rockingham race, open wheel stars in NASCAR was not a new thing then either. They were doing it as far back as the 1950’s. Indy 500 regular, Bill Holland drove in seven NASCAR races in 1951, and one in 1952. World renowned Formula 1 driver David Hobbs, who today does television commentary for the F1 circuit, competed in two NASCAR events in 1976. Of course, most people know that former Indy 500 winner (1969) and Formula 1 World Champion (1978), Mario Andretti also won the Daytona 500 in 1967. But there was another open wheel driver who tested the NASCAR waters that year. The late great Jimmy Clark drove a Holmon-Moody Ford to a 30th place finish at Rockingham in ’67. One of the most famous last names at Indianapolis is Unser. Between the brothers Al Unser and Bobby Unser, and Al’s son Al Unser, Jr, the family represents nine victories in the Memorial Day classic. Al Unser, Sr., drove in two NASCAR races in 1968, one in 1969, and two more in 1986. Brother Bobby also ran two NASCAR events in 1969, one in 1972, and one more in 1973. Al Unser, Jr’s only NASCAR race was the 1993 Daytona 500 where he finished 36th.
Of all the open wheel drivers mentioned, the one with the best record in NASCAR is, as you might expect, A.J. Foyt. Over a period that spanned thirty seasons, “Super Tex” ran 128 stock car races and has seven wins to his credit including the 1972 Daytona 500. Throughout the sixties and seventies, Foyt was a regular in races at Daytona and he also won the July race there twice. The long gone Ontario Motor Speedway in Southern California was another place that Foyt liked, and he won two NASCAR 500 mile races there too.
What you should’ve noticed in all of the above is that none of those guys ran an entire season. NASCAR racing was, for them, a side line activity. A diversion, if you will, from the more serious and important work of winning the World Driving Championship or the Indianapolis 500. (In the 30 years he competed in NASCAR, the most races that Foyt drove in a single season was seven.) The difference today is that the four drivers competing in the Phoenix race are all looking at full season deals for 2008, forsaking their open wheel background and taking their careers in an entirely new direction. Will they be successful? Only time will tell. They all need plenty of seat time before they can be considered a threat to win. But given their obvious talent for driving a race car, any type of race car, I wouldn’t bet against them.