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Adam Petty Killed In Practice At New Hampshire - May 12, 2000

May 11, 2019, 9:00 pm
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July 10, 1980 – May 12, 2000
Adam Petty
(Photo; www.findagrave.com)
Born in Trenton, New Jersey, USA.
Petty was raised in High Point, North Carolina into stock car racing "royalty". The son of Kyle Petty, he was widely expected to become the next great Petty, following in the footsteps of his father, grandfather Richard, and great-grandfather Lee. He was the first known fourth-generation athlete in all of modern American motor sports to participate in the chosen profession of his generations.

Petty began his career in 1998, shortly after he turned 18, in the ARCA RE/MAX Series. Like his father Kyle, he won his first ARCA race, driving the #45 Sprint/Spree sponsored Pontiac at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Petty moved to NASCAR Busch Series full-time in 1999, driving the #45 Sprint-sponsored Chevrolet. Petty finished sixth in his first Busch Series race at Daytona and had a best finish of fourth place, though he also failed to qualify for three of the Busch races. Petty finished the 1999 season 20th overall in points.

Petty Enterprises planned to have Petty run a second Busch season in 2000, while giving him seven starts in the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup series, in preparation for a full Winston Cup campaign in 2001. He struggled early in the Busch season, but managed to qualify in his first attempt at Winston Cup during the DirecTV 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 2. He qualified 33rd and ran in the middle of the pack most of the day before his engine expired, forcing him to finish 40th. Adam never got to race alongside his father. Kyle failed to qualify and eventually relieved an ill Elliott Sadler, but Adam was already out of the race. Lee Petty, Adam's great-grandfather, and 3-time NASCAR Champion, lived to see his Winston debut, but died just three days later.

In a practice session for the Busch series Busch 200 race at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Petty's throttle stuck wide open at turn three, causing the car to hit the outside wall virtually head on. Petty was killed instantly due to a basilar skull fracture. He was 19 years old.

Kyle Petty, Adam's father, who drove the #44 car at the time of the crash, drove Adam's #45 car in the Busch Series for the remainder of 2000. He then used the #45 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series throughout the rest of his driving career.

In October 2000 five months after Petty's death, his family partnered with Paul Newman and the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp to begin the Victory Junction Gang Camp in Randleman, North Carolina, as a memorial to Petty. The camp has received support from many NASCAR drivers, teams, and sponsors, including Cup Series sponsor Sprint, which has placed a replica of Petty's 1998 car in the camp. The Victory Junction Gang camp began operation in 2004, and is an official charity of NASCAR. Petty also appears as a special guest driver in the video games NASCAR 2000, NASCAR Rumble, NASCAR 2001 and NASCAR Arcade.

In December 2013, his brother Austin named his newborn son after Adam in tribute.
Photo;"George W. Bush at Victory Junction Gang Camp - Randleman, N.C. with NASCAR drivers" by Paul Morse.
President George W. Bush is joined at Adam's Race Shop on the grounds of Victory Junction Gang Camp, Inc., in Randleman, N.C., by NASCAR drivers Kyle Petty, Richard Petty, Michael Waltrip and Jimmie Johnson.
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Melvin "Tony" Bettenhausen Dies In Crash At Indianapolis - May 12, 1961

May 11, 2019, 9:00 pm
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September 12, 1916 - May 12, 1961
Melvin "Tony" Bettenhausen
(Photo; www.findagrave.com)
Born at Tinley Park, Illinois, USA. 
Bettenhausen was the father of Gary Bettenhausen, Tony Bettenhausen, Jr. and Merle Bettenhausen. He was nicknamed the "Tinley Park Express" in honor of his hometown. He was nicknamed "Tunney" after heavyweight boxing champion Gene Tunney. "Tunney" later became "Tony."

Bettenhausen was part of the midget car "Chicago Gang" with Emil Andres, Cowboy O'Rourke, Paul Russo, Jimmy Snyder, and Wally Zale. They toured tracks in the Midwest and East Coast of the United States. He won the track championship at the Milwaukee Mile in 1942, 1946, and 1947. He was the Chicago Raceway Park champion in 1941, 1942, and 1947. He won the 1959 Turkey Night Grand Prix, and the Hut Hundred in 1955 and 1956.

He drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series, racing in the 1941 and 1946-1961 seasons with 121 starts, including 14 in the Indianapolis 500. He finished in the top ten 74 times, with 21 victories.

He won the National Championship in 1951 after recording eight victories and two second place finishes in fourteen events. He announced his retirement from all racing but the Indianapolis 500 after the season. He decided to return full-time for the 1954 season. He was involved in a midget car wreck in Chicago, suffering head injuries after striking a concrete wall. He was in critical condition for several days.

He prearranged to co-drive with Chicago Gang friend Paul Russo in the 1955 Indianapolis 500. They finished second. In 1958 he became the first driver to win the national championship without a win. He was assured the title with a second place finish at Phoenix. He finished second in the national championship to Rodger Ward in 1959.

Bettenhausen was killed in 1961 in a crash at Indianapolis while testing a Stearly Motor Freight Special vehicle for Paul Russo. The car smashed into the outside wall of the track and then rolled 325 feet along the barrier. The car came to rest in a grassy plot between the wall and Grandstand A, with the tail of the car on fire. Results showed the accident was caused by an anchor bolt which fell off the front radius rod support, allowing the front axle to twist and misaligned the front wheels when the brakes were applied, which drove the car into the wall.

Bettenhausen was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1985, the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1991, and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1997.
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“The Wizard of Indy” A. J. Watson Dies - May 12, 2014

May 11, 2019, 9:00 pm
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May 8, 1924 - May 12, 2014
A. J. Watson
(Photo;hemmings.com)
Born in Mansfield Ohio, USA.
 He was a car builder and chief mechanic from 1949 through 1984 in the Indianapolis 500, winning the race six times as a car builder. His first win as a car builder came in 1956 when Pat Flaherty drove the John Zink entry to victory in that year's Indy 500. Watson had won the previous year as a crew chief for Bob Sweikert.

A native of southern California, Watson came to Indianapolis in 1948 but missed the race. He returned the following year with a home-built car that failed to qualify. For the next 11 years, his cars not only qualified but were leaders in many years. From 1955 to 1958 he was associated with the John Zink team, and from 1959 on with Bob Wilke. His cars dominated the race through 1964. His work gained such a reputation that a Sports Illustrated article from 1960 dubbed him “The Wizard of Indy.” Although he continued entering cars for another two decades, he was never able to regain the commanding position of his heyday.

In 1964, with many teams following Lotus's example and moving to rear-engines, Watson built a pair of cars based on Rolla Vollstedt's successful car. These worked reasonably well but could not reproduce the success he had with his front-engined "roadsters". He built monocoque rear-engined cars in 1966 and 1967 with ever-decreasing success.

From 1969 until 1977, Watson ran Eagles and then built a small series of highly derivative new "Watson" cars in 1977, 1978 and again in 1982 based on Lightning and March designs before retiring. He is frequently listed on the Indy 500 entry sheet as the "race strategist" for PDM Racing, though his role with the team is largely honorary.

Watson was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1996. He died on May 12, 2014 at the age of 90.

A.J. Foyt drove a Watson or Watson-Trevis roadster to 11 of his 67 career wins, including two (1961, 1964) of his four Indy wins as a driver. His 1964 win would would be the final ‘500’ win for a front-engine car.

“I was very good friends with A.J. Watson and his wife Joyce,” Foyt said in a statement released today. “He picked me up to drive his sprint car years back. We worked right there at his house, took the 220 Offy and built the Chevrolet".

“He was a pioneer. He came out against Kurtis and built the Watson roadster and I was lucky enough to win with it. In his day right here at the Indy 500, there was nobody that was going to beat the three W’s: Watson, Wilke and Ward".

(Photo;speedsport.com) 
Rodger Ward (in car), team owner Bob Wilke (center) and car builder/mechanic A.J. Watson.



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Art Pollard Dies In Indy 500 Practice Crash - May 12, 1973

May 11, 2019, 9:00 pm
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May 5, 1927 - May 12, 1973
Art Pollard
Born in Dragon, Utah, USA.
He drove in the USAC Championship Car series, racing in the 1965–1973 seasons, with 84 career starts, including the 1967 - 1971 Indianapolis 500 races. He finished in the top ten 30 times, with 2 victories, both in 1969, at Milwaukee and Dover.

Pollard died in Indianapolis, Indiana, as a result of injuries sustained in practice during the first day of time trials for the 1973 Indianapolis 500. The car clipped the wall coming out of turn one and did a half-spin as it headed to the grass on the inside of the short chute. The chassis dug into the grass and flipped upside down, slid a short distance and then flipped back over as it reached the pavement again in turn two, finally coming to a stop in the middle of the track. The total distance covered was 1,450 feet. The car was demolished. The impact tore off two wheels immediately, and the wings were also torn off during the slide. Pollard's lap prior to the crash was timed at a speed of 192 plus mph. His injuries were reported to include pulmonary damage due to flame inhalation, burns on both hands, face and neck, and a broken arm. He had just turned 46 one week before he died.
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Rich Bickle Born In Edgerton, Wisconsin - May 13, 1961

May 12, 2019, 9:00 pm
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May 13, 1961
Richard "Rich" Bickle, Jr
Born in Edgerton, Wisconsin, USA.
Now retired, Bickle competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series although never completing a full season. He also had a long history in short track racing. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel described him in 2012 as a "stud on the short tracks in the late 1980s and early '90s and a journeyman who rarely caught a break in NASCAR." He won three NASCAR truck races, had a career-best fourth place finish in NASCAR Winston Cup in 218 career NASCAR starts.

He is a four-time Slinger Nationals winner (1992, 1996, 2003, 2013). A five-time Snowball Derby winner (1990, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999) and a two time National Short Track Championship winner (1990, 2010).

Bickle announced that 2013 would be his final season of racing stock cars; competing for the full season in the ARCA Midwest Tour. He also returned to Slinger Super Speedway where he won his fourth Slinger Nationals.

Bickle occasionally races at special events at his home tracks in Wisconsin. He began concentrating more being a businessman and by 2012 he operated three businesses. He owned a hot rod shop in Janesville, Wisconsin, a bar in Madison, Wisconsin, and a drive-shaft business in Madison.

He was inducted in the Southeastern Wisconsin Short Track Hall of Fame in 2015.

Bickle, who is single, is a diehard Green Bay Packers fan and follows them whenever he can. He also likes riding his Harley-Davidson, restoring and building hot rods and adding to his antique beer can collection.
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"Legendary NASCAR Crew Cheif" Harry Hyde Dies - May 13, 1996

May 12, 2019, 9:00 pm
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January 17, 1925 - May 13, 1996
Harry Hyde
Born in Brownsville, Kentucky, USA.
He was a leading crew chief in NASCAR stock car racing in the 1960s through the 1980s, winning 56 races and 88 pole positions. He learned to be a mechanic in the Army during WWII. Upon returning home he worked as an auto mechanic and drove race cars for a couple years, then continued racing as a car builder for local competitions in Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio.

In 1965 he was hired by Nord Krauskopf to be the crew chief of the K&K Insurance team. By 1969 the team began to see considerable success with driver Bobby Isaac, winning 17 races. In 1970 the team won the NASCAR championship and Hyde was named Mechanic of the Year.
The K&K team was one of the leaders through most of the 1970s, but in 1977 Krauskopf sold the team to J. D. Stacy. The team continued to win some races, but in 1978 the relationship between Stacy and Hyde deteriorated and Hyde left the team in mid-June. Late in 1978 Hyde would sue Stacy, and eventually would win.

In 1979 Amelio Scott hired Harry Hyde to be the crew chief for his family team in 1979 with his son Tighe Scott as the driver. Their first race together was the 1979 Daytona 500. Scott finished sixth in the race. At the following race at Rockingham Speedway, Scott recorded his best NASCAR result when he finished fourth. They competed in 15 more events that season and ten more in 1980 before parting ways.

In 1980 Hyde opened his own racing engine shop and supplied engines to various teams. In 1984, he was hired by Rick Hendrick to be crew chief for a team he was partner in, All Star Racing. The partnership did not work out, and Hendrick bought the team out forming Hendrick Motorsports. The team won three races in 1984 with Geoff Bodine driving.

Hyde was then paired with new driver Tim Richmond, a young open-wheel racer from Ashland, Ohio, as Hendrick went to a two-car operation. The brashness of the new driver from outside the southern stock car circuit did not initially sit well with the notably irascible Hyde. However, after a few races they developed a relationship and began to win races. This season was the source of much of the story line for the motion picture Days of Thunder. Hyde's character was portrayed by Robert Duvall.

The team was very successful in 1986. Richmond won 7 races and finished third in points behind legends Dale Earnhardt and Darrell Waltrip.
(Photo;twitter.com)
Tim Richmond & Crew chief Harry Hyde after winning the 1986 Southern 500.

Richmond, who was noted for womanizing, was diagnosed with AIDS during 1987 and missed most of the season with illness which he explained to the public as pneumonia. Veteran Benny Parsons and owner Rick Hendrick filled in for the #25 team. Richmond still managed to win 2 races in 8 starts but resigned from the team late that year. The combined performance of the three drivers would have been good enough for second in points in the driver standings.

Ken Schrader became the driver for the #25 team in 1988 but Hendrick had become a three car operation, and Hyde sometimes felt ignored. He left after the season to become crew chief for Stavola Brothers Racing where he worked through the first half of the 1991 season, before moving to Chad Little's #19 Bullseye BBQ/Tyson Foods Ford.

Hyde had 48 career victories. His forte was setting up cars for specific tracks. Hyde's race shop is still part of the Hendrick Motorsports facility, and a road within the complex is known as Hyde's Way.

Hyde died in 1996 of a heart attack brought on by a blood clot. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2004.
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Chuck Rodee Dies During Qualifying At Indy - May 14, 1966

May 13, 2019, 9:00 pm
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September 8, 1927 - May 14, 1966
Chuck Rodee
(Photo; indymotorspeedway.com)
Born in Dixmoore, Illinois, USA.
Rodee won the Fort Wayne Indoor midget car title in 1955 at the 1/10 mile cement track, and finished third in the USAC National Midget championship. He repeated with Fort Wayne championships in 1957 and 1958. He collected his fourth track championship in 1966 before his death. He finished second in the 1956 USAC National Midget points, and third in 1965.

He drove in the USAC Championship Car series, racing in the 1957, 1958, 1960, and 1962-1965 seasons. He finished in the top ten 4 times, with his best finish in 5th position in 1965 at Atlanta. He had 16 career starts, including the Indianapolis 500 races in 1962 and 1965. He finished in 32nd in 1962 after crashing to avoid Jack Turner, and 28th in 1965.

Rodee died while attempting to qualify for the 1966 Indianapolis 500. He spun on a second lap warm-up and backed the car into the wall exiting Turn 1. The impact appeared minor but the rigid chassis transferred virtually the entire force of the crash to the driver. Rodee suffered a ruptured aorta and lapsed into a coma. He was pronounced dead after emergency surgery failed to save him.

He was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame.
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"1975 Winston Cup Rookie of the Year" Bruce Hill Dies - May 14, 2017

May 13, 2019, 9:00 pm
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July 9, 1949 - May 14, 2017
Bruce Hill
Born on in Topeka, Kansas, USA.
Hill competed in the Winston Cup Series, ARCA, and in the NASCAR West Series. He also competed in late model races around his hometown later in life.

In 1974, Hill began racing in NASCAR in the Winston Cup Series and the NASCAR West Series. He only competed in one race in both series the same year. The race in 1974 was the only race Hill would run in the West series.

One year later, Hill won the Rookie of the Year award in the Winston Cup Series. During that season, he competed in all but four of the season's 30 races. Among his highlights were top-five finishes at Rockingham Motor Speedway, Darlington Raceway and Dover International Speedway. Still running as an independent driver, Hill returned to the series again in 1976, competing in 22 events, which he recorded only four top-ten finishes and finished 23rd in the standings. In 1977, Hill was able to record four top-tens and a 29th-place finish in points after participating in 16 events. During the following year, he only participated in 14 events, and recorded two top-tens with a 32nd-place finish in the point standings, but benefited form teaming up with Harry Clary to field cars.

For 1979, Hill teamed up with fellow owner-driver Walter Ballard for a limited slate of events. He finished 34th in points after running seven races. Continuing to race for Ballard in 1980, he finished 50th in points, and only competed in six races. In his final year in the Winston Cup Series, he competed in eight races and finished 43rd in points. Also in 1981, he participated in a NASCAR Late Model Sportsman race at Darlington Raceway.

While competing in the Winston Cup Series, he also participated in the ARCA Racing Series as well as in USAC. In 2002, Hill participated in a Late model race at Thunderhill Speedway in Mayetta, Kansas.

In May 2016, Hill was at Kansas Speedway during race weekend as a guest of Sprint Cup driver AJ Allmendinger and the JTG Daugherty Racing No. 47 team, for the formal announcement of the team’s plans to run a throwback paint scheme based on Hill's 1977 car, in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in September 2016. Hill drove the No. 47 during his Cup career.

He resided in and around the Topeka metropolitan area his later years of life, raising American Quarter Horses. Hill died on May 14, 2017 due to issues with esophageal cancer.
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Gordon Smiley Dies In Fiery Crash At Indy - May 15, 1982

May 14, 2019, 9:00 pm
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April 20, 1946 – May 15, 1982
Gordon Smiley
(Photo: ©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.
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Elio de Angelis Dies From Testing Injuries - May 15, 1986

May 14, 2019, 9:00 pm
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March 26, 1958 - May 15, 1986 
Elio de Angelis
Born in Rome, Italy.
De Angelis father Giulio was a noted inshore and offshore powerboat racer, who won many championships in the 1960s and 1970s. After a brief spell with karts, Elio went on to win the Italian Formula Three Championship in 1977. In 1978 he raced in Formula Two for Minardi and then for the ICI British F2 Team, he also competed in one round of the British Formula One championship and won the prestious Monaco F3 race.

His debut Formula One season was in 1979 with Shadow. In 1980 he switched to Lotus, and at the age of 21, nearly became the youngest Grand Prix winner of all time when he finished a tantalising second at the Brazilian Grand Prix, run at the very demanding and difficult 5-mile Interlagos circuit.

His first victory came in the 1982 Austrian Grand Prix at the Österreichring, only 0.05 seconds ahead of the Williams of eventual 1982 World Champion Keke Rosberg. The win was the last hailed by Colin Chapman's famous act of throwing his cloth cap into the air. Chapman died in December that year and Peter Warr became the new Lotus team manager.

De Angelis was a competitive and highly popular presence in Formula One during the 1980s, and is sometimes referred to as Formula One's "last gentleman player". He was killed in an accident while testing the Brabham BT55 at the Paul Ricard circuit, near the commune of Le Castellet, France, in 1986.

During tests, the rear wing of de Angelis' BT55 detached at high speed resulting in the car losing downforce on the rear wheels, which instigated a cartwheel over a sidetrack barrier, causing the car to catch fire. The impact itself did not kill de Angelis but he was unable to extract himself from the car unassisted. The situation was exacerbated by the lack of track marshals on the circuit who could have provided him with emergency assistance. A 30 minute delay ensued before a helicopter arrived and de Angelis died 29 hours laterat the hospital in Marseille, from smoke inhalation. His actual crash impact injuries were only a broken collar bone and light burns on his back.

The French-Italian driver Jean Alesi, who broke into the sport in 1989, wore a helmet that matched de Angelis' design, in tribute to his semi-compatriot.

De Angelis was also a concert-standard pianist, and famously kept his fellow Formula One drivers entertained with his skills while they locked themselves in a Johannesburg hotel before the 1982 South African Grand Prix at Kyalami when the Grand Prix Drivers Association held a strike in protest at the new superlicense conditions imposed by the governing body, FISA.
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Chet Miller Dies In Indy Practice Crash - May 15, 1953

May 14, 2019, 9:00 pm
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July 19, 1902 - May 15, 1953
Chester Miller
Born in Detroit, Michigan, USA.
Chet drove his first race in Saginaw Michigan in 1924 at the age of 22. During his long Indy career, spanning from 1928 to 1953, Miller earned the nickname "Dean of the Speedway."

In the 1934 Indy 500 after only 11 laps, he hit some oil on the track left by a car that had thrown a rod. He went about 30 yards through the air and over the wall and landed on all four wheels in a backyard. The car never stopped and Chet drove it through the gates to the garages without missing a shift.

In 1939 he was involved in a three-car collision that killed Floyd Roberts. When Bob Swanson collided with Roberts, Swanson's tank exploded and the car burned. Swanson was thrown out of his car until the track. To avoid hitting him, Chet Miller crashed in the infield, broke his shoulder, and was hospitalized for six months. Swanson suffered only minor injuries.

In 1952, Miller set a one-lap qualifying record at 139.60 mph.

Miller was killed in a crash in the south turn of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during practice for the 1953 Indianapolis 500, at age 50. Some of his friends said that he had promised his wife that 1953 would be his last year.

Gertrude Miller was in Indianapolis at the time of her husband's death. They had no children. Most of his relatives lived in Detroit, but Chet made his home in Glendale California where he sold cars and owned a upholstery business.

He was buried in Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis on May 19th, 1953. Fellow competitors Louie Meyer and Wilbur Shaw were amoung the pallbearers.
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"1955 AAA National Champ" Frank "Rebel" Mundy Dies - May 15, 2009

May 14, 2019, 9:00 pm
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June 18, 1918 - May 15, 2009
Frank "Rebel" Mundy
(Photo;laberezina.com)
Born in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Born as Francisco Eduardo Menendez. He competed in the American Automobile Association stock cars, winning the 1955 national championship, before the series changed to United States Auto Club sanction. He also raced in NASCAR's Grand National and won three races under that sanction. Mundy attempted to qualify for the 1954 Indianapolis 500 but did not make the field. His career spanned from 1949 to 1956.

Mundy started at the pole position only to find himself finishing the race in 82nd place at the 1951 running of the Southern 500.One of his accomplishments was winning the 1955 running of the Southern Illinois 100. Frequently seen in rides owned by Carl Kiekhaefer, Mundy's seven-year career would involve him racing in classic races like the 1956 Southern 500 where he finished in 38th place out of 70 competitors. He would also be seen racing at Lakeview Speedway in Mobile, Alabama.

Mundy died May 15, 2009, at the age of 90.
(Photo;Georgia Racing History.com)
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"NASCAR Pioneer" Bob Flock Dies - May 16, 1964

May 15, 2019, 9:00 pm
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April 16, 1918 - May 16, 1964
Bob Flock
Born in Fort Payne, Alabama, USA.
He was a well established driver before NASCAR was formed, and along with Red Byron, is considered one of the two best drivers from that era.

He took over NASCAR founder Bill France's ride in 1946. He won both events at the Daytona Beach Road Course in 1947. Flock was known for his daring driving style. For example, during a race on June 15, 1947, Flock overturned his car in an accident. Instead of accepting a DNF, he solicited help from spectators, who turned the car back on its wheels, and he finished the race.

He sat on the pole for NASCAR's first race at Charlotte Speedway on June 19, 1949. He had two wins that season, and finished third in the points behind Lee Petty and champion Red Byron.

He won two 100 lap ARCA races at Lakewood Speedway in 1954. He had over 200 modified wins in his career.

He was the brother of NASCAR pioneers Tim Flock and Fonty Flock, and the second female NASCAR driver Ethel Mobley. The four raced at the July 10, 1949 race at the Daytona Beach Road Course, which was the first event to feature a brother and a sister, and the only NASCAR event to feature four siblings. Ethel beat Fonty and Bob by finishing in eleventh.

The Flock family had an illegal moonshine business. The federal agents discovered that Flock would be running a race in Atlanta, and they staked out the place to make an arrest. A gate opened as the race was beginning, and he drove on the track to take the green flag. The police vehicles quickly appeared on the track. They chased Flock for a lap or two before he drove through the fence. The police followed him until he ran out of gas later. Reminiscing years later, Flock said, "I would have won that race if the cops had stayed out of it"

Flock retired from driving when he broke his back in an on track accident. He became a track promoter in Atlanta. He hired three women, Sara Christian, Mildred Williams, and his sister Ethel Mobley to race at his new track.

Bob Flock died on May 16, 1964. He was inducted in the Georgia Automobile Racing Hall of Fame in 2003 and was a member of the National Motorsports Hall of Fame Association.
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"NASCAR Short Track Legend" Dick Trickle Dies - May 16, 2013

May 15, 2019, 9:00 pm
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October 27, 1941 - May 16, 2013
Dick Trickle

Born in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, USA.
The 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series "Rookie of the Year" and billed as the winningest short track driver in history, he raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All Pro, IMCA, NASCAR, and USAC.

In more than an estimated 2,200 races, Trickle logged one million laps and is believed to have won over 1,200 feature races. He was billed as the winningest short track driver in history. Trickle's career highlights include racing to 67 wins in 1972, winning seven ARTGO Championships in nine years between 1979 to 1987, winning back to back ASA AC-Delco Challenge championships in 1984 and 1985, the 1968 USAC Stock Car rookie of the year, and winning the 1989 NASCAR Rookie of the Year award in what was then called the Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup).

Sadly, Trickle died May 16, 2013, from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. For more; In memory of Dick Trickle.
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In Memory Of Dick Trickle

May 15, 2019, 9:00 pm
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October 27, 1941 - May 16, 2013
Dick Trickle

(Photo; vintagesleds.com)
Born in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, USA.
Trickle raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All Pro, IMCA, NASCAR, and USAC.

Eight-year-old Dick Trickle was playing tag with his cousin Verlon on the rafters in a house under construction when he fell two floors to the basement and broke his hip. He was transferred from a local hospital to the University of Wisconsin Hospital with slow recovery. His recovery was so slow that the doctors gave up and sent him home, presuming that he would be an invalid for the rest of his life. Trickle later began to walk, although he walked with a slight limp for the rest of his life.  He spent three years in a cast from his waist to his foot. While he was recovering as a nine-year-old, a friend took him to his first races at Crown Speedway in his hometown of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. "When I got there I was flabbergasted," Trickle said. "I thought it was the neatest thing. Free shows were nothing compared to it. That race never left my mind until I was 16. I knew I was going to drive a race car when I was 16."

Trickle was one of five children. His mother, Lauretta, struggled to provide food and clothing. His father, Leo, was a blacksmith who worked on farm equipment near their rural Wisconsin home before having a nervous breakdown and spending the last 50 years of his life in a mental hospital. Trickle's family lived on welfare, so there was no money available for racing. Trickle spent his summers working for area farmers, starting as a 13-year-old. He also spent a lot of time at the Rudolph Blacksmith shop that his father was a partner in. While his father was ill, his uncle Leonard ran the shop. "I worked part time at the shop to earn a nickel or dime," Trickle said. "At that age, it was mostly sweeping the shop, but I started to play with the welder and soon I could make an arc and then weld. I started junking machinery. I save some things getting a head start for when I would go racing at 16. I didn't have any money, but I had this pile of stuff to build a race car with. It was a hope chest. When I turned 16, I let the farmer I was working for keep most the money I earned until fall. That fall I collected my money and went down Main Street wheeling and dealing. I finally bought a 1950 Ford in good condition for $100. It was going to be my street car, but the urge to race got too strong and I cut up and made a stock car out of it. I did run the car a little bit before I cut it up and I ended up drag racing a classmate, Melvin Hunsinger, who had a 1949 Ford. He beat me. It seems kind of dumb when I already knew there was a car that could beat me. Eventually, I bought Hunsinger's 1949 Ford for $32.50 and put the motor in my car".

Trickle started out as the slowest car in a 100-car field at a Stratford, Wisconsin short track race.  He raced that car at the end of the 1958 season and throughout the 1959 season, after which time he built a 1956 Ford into race car using all of his knowledge that he had acquired. In his first time out with the new car, he finished second in the feature event at Griffith Park at Wisconsin Rapids. His competitors checked the rules and found out that Trickle was too young to race, even though he had already raced there for two years. He had to race at other tracks for a year until he was old enough to race at his hometown track. He raced for several years before deciding to race full-time. After working at several jobs after high school, he had worked for two years for a local telephone company. He had been uncomfortable climbing telephone poles as he was uncomfortable with heights. He transferred to a different part of the company. Two or three years later he discussed racing full-time with his wife Darlene who he married in 1961. Trickle felt that racing could be profitable, and they decided to make the change.

Trickle raced at over 100 events each year for over 15 years. He was racing at Tomah-Sparta Speedway when Francis Kelly noticed that Trickle was always in contention for winning the races, but he lost a lot of them because he had junky motors. One day Kelly approached Trickle and asked him what it would cost for Trickle to win. Trickle told him a new motor; Kelly asked Trickle to compile a list of parts that he needed. When Kelly asked who would assemble the motor, Trickle responded that he could but he was a junkyard mechanic. Trickle suggested that Alan Kulwicki's father Jerry Kulwicki, who was building motors for Norm Nelson's USAC stock cars, should build the engine.

A big turning point in Trickle's career happened at the National Short Track Championship race at Rockford Speedway in 1966. Trickle said, "The cars in that area were fancier and looked like they were ahead of us. The didn't treat us bad, but they sort of giggled at us kids with the rat cars. After two days, they look differently at those rat cars. I won and pocketed $1,645. Before, I questioned spending the money to travel that far. But if you could win, that was a different story." Trickle started the 1967 season by winning at State Park Speedway and ended the season with 25 feature victories including wins at Wisconsin Dells Speedway (now Dells Raceway Park) and Golden Sands Speedway (near Wisconsin Rapids).

Road America - #42 Dick Trickle 1968 Ford
(Photo: Mike Traverse via photopin cc)
Trickle raced in United States Automobile Club (USAC) stock cars in 1968, and he won the series' rookie of the year award.

He toured on the Central Wisconsin Racing Association tracks in 1971. The circuit consisted of larger asphalt track racing on most nights of the week. CWRA regular drivers were able to run over 100 events in a year, and most did the tour with one car and one engine. On Thursday nights at the quarter mile State Park Speedway, he won seven features and lowered his July 1 14.27 second track record to 14.09 seconds on the following week. On Friday nights he raced primarily at Capitol Speedway, winning most nights that rain or his car did not break. Trickle went to Adams-Friendship on July 23 and won the feature after setting the track record. He held the track record at six tracks: Adams-Friendship, Capitol, Wausau, Wisconsin Dells, and La Crosse. He raced at the newly opened third mile Wisconsin Dells Speedway on Saturday nights. By the end of the year, Trickle had won 58 feature events. 

Trickle started his 1972 season by winning at Golden Sands Speedway near Wisconsin Rapids. Wisconsin's short track racing season starts in April. By May 13, he had twelve wins in thirteen events. He got this fifteenth win in twenty starts on May 27. Trickle became the winningest short track driver that year when he won his 67th race. 

Trickle won numerous special events outside of Wisconsin in 1973, including a 200-lap feature at Rolla, Missouri in April, following by winning a 50-lap feature the following day at I-70 Speedway near Odessa, Missouri. In May he won a 50-lapper at Springfield, Missouri and two more features at I-70 Speedway. Trickle used his purple 1970 Ford Mustang to win at the Minnesota Fair and at Rockford Speedway in September. He had a total of 57 wins in 1973. 

Sanctioning bodies put in a weight-per-cubic-inch rule, and Trickle's career had problems in 1974 and 1975. "Fords almost broke me. I couldn't get any pieces for racing at my level. It took two years of hard labor and depleting my funds to realize I couldn't do this anymore. I told myself either I had to change my program or get out of racing." Therefore, Trickle decided to use a General Motors car and engine. He bought a car for $13,000 on his word that he would pay for it by September. He won 35 or 40 races that year and paid for the car by July.

In 1982, Trickle won track championship at State Park Speedway in Wausau where he started out the season by winning the first two features and seven total. He also won the track championship at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway after winning three events in August. That season he won his first Miller 200 special event at the Milwaukee Mile. Trickle started racing out of state a lot more in 1983. Of all of Trickle's victories, his best memory was winning the 1983 World Crown 300 in Georgia. "It took three weeks of preparation and a lot of determination," he said. "It was the biggest payday of my career up to that point ($50,000)." He beat Jim Sauter by two car-lengths at the season opener, and won three straight races in May. After winning on June 1, LaCrosse business raised a $700 bounty for anyone who could beat him. Trickle skipped the following week, and returned the week after to lose to Steve Burgess. He did not win as much at State Park, but he did win the track championship. Trickle won ASA races at Coeburn, Virginia and Cayuga, Ontario in 1984, as well as the Red, White, and Blue state championship series at WIR and the Slinger Nationals at Slinger.

In 1989 Trickle made his full schedule debut driving the #84 Miller High Life Buick for Stavola Brothers Racing. 

(Photo: Mike Traverse via photopin cc)
He was Rookie of the Year in NASCAR's Winston Cup (now the Sprint Cup) at age 48 (and a grandfather), becoming the oldest driver in Winston Cup history to do so. After being given the Rookie of the Year trophy at the NASCAR Awards banquet, he quipped "I guess I’d just like to thank everyone who gave a young guy like me a chance". 

His best career Winston Cup finish was third (5 times). He started 303 races, with 15 Top 5 and 36 Top 10 finishes. Dick also raced in the Busch Series, where he won two races. He had 158 career starts, with 24 Top 5 and 42 Top 10 finishes. 

In more than an estimated 2,200 races, Trickle logged one million laps and is believed to have won over 1,200 feature races. He was billed as the winningest short track driver in history. Trickle's career highlights include racing to 67 wins in 1972, winning seven ARTGO Championships in nine years between 1979 to 1987, winning back to back ASA AC-Delco Challenge championships in 1984 and 1985, the 1968 USAC Stock Car rookie of the year, and winning the 1989 NASCAR Rookie of the Year award in what was then called the Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup). Trickle was nicknamed the "White Knight" as referenced by his sponsored Super America paint scheme, when he raced in Wisconsin. An interesting read I found was in the book entitled The Golden Age of Wisconsin Auto Racing.

Trickle died May 16, 2013, from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The incident occurred at 12:02 p.m. at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Boger City, North Carolina. The Lincoln County Communications Center received a call, apparently from the victim, saying that "there's going to be a dead body. Suicide." When the 911 operator asked who was about to commit suicide, Trickle responded: "I'm the one." Police attempted to call his phone back but there was no response. Trickle was found dead beside his pickup truck. His granddaughter, who died in a car accident, was buried in the same cemetery. Trickle's family later released a statement which in part said: "He had been suffering for some time with severe chronic pain, had seen many doctors, none of which could find the source of his pain. His family as well as all those who knew him find his death very hard to accept, and though we will hurt from losing him for some time, he’s no longer suffering and we take comfort knowing he’s with his very special angel."

The message also said: “Dick’s passion in life was his racing. He touched many lives throughout his career, provided memories for many that will last a lifetime. Many thought when he retired he would continue as a car owner, but he was a driver at heart; he wanted to be behind the wheel and be in control of his destiny. We believe he felt himself no longer able to be behind that wheel of life or be the man he only knew how to be because of the pain and suffering.”

He left a wife, Darlene, and three children, Vicky, Chad and Tod. His nephew, Chris Trickle, was a race car driver before dying in a drive-by shooting. “We were building a team for Chris,” Dick's brother Chuck Trickle said. “When he got shot, I ended up selling the team to my sponsor. And they put Kurt Busch in the car. That’s how he got his start.”

NASCAR chairman Brian France released a statement saying "Dick was a legend in the short-track racing community, particularly in his home state of Wisconsin, and he was a true fan favorite. Personalities like Dick Trickle helped shape our sport. He will be missed."

A moment of silence was observed for Trickle during the start of the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 17. 

A tribute was held for Trickle at the July 2013 Slinger Nationals,  

(Photot: royal_broil via photopin cc)
with his family telling stories about his career.

Trickle's Wisconsin friends and competitors, including Tom Reffner and Marv Marzofka, began organizing a Dick Trickle Memorial fund to build a memorial statue at Rudolph Community Park. The group is collecting money including securing the title sponsorship of a TUNDRA Super Late Model race at Golden Sands Speedway.

Wisconsin International Raceway - Dick Trickle Memorial poster
(Photo: royal_broil via photopin cc)

Always smiling, always playing and always at full speed, he was a lot more than a race car driver with one of the most recognizable names in sports. Known for his chain-smoking, coffee-swigging and an infectious smile, Trickle never won a Sprint Cup Series race. But he left a legacy of funny tales, impressionable memories and sadly, some puzzling questions.Trickle drilled a hole in his full-face helmet so he could smoke during a caution period of a race. While others had bottles of water and Gatorade to help them during a quick break, Trickle rarely drove without a cigarette lighter on board. When asked how many times he’d smoke during a race, he once said, “How many cautions were there?”

When he wasn’t racing, he seemed to find the best party. If not, he created his own. “Him and I liked to drink beer and have fun,” Chuck Trickle said. “He was out there getting rowdy and drinking and having fun. If you were there, you were having fun.”

Jim Sauter, who carved his own short-track career in the Midwest, worked with Trickle and Dave Marcis to set up the cars from the International Race of Champions. All three were from Wisconsin and they flew into Daytona Beach the night before a test. They met at their traditional place, the local Waffle House. “That was our thing,” Sauter said. “I remember when we ordered he called the waitress back and asked if he could get a couple extra scoops of grease on his. We all laughed so hard. “Those are the kind of memories I have of Dick Trickle.”

Even in death, thinking about Dick Trickle brings smiles to the faces of friends and fans. There were too many funny stories, too many laughs and so much life to remember.

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Scott Brayton Killed In Indy 500 Practice - May 17, 1996

May 16, 2019, 9:00 pm
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February 20, 1959 – May 17, 1996
Scott Brayton
Born in Coldwater, Michigan, USA.
In 1996, Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George established the Indy Racing League, and Team Menard signed up to compete in their first full season of IndyCar racing. Because the majority of the established teams and drivers of open-wheel racing competed in the rival CART series, Brayton, and rookie teammate Tony Stewart, were considered legitimate contenders for the IRL title. After a bad start to the season, Brayton asserted his competitiveness by winning his second Indy pole after a dramatic qualifying session in which he withdrew an already-qualified car to get a second chance at taking the top spot.

Brayton was making a practice run on May 17 in his backup car when it blew a tire going into turn two, spun and hit the outside retaining wall at more than 230 mph. Brayton's car scrubbed off virtually no speed as it spun, and as the car impacted the wall on its left side, the force was such that Brayton's head also impacted the wall. Brayton was killed instantly by the severe impact. Teammate Tony Stewart, who qualified second, took over the pole starting position. A substitute driver, Danny Ongais, took over the car that Brayton had qualified for the pole and finished seventh.

His funeral, held in his hometown of Coldwater, Michigan, was attended by a large contingent of drivers and racing personalities.

Following Brayton's death, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced a new trophy for the Indianapolis 500 dedicated to the driver who best exemplifies the attitude, spirit and competitive drive of Brayton. A driver could only be awarded the trophy once in his/her Indy career. It was awarded through 2009.

A street course in Grand Rapids, Michigan, used for SCCA racing was known as the Scott Brayton Memorial course. It was used for the West Michigan Grand Prix in 1998 and 1999.

His wife Becky eventually married another IRL driver, Robbie Buhl on Easter Sunday 1999, later a partner in Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.

Scott Brayton, Laguna Seca 1991
(Photo: scott brayton RIP via photopin (license))
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Richmond Racing Legend "Sonny" Hutchins Born - May 17, 1929

May 16, 2019, 9:00 pm
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May 17, 1929 - November 22, 2005
Ernest "Sonny" Hutchins
(Photo;legendsofnascar.com)
Born in Richmond, Virginia, USA.
Ernest Lloyd "Sonny" Hutchins, was one of the greatest drivers in Richmond history and a member of the famed "Strawberry Hill Mod Squad". He was well known as a local restaurateur and up and down the east coast as a NASCAR driver. A champion on short tracks, he competed with flair and success for more than 30 years. It is estimated that Hutchins won more than 300 races despite a nine-year retirement in the prime of his career.

A charismatic competitor with a lead foot and a clever tongue, Hutchins competing in Late Models, Modifieds and Winston Cup. Though he made only 38 starts in NASCAR's premier series, he had many fierce battles with Cup champions such as Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip.

In an interview, Hutchins recalled his favorite part of racing was "showing up at someone else's racetrack and beating them." He said with a devilish grin that Waltrip called him "the dirtiest driver he ever knew" after trumping the three-time champion at a Tennessee short track.

Even the late Dale Earnhardt, the seven-time Winston Cup champion who was long known for his aggressive driving style, came fender-to-fender and lost to Hutchins. He had a few run-ins in the mid-1970s with Earnhardt, infuriating "The Intimidator" by bumping him into the wall at back-to-back Late Model races at Richmond and Martinsville. The seven-time champion hadn't forgotten when they crossed paths again in 1990. Earnhardt told Hutchins that he taught him everything he knew about being an aggressive driver.

Hutchins, who made his Modified debut with a sixth-place finish at the old Fairgrounds track known as Strawberry Hill in 1950, also was a boyhood hero to NASCAR car owner Rick Hendrick.

"Guys like Sonny Hutchins and Ray Hendrick are the ones who put the bug in me to get into racing" said Hendrick, a Virginia native who watched Mr. Hutchins at South Boston Speedway and Southside Speedway. "Sonny was fearless. He wore glasses thicker than a Coke bottle, and I don't think he could see. But he was unbelievable. To watch him run those Modified cars with all that power and actually spin the tires all the way down the straightaway. He was quite a talent."

Hutchins was one of the "4-H Boys" along with Ray Hendrick, Runt Harris and Ted Hairfield. The foursome was a promoter's dream, drawing crowds wherever they entered together.

Hutchins built a large fan following in Virginia and was a four-time season champion at Southside Speedway. In his last full season in 1980, he won Late Model titles at Southside and South Boston. In 1981, after a race at Southside, Hutchins suffered a heart attack and promptly retired from racing, ending a 31-year racing career.

Hutchins once said he "never made never a nickel in my life racing, I gave the money back to the car owners and said give me a better car. I just loved automobiles. I spent my whole life in racing, and I don't know anything I'd trade for it."

"I never played baseball, football, basketball, golf. I couldn't tell you who is a football player or a baseball player," Hutchins says. "I just love racing."

On November 22, 2005 "Sonny" Hutchins died from heart failure. He was 76.
(Photo;edflemke.com)
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Jerry Unser Jr. Dies Following Indy Crash - May 17, 1959

May 16, 2019, 9:00 pm
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November 15, 1932 - May 17, 1959
Jerry Unser Jr
(Photo; findagrave.com)
Born In Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA.
Jerry was the driver and twin brother Louie was his chief mechanic. The family moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico when the boys were four. However, in 1955, Jerry Unser Sr took his sons back to Colorado for the annual Pikes Peak Hill Climb, and it was there that the boys' interest really took off.

But Louie had greater skills as a mechanic and, in 1956, went to work for Bill Stroppe's factory team that was based next door to brother's Jerry's DePaolo Engineering USAC racing team. Both teams folded in 1957 when factories withdrew their support, but the brothers purchased the equipment and went racing together.

Jerry was the 1957 USAC Stock Car champion and presented his diamond ring to Louie, who wore it the rest of his life. Louie also was named mechanic of the year that season.

Jerry and Louie showed up at Indy in 1958, starting a family tradition at the famed Brickyard that would see youngest brother Al the win the Indianapolis 500 four times, brother Bobby three times, while nephew Al Unser Jr was a two-time winner. Jerry's son Johnny and Bobby's son Robby have also competed in the race.

When the twins arrived at Indy, Jerry jumped from car to car until he qualified the McKay Special in 24th place. In his only start, he was caught up in a 13-car pileup on the first lap and flew over the turn three wall, miraculously emerging unhurt.

(Photo credit; indymotorspeedway.com)
The following year on May 17th, Jerry died of serious burns following a practice crash before the 1959 Indianapolis 500, leaving behind a widow, Jeanne Unser, and two sons, Jerry and Johnny Unser.
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Hiro Matsushita First Japanese Driver To Qualify For "Indy 500" - May 18, 1991

May 17, 2019, 9:00 pm
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May 18, 1991
Hiro Matsushita
(Photo; english.evidus.com)
Becomes the first Japanese driver to qualify for the "Indianapolis 500". He qualified 24th.
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Heinz-Harald Frentzen Born In West Germany - May 18, 1967

May 17, 2019, 9:00 pm
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May 18, 1967
Heinz-Harald Frentzen
(Photo;Ger1axg at the German language Wikipedia Commons)
Born in Mönchengladbach, West Germany.
Also known as 'HHF', he was the runner-up in the 1997 Formula One World Drivers' Championship, driving for Williams. A veteran of 156 Formula one starts, Frentzen also drove for Sauber, Jordan, Prost and Arrows. He had a total of 3 wins, 18 podiums and 174 world championship points from 1994-2003.

 For 2004, Frentzen moved to the German Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters saloon car series to drive for Opel, encouraged by the success achieved in the series by fellow F1 refugee Jean Alesi. Unfortunately his Opel Vectra was not a competitive car, and he was regularly outpaced by not only the Audi and Mercedes drivers but also by his Opel teammates, eventually finishing the season 14th in the championship standings. However he remained in the DTM with Opel for the 2005 season and finished the year in 8th as best-placed Opel driver, with his best result a 3rd place from pole position at Brno in the Czech Republic.

After Opel withdrew after the 2005 season, Frentzen joined Audi for 2006. He would finish 3rd at the first race of the season at Hockenheim and again at the 8th race of the season at Barcelona. Frentzen finished the season 7th in the final standings and quit the team stating he had "no support from the team".

In April 2008, Frentzen drove the Bahrain race in the Speedcar Series of the 2007/2008 season and later on joined the Speedcar Series for the complete 2008/2009 season.

He competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Aston Martin Racing driving one of the two factory Aston Martin DBR9s with Karl Wendlinger and Andrea Piccini in the GT1 class. His team finished 4th in class and 16th overall.

Also in 2008, Frentzen built the HHF Hybrid Concept Car which he entered in the 24 Hours Nürburgring with his own Team. The chassis was a bought Gumpert Apollo road car with a 3.3 litre V8 bi-turbo with 520 hp and an electric motor with approximately 136 hp. Frentzen finished the race but was not classified due to two conventional gearbox failures.

In 2011, Frentzen won a special one-off 'ROC Legends' race against Hans-Joachim Stuck, Marc Duez and Stig Blomqvist as part of the 2011 Race of Champions.

In 2012, Frentzen competed in the ADAC GT Masters season with a Callaway Competition Corvette Z06, and returned to the series in 2014 with a HTP Motorsport Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3.
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