A. J. Foyt

Anthony Joseph Foyt, Jr., or as he is universally known as in motorsports circles, A. J. Foyt (born January 16, 1935, in Houston, Texas), is a retired American automobile racing driver. He raced in numerous genres of motorsports. His open wheel racing includes USAC Champ cars and midget cars. He raced stock cars in NASCAR and USAC. He won several major sports car racing events. He holds the all-time USAC career wins record with 159 victories,^[1] and the all-time American championship racing career wins record with 67.^[2]

He is the only driver to win the Indianapolis 500 (which he won four times), the Daytona 500, the 24 Hours of Daytona, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Foyt won the International Race of Champions all-star racing series in 1976 and 1977. Foyt's success has led to induction in numerous motorsports halls of fame.

Since his retirement from active racing, he has owned A. J. Foyt Enterprises, which has fielded teams in the CART, IRL, and NASCAR.

Early life

Foyt attended Pershing and Hamilton middle schools and Lamar and San Jacinto high schools,^[3] but he dropped out to become a mechanic.^[4]

Driving career

Midget car career

He started his USAC career in a midget car at the 1956 Night before the 500 in Anderson, Indiana. His first midget car win was at a 100 lap event at Kansas City in 1957, and finished seventh in the season points standings.^[1] He left midget cars after the 1957 season to drive in sprint cars and Championship Car. He did occasionally compete in midget car events. He won the 1960 and 1961 Turkey Night Grand Prix, the first two years that it was held at Ascot Park. He won the 1961 Hut Hundred after starting last, and finished seventh in National Midget points that year. He won the 1970 Astro Grand Prix, an event that he promoted in his hometown of Houston. He ended his career with 20 midget car feature wins.

Championship car career

The car Foyt drove to Indy victory in 1977.

Foyt racing at Pocono in 1988

In 1961, he became the first driver to successfully defend his points championship and win the Indianapolis 500 race. He raced in each season from 1957–1992, starting in 374 races and finishing in the top ten 201 times, with 67 victories. In 1958, Foyt raced in Italy in the Trophy of the Two Worlds on the banking at Monza.

Ford engines were widely expected to dominate the 1964 Indianapolis 500. Foyt hoped his Offenhauser engine would be able to keep up with the Fords. Foyt lapped the field to win the race. The race is known for a lap 2 crash that claimed the lives of Dave MacDonald and Eddie Sachs.

Also, in 1964 Foyt won a record 10 of 14 races enroute to his championship.

In 1966 at the Milwaukee, WI. August 200-mile (320 km) Championship Car race his rear engined Lotus pavement car was not at the track so Foyt unloaded the Offenhauser engined dirt track car he had won the 100-mile (160 km) race with at Springfield, Il. the previous day sprayed the mud off of the car, installed pavement tires and a set-up for the one mile (1.6 km) oval. He received permission to take two extra warm up laps during qualifying as he had no time for practice and then qualified the car on the pole, led the race for 18 out of 200 laps but then had to stop for a new rear tire, and finished 2nd to Gordon Johncock driving a rear engined Gerhardt-Offy indy car.

In the 1967 Indianapolis 500, Parnelli Jones' turbine car was expected to easily defeat the field of piston engines. Jones lapped the field, but his car expired with a few laps left in the race. Foyt had to weave through five wrecked cars down the final front stretch to win the race, a race that took two days to complete due to an initial first day rain delay.

In the 1977 Indianapolis 500, Foyt ran out of fuel, and had to make up around 32 seconds on Gordon Johncock. Foyt made up 1.5 to 2 seconds per lap by turning up his turbo boost, which risks destroying the engine. Johncock's own engine expired just as Foyt had closed to within eight seconds back after both drivers' final pit stops, and Foyt passed for the win.

He won at the race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 4 times, in 1961, 1964, 1967, 1977. He was the first driver to do so. The feat has since been matched by Al Unser (1970, 1971, 1978, 1987) and Rick Mears (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991). Of his 67 career championship car race victories, twelve (12) were won at Trenton (NJ) Speedway. Foyt also won the indycar series 7 times a record that still stands today

Stock car career

USAC Stock Car

He was the champion in USAC's stock car in 1968, 1978, and 1979. He finished second in 1963 and 1969, and third in 1970.^[5]

NASCAR

Foyt only needed 10 races to get his first NASCAR victory. Richard Petty dominated the 1964 Firecracker 400 until he went out with engine problems. Foyt swapped the lead with Bobby Isaac for the final 50 laps of the summer event at the Daytona International Speedway. Foyt passed Isaac on the final lap to win the race.

In 1965, Foyt qualified and ran in the front of the pack most of the day with Dan Gurney and Parnelli Jones in the 1965 Motor Trend 500 at Riverside. Parnelli retired with mechanical issues, leaving Gurney and Foyt to contest the lead. Late in the race Foyt spun around. His car refired, and he charged through the field in an attempt to regain lost positions. Late in the race, after running hard to catch leader Gurney, Foyt's brakes failed entering Turn 9 at the end of Riverside's mile-long, downhill back straight. Foyt turned the car into the infield at more than 100 mph, and the car tumbled violently end-over-end several times. The track doctor at Riverside International Raceway pronounced Foyt dead at the scene of the severe crash, but fellow driver Parnelli Jones revived him after seeing movement. Foyt suffered severe chest injuries, a broken back, and a fractured ankle. Footage of his flipping #00 Ford, owned by Holman Moody, is featured in the final scene of the movie Redline 7000.

Foyt ran out of gas near the end of the 1971 Daytona 500, and Petty passed him for the win. Foyt again had the car to beat in the 1972 Daytona 500, but this time succeeded in a dominating performance. Only three drivers led during the race.

Foyt won the 1971 and 1972 races at the Ontario Motor Speedway for Wood Brothers Racing. The track was shaped like the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The 1972 race was his last NASCAR win.

Career summary

A. J. Foyt

Date of birth	January 16, 1935 (1935-01-16) (age 76)
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	American
Active years	1958–1960
Teams	Kuzma, Kurtis Kraft
Races	3
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
First race	1958 Indianapolis 500
Last race	1960 Indianapolis 500

• Foyt drove in the Indianapolis 500 for 35 consecutive years, winning it four times (the first of only three to do so).
• Foyt is the only driver to win the Indy 500 in both front and rear-engined cars, winning twice with both configurations.
• Foyt is the only driver to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500 the same year (1967).
• He is the only person to record victories in the Indianapolis 500, the Daytona 500 stock car race, the 24 Hours of Daytona (twice, with co-driver Bob Wollek), the 24 Hours of Le Mans international sports car endurance race in Le Mans, France, as well as the 12 Hours of Sebring (his last major professional win, in 1985, with co-driver Bob Wollek). Foyt had never competed in European sports-car racing or driven at LeMans prior to his 1967 winning performance in a Ford GT40 co-driven by Dan Gurney. While being sprayed with champagne on the podium, he is reported to have asked "Do I win Rookie Of The Year?"
• He also has 41 USAC Stock Car wins and 50 Sprint Car, Midget, and Dirt Champ Car wins.
• He has won 12 total major driving championships in various categories.
• His USAC wins tally is a record 138 (The late Rich Vogler is second with 132.)
• Foyt won the 1976 and 1977 IROC championships.
• Foyt won 7 NASCAR races, including the 1972 Daytona 500.
• Foyt holds the closed course speed record driving the Oldsmobile Aerotech at an average speed of over 250 mph (400 km/h).
• Despite having won more USAC sanctioned events than any other driver Foyt never won a CART sanctioned event.

Awards

• Foyt was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2000.
• Foyt was named to NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers list in 1998.
• He was named to the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1990.
• He was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America as the only open wheel driver in the first class of 1989.
• He was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1988.

Indianapolis 500 records

Foyt has numerous career records at the Indianapolis 500: the first of to date three drivers to win a record four times, the most consecutive and career starts (35), most races led (13), most times led during the career (39), and most competitive laps and miles during a career (4,909 laps, 12,272.5 miles).

Car owner

A. J. Foyt (right) and former driver Darren Manning (left) at the 2007 Indianapolis 500.

While an active driver, Foyt entered into a longtime partnership with Kalamazoo, Michigan businessman Jim Gilmore, and raced under the Gilmore-Foyt Racing name for many years.

After retiring as a driver, he continued his involvement in racing as a car owner of A. J. Foyt Enterprises in the CART series, then the Indy Racing League (IRL) and NASCAR.

Scott Sharp took a share of the 1996 Indy Racing League (IRL) title driving for Foyt while Kenny Bräck won the 1998 IRL title, also in a Foyt car. Bräck won the 1999 Indianapolis 500 in Foyt's car, putting Foyt in the winner's circle at Indy for the fifth time. The current driver for his IRL team, A. J. Foyt Enterprises, is Vitor Meira.

On June 7, 1997, Foyt (as an owner) was involved in an incident that helped shape the history of the Indy Racing League and added to his reputation as a man of little patience. One of his drivers, Billy Boat, had been declared the winner of the inaugural IRL race at Texas Motor Speedway that had been held that night, and his other driver, Davey Hamilton, had come in second. However, driver Arie Luyendyk disputed Boat's win, claiming that he was in the lead when a scoring error by USAC (who had scored all IRL races up until that time) gave Boat the checkered flag. When Luyendyk entered victory lane after the race to confront TMS general manager Eddie Gossage about the finish uttering obscenities, an irate Foyt approached the Dutch-born Luyendyk from behind and slapped and shoved him into tulips (ironically given Luyendyk's Dutch heritage). Luyendyk then requested a review of the race; a few days later, USAC reversed its position and declared Luyendyk the winner; Foyt kept the victory lane-awarded trophy. Following the controversy, the IRL relieved USAC of the scoring duties for its events.

Family

Foyt is the grandfather of A. J. Foyt IV. Foyt is the grandfather and adoptive father of Larry Foyt. He is also the godfather of driver John Andretti.

Indy 500 results

Indy 500 qualifying results

FIA World Championship career summary

The Indianapolis 500 was part of the FIA World Championship from 1950 through 1960. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with World Championship points and participation. A. J. Foyt participated in 3 World Championship races. He had no poles, wins, or podium finishes. He accumulated a total of 0 championship points.

References

External links

• Biography
• Official team owner website
• Biography at official website
• A. J. Foyt photos
• A. J. Foyt: King of the Indy 500
• International Motorsports Hall of Fame page
• A. J. Foyt's IROC and NASCAR driving career at racing-reference.info