Motorsport People Profiles
The World's Greatest Drivers, Owners, Engineers & Personalities
Profiles of past and present automotive personalities. The drivers who risked their lives in the early days to the engineers who creatively changed the world of automobiles, this is a celebration of the people who played a major role in the world we love.
Pantheon of Speed: Legends of Motorsports
Dive into a captivating collection of profiles and exclusive interviews with the greatest names in motorsports history – the drivers who defied limits, the engineers who pushed boundaries, the designers who shaped iconic machines, and the visionaries who built racing empires. From the daredevils of early Grand Prix racing to the modern masters of Formula 1, we celebrate the men and women who have etched their names into the annals of motorsport legend.
Rudolf Caracciola Biography Rudolf Caracciola was born in the town of Remagen, Germany on January 30, 1901 the son of parents whose family it was said originally came from Italy. When still a trainee at the Fafnir-Automobilwerke in Aachen, he started in the 1922 Avus race in Berlin and finished...
Bill Puterbaugh, who finished 7th in the 1975 Indianapolis 500 and was named Rookie of the Year, passed away last Monday, October 9, at the age of 81. Puterbaugh originally hailed from Roxana, Illinois, and raced out of the St. Louis area for several years before moving to Indianapolis in...
As you will have read in last month’s Vintage Racecar news, the automotive world lost one of its last remaining titans when Carroll Shelby passed away on May 10. Shelby’s life was remarkable on at least a dozen different levels. A truly accomplished racecar driver, he won countless races during...
Achille Varzi was the opposite of his capricious nemesis Tazio Nuvolari, who was steeped in instinctive talent. Varzi was a controlled, calculating driver, a ruthless opponent, ferocious in exploiting his adversaries’ weaknesses and was, of course, immensely fast. As a man, he could be charming, had a sardonic sense of...
On June 7–8, 1958, the Texas Region of the SCCA hosted a weekend of sports car racing 10 miles north of Fort Worth. The organizers laid out a 3-mile course at the National Guard Air Base near Eagle Mountain Lake, where 112 entries showed up to contest 10 scheduled “Sunburn”...
Ron Grable did not fit the normal profile of a race driver. Not only did he begin his racing after graduating from college, he raced sports cars, stock cars, formula cars, production cars, IMSA Prototypes, Trans-Am and Can-Am cars. He raced at tracks all over the United States, at Le...
“Gregg, Peter (FA),” was filed between “Greenwood, John” and “Gregory, Masten.” The file, dog-eared and stained with the outline of a coffee cup, showed its age; it dated back to 1970. I recognized the handwriting, it was mine; the (FA) did not stand for Formula Atlantic. This brought a smile...
There used to be a monthly feature in the Reader’s Digest called something like “The Most Unforgettable Character I’ve Ever Met.” For me, that’s Carroll Shelby. I guess perhaps I’m prejudiced because we’re dear friends. But here’s a guy—83 years old—with two transplants (heart and kidney). He has a large...
News emerged last week that former Super Vee champion and Indycar racer Bill Alsup (above, David Hutson photo) had died in a crane accident in the mountains near his home in Colorado. The crane tipped over as he was negotiating a steep hill and pinned Alsup underneath, killing him instantly....
Robert KubicaPhoto: Stefan Brending He was a spectacular Formula 1 driver and the first Polish addition to the F1 circus, who had it all going for him after six years in the top echelon of motor racing. He even won the 2008 Grand Prix of Canada in a BMW Sauber...
Parnelli is not his real name. Rufus Jones’ middle name is Parnell. His mother named him after a Judge Parnell whom she admired. Jones’ friend, Billy Calder, added the “i” to his middle name to make a name change when Parnelli wanted to race while underage. I remember drivers in...
The more in-depth summaries of the life and career of Phil Hill have focussed on three significant aspects: the racing accomplishments, the complex nature of the man, and the fact that he was an underrated driver. Phil died of respiratory complications due to Parkinson’s disease on August 28, 2008. He...
The era of the classic Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows in the period 1934 – 1939 is linked to the racing driver John Richard Beattie Seaman. The Englishman drove his first race in a Silver Arrow in the Tripoli Grand Prix on 9 May 1937. He drove his last race on 25...
Longtime SCCA stalwart Andy Porterfield died in mid-April at the age of 80 from complications following heart valve surgery. Beyond being honored with the club’s premier award, the Woolf Barnato Trophy, in 2009, Porterfield’s list of on-track accomplishments are highlighted by an unprecedented 22 Southern Pacific Division championships, back-to-back B-Production...
Hollywood actors play them—Luigi Fagioli was one. Built like Rocky Marciano with wide shoulders, muscular arms, thick neck and a broad chest, his attitude could be as tough as his appearance and that could lead to violence when his temper took over. Fagioli was an explosive cocktail of hard-nosed single-mindedness,...
The man who called himself “Mister 500” in honor of the quest that dominated his life, has passed away at the age of 90 due to congestive heart failure. A member of multiple Halls of Fame for his exploits as both racer and businessman, Andy Granatelli’s greatest fame came from...
Like many other sports during WWII, automobile racing experienced a hiatus. Soon thereafter, however, competition resumed. The Formula One World Championship series was initiated in 1950 and became the ultimate goal for both drivers and constructors. At the same time, Southern California became a hotbed of the car craze. Road...
American motorsports journalist Christopher “Chris” Constantine Economaki passed away Friday, September 28th, 2012 at the age of 91. Economaki served as an editor, publisher and columnist for National Speed Sport News for more than 60 years. He also was a reporter and commentator for racing broadcasts on network television and...
Walter Maynard “Bud” Moore Jr., a decorated veteran of World War II and D-Day’s Normandy Invasion and a 2011 inductee to the NASCAR Hall of Fame, died November 27 at the age of 92. Moore was a self-described country mechanic who fielded championship-winning teams in both NASCAR Cup competition and...
We’re spectating on a rally special stage. The Monte Carlo, Britain’s RAC, the Acropolis in Greece. Anywhere, it doesn’t matter which. We’re halfway up a gentle roadside embankment stamping our almost numb feet and rubbing shoulders with dozens of other rally fans, waiting. It’s dark, cold, the bottle of whiskey...
British motor racing legend Sir Stirling Moss passed away following a long illness on Easter Sunday at his Mayfair, London home at the age of 90, with his wife Susie, the Lady Moss, by his side. Stirling Craufurd Moss was born into a motorsport family. His father Alfred, a wealthy...
dual overhead cams, four valves per cylinder and domed combustion chambers, one of which Goux drove to victory.Photo: IMS Photo Jules Goux was born in Valentigney, France on April 6, 1885, and he died there in March 1965. In between those two dates, he enjoyed one hell of a racing career...
From the British Racing Drivers Club- It is with great regret that we must inform Members of the death yesterday at his North Devon home of BRDC Life Member Roy Pierpoint at the age of 93. Roy was elected to Full Membership of the BRDC a few months after winning...
In late December 1959, Bill Jennings packed his tools, spares and suitcase into the passenger seat of his self-assembled GSM Dart sports car and drove from his home in Cape Town to East London – a trip of over 600 miles in the days before highways. Jennings then took part...
One lunchtime in October 1960, I wandered into the Fontana Restaurant in Modena to find Wolfgang von Trips sitting alone. Having met him a couple of times, I asked if I might join him and he readily agreed. In those long departed days, having a casual meal with a racing...
Former SCCA hot shoe Art Huttinger has died from heart failure in a Florida Veteran’s Hospital at the age of 91. Born in 1925, he grew up in Great Falls, Montana, and excelled as a high school athlete in football, basketball, long distance running and speed skating. In 1942, at...
German racer Paul Pietsch, the last surviving driver of the prewar Silver Arrows era and the oldest living Grand Prix racer, has died at the age of 100. His family confirmed his May 31 passing, just three weeks short of his 101st birthday. The former Auto Union works driver was...
Jerry Sneva, a younger brother of 1983 Indianapolis 500 winner Tom Senva, and the 1977 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year himself, passed away last Saturday, January 27, in Indianapolis. He was 69. Sneva (above, IMS Photo), made five starts in the 500 during his career, with a best finish...
One of the greatest chief mechanics in American National Championship racing history, George Bignotti, has died at the age of 97. Cars prepared by Bignotti won 85 Indycar races—second-most all-time—including a record seven Indy 500s, two each for A.J. Foyt and Al Unser, and single wins for Graham Hill, Gordon...
David Bruce-Brown Biography Born in 1887 to wealthy merchant parents, he attended the Allen-Stephenson School in New York City, and then the Harstrom School in Norwalk, Connecticut, a prep school for Yale. This only served to prove that the young man was not cut out for academic pursuits. He instead...
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