The award was presented thursday night during the annual nascar cup series awards banquet at the wynn on the las vegas strip, along with another award that is not presented every year. Junior johnson leaves a lasting legacy in nascars h. France did not invent stock car racing which is different than races between openwheel, purposebuilt race cars like those that compete in the indy 500 but he would become the man who made it an american tradition. September 26, 1909june 7, 1992, also known by bill france sr. France born william henry getty france american race car driver, best known for cofounding and managing nascar. Donald mactavish fatal crash at daytona 22 february 1969. Pontiac had the entire field covered that year in terms of raw speed, but in the week of practice before the race, junior, driving a yearold chevrolet, was credited with being the first driver to discover drafting as a way to get more performance out of. Starting back in the late 1940s with big bill france, the france family is the reason why nascar exists today.
Nascar moves on from brian france, enters new era with jim. Since being founded in 1948 as the first organized stock car racing league by driver bill france, sr. He is best known for founding and managing nascar, a sanctioning body of usbased stock car racing. The organization sanctions over 1500 races at over 100 tracks in 39 states. Lesa france kennedy second from right, chief executive officer of international speedway corporation and granddaughter of bill france sr. He and richard petty are both members of the nascar hall of fame class of 2010. Lloyd seay was regarded by nascar founder bill france, sr. As of 2014, nascar is the largest sanctioning body of stock car racing in the united states. France then told them they would all go to dinner together. Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing found mainly and most prominently in the united states and canada, with new zealand, australia, mexico, great britain and brazil also having forms of stock car auto racing. The national association for stock car auto racing was founded by bill france sr. Learn about bill s life, his birthday, zodiac sign, and real facts here. By all accounts, the race never should have happened, but nascar president bill france sr. Bill france moved to florida in 1934, and by 1936, he was racing on the sands of.
Janet guthrie, the first female to compete in a nascar cup series superspeedway race. Nascar cup series champion to receive bill france cup. He was a race car driver in his own right prior to the formation of nascar, becoming the national stock car champion in 1940. The national association for stock car auto racing nascar is an american auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stockcar racing. Trackpass on nbc sports gold is offering free access to its documentaries, including the nascar hall of fame biography series that features nascar founder bill france sr. In 2001, mactavish was posthumously inducted into the new england auto racers hall of fame. He found his driver in greenville, south carolina, in a woman named louise smith.
The story goes that le mans organizers were attempting to spice up their game. February 15, 1948 nascar runs its first race in daytona beach at the beach road course. Bill frances first real job was as a bank clerk his father worked at the park savings bank, so. It is even more remarkable considering lloyd seay never competed in a nascar race. William henry getty france september 26, 1909 june 7, 1992, also known as bill france sr. The worlds largest governing body for stock car racing is the.
The award is given for outstanding contribution in the field of stock car racing and named in honor of mactavish for his contributions to new england racing. Nascar, the national association for stock car auto racing, is conceived. Bobby allisons wreck at the winston 500 ushered in restrictor plates and changed stock car auto racing in the united states forever. At 76, morgan shepherd still making left turns at the. However, the track didnt have much of a future if it didnt smooth out the finances and establish a better organization. He is best known for cofounding and managing nascar, a sanctioning body of united statesbased stock car racing.
Brians father and predecessor jim hunter, a former driver, reporter and track official, served as nascars spokesman from the time dale earnhardt sr. Traditionally, races are run on oval tracks measuring approximately 0. I know in 1969 i didnt race with the rest of the guys in talladega because i felt if i didnt go with them that could come back to haunt me when i raced against them and i told bill sr. The forgotten figure behind daytona international speedway. Louise smith was one of the true pioneers of early stock car racing, running modifieds from 1946 thru 1956, and actually competing in the first stock car race she ever saw. Every driver inducted in the nascar hall of fame, from bill france jr.
Skip barber, bill scott, jim jenkins, and fred opert, among others. Nascar announces nominees for nascar hall of fame class of. Brian france, who had served as nascar chairman and ceo since 2003, was never as visible as his father, bill france jr. He founded nascar in 1948 and led the organization. Dont expect a nascar miracle now that brian france is out. He succeeded his father, nascar founder bill france sr. Yakima speedway racers and fans public group facebook. When construction finished, nascar founder bill france sr. He participated in the firstever stock car race at the daytona beach road course on march 8, 1936, finishing in fifth place. He is one of the most important figures in american racing history and is responsible for nascars initial survival and growth, as well as some of its.
William henry getty france 1909 1992, also known as bill france sr. The trophy design will be updated as the race schedule evolves, and new tracks are introduced to nascar cup series competition. Wendell oliver scott august 29, 1921 december 23, 1990 was an american stock car. When the daytona circuit opened, i ran the first race even finished fifth. The company is headquartered in daytona beach, florida. Leaning on his experience with sports car racing, france helped drive changes geared at improving the quality of each of nascars 36 races and reducing costs for current owners and future ones. Richard childress, rick hendrick, geoff bodine and dale earnhardt all sat down in the office of bill france. Past recipients of the award have included bill france, sr. The greenville, south carolina resident helped bill france, sr. Some of the best formula ford drivers of the day showed up. Mike helton, named third president of nascar in 2000.
The privatelyowned company was founded by bill france sr. With me, its just ive been here since bill france sr. Bill france, the head of nascar, invited geoff bodine and dale earnhardt to headquarters in daytona. Nascar is second to the national football league for television ratings in the united. Saxton lloyd, a car dealership owner who gave france his first job as a. The 12 most legendary racing families in nascar history. What he needed, he decided, was a female driver who could handle the challenges of the track and hopefully bring more women out to the races. William clifton bill france, nicknamed, bill france jr. He was born in the year of the rooster, which means. Late race car driver most famous for being one of the founders of nascar. William henry getty france, aka, big bill france, gathered together a group of racing promoters, drivers, and mechanics with the dream of establishing an organization to set a standard set of rules and. Drivers wives were also pressed into service to score the race. Nascar drivers confident with jim france charting new.
1090 1285 895 1398 1262 967 1331 398 1159 635 954 1085 1010 938 722 219 1245 185 1320 94 222 612 189 686 978 974 1254 109 339 1017 90 1128