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Bill Vukovich
William John Vukovich (/ˈvjuːkəvɪtʃ/; December 13, 1918 – May 30, 1955) was an American racing driver. He won the 1953 and 1954 Indianapolis 500, plus two more American Automobile Association National Championship races, and died while leading the 1955 Indianapolis 500. Several drivers of his generation have referred to Vukovich as the greatest ever in American motorsport.[1] He is generally considered one of the best racing drivers of his generation, and is the only driver to lead the most laps in three consecutive Indy 500s. Early lifeWilliam Vukovich was born in Alameda, near Oakland, California. He was the fifth of eight children and the youngest of three sons born to John Vukovich, a carpenter mill hand, and Mildred (née Syerkovic).[2] Vukovich's parents had emigrated from Serbia, and had later Anglicized their name from "Vacurovich" to Vukovich upon suggestion of the judge presiding over their naturalization.[3] During his childhood Vukovich was known to his mother as "Vaso."[4] Not long after Vukovich's birth, his family relocated to a 40-acre farm in Kerman, near Fresno, cultivating grapes and figs. The family earned modest income, and on one occasion Vukovich was hired out as a cotton picker to earn supplemental income.[2] His family later moved from Kerman to nearby Sanger, where they made a down-payment on a 20-acre muscat grape vineyard. In 1932, after several years of heavy frosts and struggling to complete the final payments for their property, John Vukovich committed suicide.[5] Vukovich, aged 14, left school to assist his brothers in operating the farm.[5] After being unable to make a final $200 payment, the Vukovich family lost possession of their land. They then rented a nearby vineyard, but after another year of bad weather conditions they were forced to leave the land. Most of the family moved into Fresno, where they sought out jobs.[3] In 1939 Mildred Vukovich died in Del Rey, near Fresno, aged 51. Vukovich displayed an interest in speed at an early age. He and his brothers were known to frequently arrive at school with their four-wheeled, horse-drawn cart on two wheels, leading to their father building a two-wheeled cart.[4] The family owned a Ford Model T, and on Sundays when their parents left to go into town the brothers would race it around the farm, using a rake to clear their tracks. They overturned the car so often that eventually its top needed to be left down permanently, and on one occasion Vukovich suffered a sprained wrist after attempting to prevent a tip.[5] Vukovich was introduced to auto racing around the age of seven, when he and his brother Mike began attending races at Fresno Speedway, a board track located more than 20 miles from their home. The two brothers shared a bicycle, and sometimes arrived to races several days in advance in order to locate trees from which they could watch for free.[5] The track was eventually torn down; during his teenage years Vukovich would sneak through holes in the fencing of the Fresno County Fairgrounds in order to attend races at the dirt track located there.[3] Driving careerEarly careerAt age 17 Vukovich began driving a Chevrolet-powered roadster owned by Fred Gerhardt, finishing third in his first race. Vukovich won his third roadster event. He soon expressed an interest in midget car racing, and graduated to this level of competition within a year of racing.[6] The United States' entry into the Second World War saw a suspension of racing.[7] During the war Vukovich relocated to Riverside, California, and found work maintaining Jeeps and other vehicles for the U.S. Army.[8] Post-war midget car careerBefore he began Indy car racing, Vukovich drove midget cars for the Edelbrock dirt track racing team. He raced on the West Coast of the United States in the United Racing Association (URA), and won the series' 1945 and 1946 midget car championships. Vukovich won the 1948 Turkey Night Grand Prix at Gilmore Stadium, and six of the last eight races at the stadium track before it was closed for good.[9] He also won the 1950 AAA National Midget championship. Vukovich was known for racing midgets powered by Drake engines. The Drake was a Harley-Davidson V-twin engine with specially built Drake water cooled heads. His last Drake powered midget was a Kurtis Kraft that was built by Ed and Zeke Justice, the Justice Brothers, in their shop in Glendale from a Kurtis kit. Previous to this car, Vukovich drove a "Frame Rail" midget that was also powered by a Drake engine. Indianapolis 500 In 1952, his second year in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 500-Mile Race, he quickly moved up from his starting position in the middle of the third row to take the lead, and led 150 laps in dominant fashion before suffering steering failure on the 192nd of the 200 laps. He returned to win the race in consecutive years, 1953 and 1954. He led an astounding 71.7% of laps that he drove in competition at the track, and remains the only driver ever to lead the most laps in the race three consecutive years.[9] World Drivers' Championship careerThe AAA/USAC-sanctioned Indianapolis 500 was included in the FIA World Drivers' Championship from 1950 through 1960. Drivers competing at Indianapolis during those years were credited with World Drivers' Championship points and participation in addition to those which they received towards the AAA/USAC National Championship. Vukovich participated in five World Drivers' Championship races at Indianapolis. He started on the pole once, won twice, recorded three fastest laps, and accumulated 19 World Drivers' Championship points. DeathVukovich was killed in a chain-reaction crash while holding a 17-second lead on the 57th lap of the 1955 Indianapolis 500. He was exiting the second turn, trailing three slower cars—driven by Rodger Ward, Al Keller, and Johnny Boyd—when Ward's car hit the backstretch outer wall and flipped, resting in the middle of the track as a result of a broken axle. Keller, swerving into the infield to avoid Ward, lost control and slid back onto the track, striking Boyd's car and pushing it into Vukovich's path. After Vukovich's car went over the outside wall and become airborne, it cartwheeled through the air multiple times landing on top of a group of parked cars before coming to rest upside down and bursting into flames. Boyd's car also flipped over and landed upside down as well. As the car burned, Ed Elisian stopped his undamaged car and raced towards Vukovich in an attempt to save him. It did not matter; Vukovich had perished instantly. Two spectators were also injured when Vukovich's car landed on their Jeep.[10]  Vukovich was the second defending Indy 500 champion to die during the race, following Floyd Roberts in 1939, and the only former winner to have been killed while leading. Roberts' car was also thrown over the backstretch fence after exiting the second turn in his fatal accident. Since the 1955 race was counted as part of the Formula One World Championship, Vukovich is also the first driver to be killed during a World Championship race.[11] Bill Vukovich is buried at Belmont Memorial Park, Fresno, California. The Fresno Junior Chamber of Commerce established the "Billy Vukovich Memorial Scholarship Fund" to honor the two-time winner of the Indy 500 with a living memorial. The fund was directed to the Fresno State College and was open to young men interested in preparing themselves to teach automotive mechanics in high schools.[12] Family and personal lifeVukovich married Esther Schmidt, the two meeting during a blind date several months previously.[13] Vukovich was shy, and the couple's early courtship saw him use Esther's younger sister as a go-between when setting up dates.[13] The couple had two children: a daughter, Marlene, born in 1941; and a son, William John, born in 1944.[8] Vukovich's son, known as Bill Vukovich II; and his grandson, Bill Vukovich III, also became racing drivers. Both competed in the Indianapolis 500, with Vukovich II finishing second in 1973, and Vukovich III being named the Rookie of the Year in 1988. Vukovich III died on November 25, 1990, in a crash during practice for a CRA race at Mesa Marin Raceway,[14] in Bakersfield, California. Awards and honorsVukovich has been inducted into the following halls of fame:
Motorsports career resultsAAA Championship Car results
Indianapolis 500 results
FIA World Drivers' Championship results(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Notes
References
External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bill Vukovich.
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