Born in Haddon Township, New Jersey, Donohue grew up in Summit,[7] graduated from the Pingry School in Hillside, and entered Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. You can go away and the void that you leave gets filled quickly, but when you come back, you are greeted with open arms. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. Except I knew it wouldnt last, recalls Penske Racings timer/scorer Judy Stropus. Le Mans proved frustrating for Donohue. The setup he designed for his car didnt have as much speed as teammate Gary Bettenhausens setup. Donohue raced at Indianapolis each year following,[15] finishing second in 1970 and 25th in 1971. Mark Donohue and Roger Penske during a break in the Indy-car action at Michigan International Speedway n 1974. He obsessively lived at the shop, working as many as 20 hours a day. He would greet those who didnt know him with a smile, but he was so focused and obsessed with making the race car go fast, he was distant. The book was published shortly before Donohue's death. It began as a hobby in 1959 when Donohue sold his soupedup Corvette, which he used to drive around at Brown, and for $3,000 purchased his first racing cara little Elva with an MG engine. Three years later, Mark was gone, dead from a cerebral hemorrhage suffered in a crash during practice for the Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix at sterreichring. Donohue was about to have his race victory taken away for cheating, but Roger Penske stepped in. Mark Donohue. 1975, resulting from an accident two days earlier during practice for the Austrian Grand Prix. Search instead in Creative? I used to hate riding with him to the airport, said Don Cox, a former chief engineer at Penske Racing when Donohue was with the team. It served as the first NASCAR victory for aspiring team owner Roger Penske, a proverbial snowball sent rolling down a path thatd alter the entire American auto racing landscape. racing was concerned, he had done it all. He answered, "It will never have enough power until I can spin the wheels at the end of the straightaway in high gear.". What controls the frontline in the latest F1 design tech battles, Why Autosport is changing how it ranks F1 drivers from 2023 onwards, Why Autosport is changing how it ranks F1 drivers from 2023 onwards Make sure you track out all the way for Turn 7. We went to Phoenix and tested it with the wings off and then put the wings on and couldnt believe how fast it was. Mark wasnt an emotional guy. They made four NASCAR Cup Series starts in 1972 and while they displayed commendable speed Donohue never qualified worse than 11th, including a third-place start at Riverside they failed to finish three of the four races and earned a best finish of 15th at Atlanta. Donohue. He could drive a car in the 24-hour race at Daytona, a Trans-Am Car, an Indy car and a NASCAR car. Mark contracted polio when he was 6, but he fully recovered. So in a televised interview after the incident, race driver Mark Donohue told the story of his horrific practice crash at Road Atlanta with carefully chosen words. Donohue chronicled his entire racing career in the book, The Unfair Advantage (co-written with noted motorsports and engineering journalist Paul Van Valkenburgh). The Porsche engineers obliged, but the new ducts interfered with the bodywork closure pins that attached body panels to the car. Try a week on us. He was, I feel, the finest road race driver this country has ever produced, Allison told Hemmings Motor News years later. He was passionate about racing. Mark Donohue racked in 59 career wins for Team Penske in several different series. Mark Donohue was 38 and a sports car champion and 1972 Indianapolis 500 winner. There, he was Godthat was his way of distinguishing himself. His divine touch extended to his street cars; a friend once described riding in Donohues Porsche 911 as a Wall of Death thing most of the time., The relentless pursuit of perfection eventually took its toll. He was a partner, he was a friend and a critical piece of the foundation of our race team.. I get all of these tiny little stories from everybody where my dad grabbed this guy as a kid and sat him in the car -- and that motivated him enough to go to engineering school. To be sure, it seems what we now know as The Penske Way gained steam with Donohue as its pied piper. The driver must accept the risks involved, which I did and I spent my time in the hispital as a result., See the article in its original context from. That long association resulted in the ultimate triumph for an American driver in 1972, when he won the Indianapolis 500. Donohue won. "Going down the back straightaway, the wing, which produced a tremendous amount of downforce at high speeds, came off the back of the car," Donohue claimed. Donohue and Hawkins completed only twelve laps due to differential failure and finished 47th. The lightweight car was featured on an episode of Dream Car Garage on Speed TV in 2005. through one of the fastest turns on the track. David Donohue is proof positive that apples dont fall far from the tree. I dont remember him changing a bit.. Donohue won in 1972, driving for Penske. His lone NASCAR race win was just part of his narrative, but that victory another hurdle in auto racing cleared in partnership with Penske helped ignite a flame thats lasted over 50 years across different genres of the sport and in turn elevated the quality and intelligence of American racing. He was on for a second appearance at the Glen, but a practice accident saw Mark being replaced by David Hobbs. They were just forging ahead, David Donohue recalled. To those who work at the cemetery, Donohue is simply known as The Race Car Driver to visitors looking for his gravesite. In auto racing, though, even thinking man's drivers can get killed by punctured tires. Painkillers affected his memory, and he began drinking heavily to deal with the pain. [citation needed]. David followed his father into sports car racing for Porsche. Continuing the practice of reducing weight allowed them to place weights of certain sizes strategically in specific locations within the car, thus helping to balance the car while being driven on the limit. The book documents his career from his first races to his final full season of racing the year before he was killed. The bumpy, rain-soaked course around J.F.K. I did everything I could to keep up. (Photo: Bob DOlivo / The Enthusiast Network via Getty Images). The No. Twelve identically prepared cars is the mantra forever engrained in those who followed the International Race of Champions, and IROCs inaugural season, ranging from the fall of 1973 to the winter of 1974, was one of Donohues finest showings. His Porsche 917-30 was so dominant it was called the Can-Am Killer, as he won seven of eight races and the 1973 Can-Am Championship. When she brought us in to see the finish, I dont think she knew he had won. I realized then that if I wanted to do better in this business I had to spend more time on my car, he said. Penske, along with Donohue's wife, Eden, and father, Mark Sr., were at Donohue's bedside. 66 McLaren/Offenhauser that Mark Donohue drove to win the 1972 Indy 500. Her . At the Austrian Grand Prix, Donohue's career, along with Roger Penske's Formula One aspirations, took a tragic turn. He did the job for Roger, no question. [17] That race was Penske's first NASCAR win in a long history of NASCAR participation. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007. Don Cox would later join the team in 1969 after working as an engineer for General Motors. Your message has been sent. He was so gentlemanly, he was boring. Two weeks ago, however, he showed he had not lost his skill at getting a race car around a track when he set a world speed record of 221.160 miles an hour for a closed course. He went over 180 miles per hour for the first time and it wasnt on the chart, so nobody knew how fast he went. However, like most race drivers in the various top racing series around the world, he had lived an outright lot of life. That didnt satisfy his competitive spirits, so he decided to take on Formula One. There was little question then that Donohue, who would testdrive the new car and help supervise its development, would come out of retirement. During the development of this motor, the German Porsche engineers often asked Donohue if the motor finally had enough power. The winner of the 1972 Indianapolis 500 and the Can Am in l973. Mark won the 1972 Indianapolis 500 when David was just five. He gave us a lot of credibility and was the keystone of our racing. The book was re-released in 2000 by Bentley Publishers (Cambridge, Massachusetts). I think the people at Indy thought we were the college guys with the crew haircuts and the polished wheels. If we're right, by next season we could be the dominant team in Formula One.. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. What can be better in life, a better ideal?, In 1966, Penske told him: Try it for a year, you're still a young man, and if it doesn't work out you can always go back to engineering.. On his second lap, while at about 260 km/h a rear tire of his March 751 Ford suddenly blew, the out of control car went through the fence for about 180 feet, over a guard-rail and into a ravine. Its made me realize its an honor to be his son. Every dime I had I put into cars, he said. And given enough time just one more year, maybe he wouldve become Americas first world champion.. If he didnt test a car before a race, he didnt have his Peanuts security blanket and would fret that his edge was lost.. He was the thinking man's driver, maybe because, unlike most of his rivals, he had an Ivy League education and maybe because looking at that cherubic face, which was several years younger than his racescarred body, there was no other way to explain how this kid was winning. Despite this, Donohue still dominated the series, even though he suffered three DNFs during the season due to mechanical problems with the M6A. We had the tragic crash in practice and he seemed like he was all right, but he ended up losing his life. And my wife gave me permission, so when something like that happens you have to go. Mark Neary Donohue Jr. (March 18, 1937 August 19, 1975), nicknamed "Captain Nice,"[1][2] and later "Dark Monohue,"[2] was an American race car driver and engineer known for his ability to set up his own race car as well as driving it to victories.[3][4][5][6]. Its been 43 years since Donohues death, but he remains Penske Racings cornerstone. Penske and Donohue did not stop acid-dipping after this, however. Found a bug?SuggestionsCopyrightNeed help?Business DevelopmentGeneral inquiry, PopScreen - Video Search, Bookmarking and Discovery Engine. Amazingly, Donohue only suffered an internal derangement of his knee with meniscus damage and limited cruciate plus collateral ligament damage. I know their first conversation after the race, he didnt say (that he had won). In the 19721973 season, driving an AMC Matador for Penske Racing in NASCAR's top division, the Winston Cup Series, Donohue won the season-opening event at Riverside. He tinkered his way all through Pingry School, Brown University and a job as a mechanical engineer with the Pulverizing Machinery Corporation in Summit. He turned his last race, the first International Race of Champions finalin which top driver from all forms of racing competed into an easy victory Feb. 15, 1974, and then concentrated on his new duties as president of Penske Racing. Donohues degree from Brown in Mechanical Engineering got him a job designing filters for air conditioners -- not quite what he had in mind. Password He will be ranked with A. J. Foyt, Dan Gurney and Andretti in the leading group of American drivers. To those who knew him best, he had a tremendous sense of humor and enjoyed pulling pranks. My definition of too much horsepower is when all four wheels are spinning in every gear., Burge Hulett, Donohues lifelong friend, told Bedard: Mark was actually a bit of a doofus, awkward everywhere except behind the wheel. This account has been suspended due to strange activity. He finds the same things funny. The supposition is that a support post from one of the advertising signs caught Donohue's helmet. Most of Donohues wins (28) came in Trans-Am, the United States Road Racing Championship (12) and Can-Am (10). When he came out, he was a different person. He won three times in IndyCar competition and won the 1973 NASCAR Cup Series race at Riverside Raceway in Riverside, California, driving an AMC Matador. Then, in March, 1974, Peter Revson, Penske's first choice as driver for the Formula One car that was to make its debut later in the season, was killed in an accident practicing for the South African Grand Prix. After going to the hospital in Graz the next day, Donohue lapsed into a coma from a cerebral hemorrhage and died. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. Donohue raced in several NASCAR Grand American races and a NASCAR pony car division from 1968 until 1971. Airport would have sent a stock Camaro flopping around. Their performance on the track also quickly turned heads. I always said driving wasn't really a dangerous situation. From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. That took a couple of years. As ADAM COOPER recalls, though, it ended in tragedy. Donohue disagreed. This was not merely a celebrity autobiography, but a detailed, step-by-step record of the engineering approach he took to getting the absolutely highest performance from every car he drove, always looking for that elusive "unfair advantage". He was really the first person that I knew in racing that not only had the driving skills, but also the technical knowledge. Prior to racing in Formula One, Donohue was a racer in the Ford GT40, Trans-Am, Indy car, NASCAR, Can-Am and IROC racing series. The 917-30 is referred to as the "Can-Am killer" [18] as it dominated the competition, winning all but two races of the 1973 Can-Am championship (which is an untrue statement, because OPEC killed the Can-Am series in 19751976). Nine weeks before the Le Mans race, while testing a GT40 Mk II in the rain, Donohue's friend and former teammate Walt Hansgen lost control and crashed his car into an escape road barrier, suffering fatal injuries. He was killed during a practice session for the 1975 Austrian Grand Prix. [4] He was survived by his wife and two sons from his first marriage. Mark Donohue was killed during a practice session for the 1975 Austrian Grand Prix. As a person, he was always fun to be around, but I always admired that work ethic he displayed when it was time to race., Donohue was known as Captain Nice. To some, however, Donohue seemed distant and was later nicknamed Dark Monohue., Donohue was a good guy, said long-time racing journalist Robin Miller, who was a young reporter for The Indianapolis Star when Donohue raced at Indy. The driver must accept the risks involved, which I didand I spent my time in the hospital as a result.. Conversely, Mark had one of the greatest senses of humor of anybody I ever met. Donohue, equipped with a mechanical-engineering degree from Brown University, approached car setup not with pet theories or traditional wisdom but with a slide rule, an overarching grasp of how physics strives to thwart a race cars mission, and 300 push-ups daily. FIA grants Hamilton medical exemption to wear nose studs, Hamilton: F1 retirement talk from Button and Hill not "helpful, Hamilton: F1 retirement talk from Button and Hill not "helpful In addition, the horrific events at the 1973 Indianapolis 500 and the subsequent death of his friend, Swede Savage, pushed him to quit. He went on to assist TVR's David Hives in designing the Series 400 Griffith and then working on the ill-fated Bob Cumberford-designed, Intermeccanica-(Torino, Italy) produced Series 600 Griffith. One track marshal was killed by the crash and another seriousy injured. But supervising the Penske efforts in stock car and Indianapolistype racing did not agree with Donohue. My involvement in racing has been like a jigsaw puzzle, David Donohue told Autoweek. who retired from one of the greatest careers in auto racing history at age 36, unretired at 37 and died Tuesday night at 38 of brain injuries suffered in a crash before the Austrian Grand Prix. The Penske PC1 was developed but the car proved problematic and midway through the season they decided to switch to a March 751 chassis. But his edge was rarely lost. Its a goal he had and a goal he checked off. Mark obviously brought an air of professionalism. Warming up for the Austrian Grand Prix, my hero, Donohue, 38, had spun his March at 150 mph and struck his head on a metal bar supporting a sign. Penske's first race shop in Newtown Square, Pa. All of these tiny little stories you get to put all of these puzzle pieces together and get a much better picture of my father. The car did a series of cartwheels, and Donohue broke both legs. He also gave us our first NASCAR win. For the remainder of the 1970 season, Donohue ran a different Lola, with Chevy power, finishing second (again behind Al Unser) at Indianapolis Raceway Park in July. They also acid-dipped the body on the Camaro and had to caution people not to lean against it, for fear it would dent. The guy that is most like Mark that Ive ever met is David, said Don Cox. But this was a safe driver, a man who knew his limits, his car's limits and didn't go over the edge, as they say in racing. Jackie Stewart interviews Mark Donohue prior to an IROC race in 1974. He turned out to be a real partner of mine. The track chosen for the speed record attempt was the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. He knew racing drivers couldn't come back. His retirement was short-lived, however, as he was lured back to full-time competitive driving by Penske when he formed a Formula One team, Penske Cars Ltd, to compete in the final two events of the 1974 Formula One World Championship, and to continue competing in 1975 with the new Penske PC1. Unfortunately, Donohue lost a life after an accident during practice for 1975 Austrian Grand Prix. On August 9, 1975, Donohue drove the 917-30 to a world closed-course speed record at the Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. A Montgomery County man who crashed his car and fled from the wreck, leaving three of his friends dead or dying, on Thursday was sentenced . He was one of the best American roadracers in history, but his biggest triumph was on the oval at Indianapolis, where in 1972 he won the 500. During their enormous success in Trans-Am, Penske and Donohue would begin to experiment with their Camaros. That is something I would have never had if I didnt go to races. Donohue, too, recognized the accomplishment as something of a walk-off home run for his career, briefly retiring following his IROC championship before returning later that year with Penske to compete in the final two Formula 1 races. Then they put both cars in the race, number 15 and 16, one car being 250 pounds lighter. Donohue was a . The 38yearold Donohue underwent a threehour operation at a hospital here Sunday to remove a blood clot from his brain. In everything he droveeven an Elva Courier and a Cobra, cars he didnt develophe still won. When Penske decided late to enter Formula One full time, Donohue had a difficult decision to make. His car was almost inexplicably fast, so much so that, according to Donohues book The Unfair Advantage, race winner Al Unser sought him out after the race and said: Look, weve been competitors for a long time, and you have your way of doing things and I have mine, but when you come here and run six miles an hour faster than everyone else I gotta shake your hand.. By then, he had remarried to a model from Atlanta named Eden. Donohue raced in the inaugural IROC series in 197374, racing identical, specially-prepared Porsche RSRs. The rookies looking to make their mark on F1 in 2023, What controls the frontline in the latest F1 design tech battles, What controls the frontline in the latest F1 design tech battles He approaches things the same way. He was my original partner in racing, Penske told Autoweek. [11] Earlier that year, co-driving with Hansgen, Donohue finished third at the 24 Hours of Daytona and second at the 12 Hours of Sebring. That day at Indy, Bobby Unsers Eagle dominated the contest before Unser dropped out. Not that Donohues career or his one win in NASCAR needed validation, but IROC has long crystallized what fans thought of the talent in drivers who never outwardly succeeded in the Cup Series. We were in Lime Rock and I was in a motorhome and my mom came out and woke my brother and I up so we could watch the end of the race. The only person to beat Donohue was his former Penske Trans-Am teammate, George Follmer. 1975 Camaro Racemark GT Bob Bailey. Going racing meant anywhere and everywhere, and the two chose to tackle stock cars. GRAZ, Austria, Aug. 19 (AP)Mark Donohue, who ended an eightmonth retirement as an auto driver last year because he couldn't keep away from racing, died tonight of injuries suffered Sunday at the Austrian Grand Prix. He became a great friend of mine, Penske said in an IMS tribute to Donohue. The 1967 Z-28 won its last race by lapping the entire field of cars, causing suspicion throughout the paddock. They continued to use the "lightweight" car in 1968, at the Sebring 12-hour race. Truth is, they often didnt know if something would work., Thirty-three years after the big crash, Penske told Argetsinger: Mark was my best friend [this, despite Donohue once spearing his boss with an AMC Javelin in the pits, tossing Penske 15 feet]. For Donohue, there was little time to grieve, as his own Le Mans debut was looming. A Pennsylvania native by the name of Mark Donohue, the reigning Indianapolis 500 winner, pedaled a red-white-and-blue AMC Matador to his only Cup Series victory in six career starts. Hed eventually swap leads with Richard Petty, but took the reins of the race for good for the final 75 circuits, lapping the entire field in the process. A bad week or the dark horse from F1 testing? When David Donohue was young, he never really got to know his father -- Mark Donohue. Instructions on how to reset your password have been sent to your email. After coming out of retirement with his former boss, Penske, Donohue returned to Formula One, entering into the final two races of the 1974 Formula One season. Ford had developed a new GT, the Mark IV. But there was one phase of racing that he had never really taken part in, what he called his personal missing link. This was in the Formula One cars, perhaps this dangerous sport's most dangerous, which run on the grand prix circuit. Mark told me, Sometimes you just have to get it done., That was my take, too, says Michael Argetsinger, who has just written a riveting biography called Mark Donohue: Technical Excellence at Speed (David Bull Publishing, $39.95). The two drivers disagreed on many aspects of racing and car setup, but as a team were able to muster a fourth-place finish in the endurance classic.[13]. Donohue won in every type of race car he climbed into except for one -- the Formula 1 March 751 that ultimately cost him his life. During his stay at Griffith Mark drove the Griffith-owned Shelby 289 Cobra making his mark on the SCCA circuit. What we learned from Friday practice at F1's 2023 Bahrain GP. His average speed around the 2.66-mile (4.28 km) high-banked oval was 221.120 mph (355.858 km/h). Showing Editorial results for mark donohue. I can hardly wait to get back to work with our car, he said. In 1974, he quit driving and became president of Penske Racing. Donohue began working with cars while growing up in the nineteenfifties in a comfortable neighborhood in Summit, N. J. But where other youngsters were souping up cars to impress girls, I was only interested in the mechanics, Donohue said. Several minutes later Donohue regained consciousness and spoke with his rescuers, who took him to Knittelfeld hospital. [2], Donohue was hired on March 29, 1964, by Jack Griffith [Griffith Motors, Syosset, N.Y./Plainview, N.Y.] as design engineer for the Griffith, formerly TVR Grantura Mk III, powered by a Ford 289 cid (4.7l) V8 engine. In all, he won 57 major races and more than $1million. Donohue was considered a leading Trans-Am driver of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The tangible steps Alpine has taken to meeting its humble F1 2023 targets, Why "grounded" Hamilton remains confident in Mercedes' F1 recovery, Why "grounded" Hamilton remains confident in Mercedes' F1 recovery We think we've made a major discovery. Donohue began the 1975 Formula 1 season as a 38-year-old rookie and the oldest driver on the grid. An out-of-court settlement was reached Wednesday at Providence, R.I., in the appeal of a $9.6-million Superior Court verdict awarded the estate of race driver Mark Donohue, killed during practice . . [2] Donohue announced that he would retire from racing after the 1973 Can-Am season. His 59 wins remain the most of any driver for Team Penske. Since his remarriage eight months ago, those same friends found Donohue relaxed and cheerful, something he had not been while retired. See the article in its original context from. Autoweek participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. Donohue finished in 12th place at the Canadian Grand Prix, but failed to finish at the United States Grand Prix. Its always great that history is reviewed and remembered and adds more to the prominence and significance of the event to bring it all together. The 1972 Indy win was a classic race for the man who not only drove the race car but also served as its engineer and mechanic back at Penske Racing. During its production life, there were 192 Series 200 Griffiths built, 59 of the Series 400 and only 10 of the Series 600. 12 and current Alltel decals) at the fall Rockingham, North Carolina, race. A visit to the gravesite on a gray, cold, foggy March day revelaved little toy race cars on the gravestone, along with a plastic checkered flag -- a testament the life of Mark Donohue. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that all memorial donations be sent to the Auto Racing Fraternity Foundation, 13539 Northern Boulevard, Flushing, Queens. Today, he works. No, I never worried about the dangers of racing, he said in March, 1974, while being honored at a luncheon following his retirement. I always said driving wasn't really a dangerous situation. He thinks the same way. Michael is another guy but there is this thing between Mark and David, even in terms of their life experiences. On 09 August he reached an average speed around the 2.66 mile high-banked oval, of 221.120 mi/h (about 355 km/h), this has been a World record for several years.Donohue and the Penske team then made the trip to Austria. When Penske Racing took delivery of a Ferrari 512M, for instance, they immediately fabricated a bigger rear wing. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Donohue recently had arrived in Austria for the Austrian Grand Prix at the sterreichring race track following the successful closed-course speed record attempt at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama just a few days earlier. One night I was in Philadelphia and was following Mark to the old shop in Newtown Square. But in eight months of retirement, the quiet, wellspoken kid from the other side of the tracks learned that the hobby that had become an obsession still haunted him. It would have really been great watching those two together in the later years if it had gotten that far. Or, signing some autographs. Amongst his friends, he liked practical jokes and liked catching people out on things. Donohue was fiercely motivated and was one of the first drivers to bring a sense of mechanical engineering to his craft. The singleseat, opencockpit Formula One cars used in grand prix racing have been called torpedoes. Mark Donohue races to the win at the the 1972 Indy 500. The practice sessions were marred by serious accidents; Brian Henton destroyed his Lotus after sliding in an oil patch, and Wilson Fittipaldi broke his hand when crashing at the Rindt Kurve. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links. He wanted to know how we were doing. this email address already registerd with us. It was. We used to clean our garage out every night, and that was something people didnt understand.. An experienced race driver named Walt Hansgen (who worked for Inskip Motors in New York & Rhode Island) recognized Donohue's ability[2] and befriended him, eventually providing an MGB (through Inskip Motors in Providence, RI and prepped by their race shop Competition Engineering)[8] for Donohue to race at the 1964 Bridgehampton Has Alonso made the right choice gambling on Aston Martin F1? His true passion was racing. Donohue took three victories and the series championship, besting the likes of Petty, Allison, David Pearson, A.J.
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