11 replies to this topic

[Herbert]

I´m looking for info's (results, champions etc.) about USACs stock car championship. Why was it finally disbanded? What was its connection to NASCAR, if there was any?

Thanks for your help!

[Don Capps]

USAC and NASCAR tried to avoid dealing with each other whenever possible. AAA didn't get into the stock car business until after NASCAR had proven the concept with its "Strictly Stock" -- later Grand National -- Division. The AAA's only "win" over NASCAR was getting Marshall Teague to jump from NASCAR to AAA. When AAA exited, USAC took over its Stock Car Division. I cannot recall exactly when USAC dropped its stock car series, but I think it was in mid-1980's. As far as results go, I doubt that outside the USAC annuals that there isn't much compiled on the series in one place, certainly none on-line.

[theunions]

I remain very interested in finding any color photos of Jerry Unser's 1957 championship-winning Ford (outside of Pikes Peak).

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by Don Capps
USAC and NASCAR tried to avoid dealing with each other whenever possible. AAA didn't get into the stock car business until after NASCAR had proven the concept with its "Strictly Stock" -- later Grand National -- Division. The AAA's only "win" over NASCAR was getting Marshall Teague to jump from NASCAR to AAA. When AAA exited, USAC took over its Stock Car Division. I cannot recall exactly when USAC dropped its stock car series, but I think it was in mid-1980's. As far as results go, I doubt that outside the USAC annuals that there isn't much compiled on the series in one place, certainly none on-line.

Unfortunately, there hasn't been much written on the USAC Stock Car circuit, which is too bad since there was good competition, some factory involvement and well known drivers in it's history. Many Indy drivers raced the USAC Stocks in the pre-cluttered schedule days.

IIRC, 1983 was the last year for the USAC Stock circuit...in that incarnation. I recall joint sanctioned races with ARCA (maybe that was 1983) at the traditional mile dirt ovals (Springfield, DuQuoin). Later, USAC sanctioned a "Stock Car" series for dirt Late Models on short tracks.

USAC never seemed to know what to do with Stock Cars (to paraphrase Robin Miller on USAC ceasing to officiate IRL races: "USAC is at it's best doing 30 lap Midget and Sprint races...and sometimes they don't do that too well."). When Mopar pulled out of NASCAR, the Nichels team ran USAC events with Paul Goldsmith and Bobby Isaac driving. Bill Stroppe ran a factory Mercury effort. Ford had factory entries. They had some good talent, great facilities - at one point USAC briefly had exclusive contracts with Ontario Motor Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Pocono and Texas World Speedway - yet, they let it slip away. USAC had the potential and facilities to develop a strong circuit away from the primarily Deep South rooted NASCAR...and they managed to not pull it off.

In 1980, there were young drivers racing in the USAC Stock division named Rusty Wallace and Alan Kulwicki.

I should have a list of champions, which I'll post, and I have a career winners list...though it's only through 1971, so it's a bit dated I don't believe I have a later list, but I'll check.


Jim Thurman

[fines]

Oh dear ! The Monoposto Monomaniac ™ coming to rescue on a Stock Car issue, again!

USAC Stock Car Champions

1956 Johnny Mantz, Ford
1957 Jerry (Jr.) Unser, Ford
1958 Fred Lorenzen, Ford
1959 Fred Lorenzen, Ford
1960 Norm Nelson, Zecol, Ford
1961 Paul Goldsmith, Nichels, Pontiac
1962 Paul Goldsmith, Nichels, Pontiac
1963 Don White, Zecol, Ford
1964 Parnelli Jones, Stroppe, Mercury
1965 Norm Nelson, Nelson, Plymouth
1966 Norm Nelson, Nelson, Plymouth
1967 Don White, Dodge
1968 A. J. (Jr.) Foyt, Ford
1969 Roger McCluskey, Nelson, Plymouth
1970 Roger McCluskey, Nelson, Plymouth
1971 Butch Hartman, Dodge
1972 Butch Hartman, Dodge
1973 Butch Hartman, Dodge
1974 Butch Hartman, Dodge
1975 Ramo Stott, Plymouth
1976 Butch Hartman, Chevrolet
1977 Paul Feldner, Dodge
1978 A. J. (Jr.) Foyt, Buick/Chevrolet
1979 A. J. (Jr.) Foyt, Chevrolet
1980 Joe Ruttman, Pontiac
1981 Dean Roper, Pontiac
1982 Dean Roper, Pontiac
1983 Dean Roper, Pontiac
1984 Dave Goldsberry, Buick

I can also add race winner info, given time.

[John B]

There are several USAC stock car videos available here:

http://www.thevintag...assic_video.htm

According to the list they cover a good chunk of years, 1960 - 1976 if i skimmed it right.

I remember seeing a good race on ESPN back in the early 1980s; three leaders took each other out late (IIRC Joe Wallace was one of them) and the recently deceased Dean Roper came through to win.

[fines]

1970 Driver Point Standings

1 Roger McCluskey, 4178
2 Norm Nelson, 3649
3 A. J. (Jr.) Foyt, 2542½
4 Jack Bowsher, 2529
5 Don White, 2506½
6 Paul Feldner, 2325
7 Dave Whitcomb, 2288
8 Butch Hartman, 2179½
9 Billy Ries, 1837½
10 Whitey Gerken, 1668½
11 Sal Tovella, 1440
12 Bay Darnell, 1377½
13 Lem Blankenship, 1289½
14 Terry Nichels (son of Ray), 1242½
15 Bobby Wawak, 1157½
* A. J. drove less than half the races!

1970 Car Owner Point Standings

1 #1 Plymouth, Norm Nelson, 5042
2 #2 Ford, Jack Bowsher, 2832½
3 #41 Plymouth, Norm Nelson, 2785
4 #21 Ford, Jack Bowsher, 2519
5 #3 Dodge, Nichels Engineering, 2506½

[John B]

Where do the 1/2 points come from.....qualifying or an abbreviated event?

[m.tanney]

Originally posted by Jim Thurman
Unfortunately, there hasn't been much written on the USAC Stock Car circuit, which is too bad since there was good competition, some factory involvement and well known drivers in it's history. Many Indy drivers raced the USAC Stocks in the pre-cluttered schedule days.

  You're absolutely right, Jim. If ever there was a subject in search of a book... Which brings me to a pet peeve. There have been a number of would-be "encyclopedias" of "stock car racing" published in the past few years. They have all been NASCAR-only books - as if that's all there is to stock car racing. There have been so many NASCAR books in the past few years (as it's become the World Wrestling Federation of automobile racing), but there are few of any merit apart from Greg Fielden's books and the Junior Johnson bio. Rob Edelstein is working on a biography of Curtis Turner - that should be a great story. Now if someone would write a book on Fireball Roberts...

  Rant over, back on topic. The USAC stock car race winners are listed on Auto Racing Analysis' CD-ROM of racewinners and champions. I've tried, but the pdf pages refuse to be emailed. If you send me an email with your mailing address, Herbert, I can print them off and post them to you.

Mike

[Frank S]

I wonder if this might work for you;
pdfm@il

I'm certain there are others. This is just the one I found.

Frank S

[Aanderson]

Originally posted by Herbert
I´m looking for info's (results, champions etc.) about USACs stock car championship. Why was it finally disbanded? What was its connection to NASCAR, if there was any?

Thanks for your help!

USAC's stock car division ran from 1956 until about 1983, as has already been mentioned. While there was little, if any actual connection between the two circuits, there was actually quite a bit of cooperation.

In the 50's and through the 70's, NASCAR was almost totally a SE United States circuit, considering that it was born in the southeast. USAC, as with AAA Contest Board before it, was centered in Indianapolis, and ran in the midwest, east, northeast, and in Arizona and California, with a few events in scattered places like Texas and the plains states.

USAC's stock cars followed the Nascar formula and their rules were pretty much the same from the beginning, until they went off into that final tangent that spelled their end: Running highly modified Camaros and Mustangs at the end. Except for a few paved venues, such as Langhorne after paving, Milwaukee, and Indianapolis Raceway Park's road circuit, USAC was very much the state fair circuit then, running at Indiana State Fairgrounds, DuQuoin, Springfield, etc., during the respective state's State Fairs. These were almost all 100 mile events, with the exception of the Yankee 300 at IRP, which was a 300 miler, but that went away sometime in the middle 1960's.

The Stock Car Division suffered, in the late 1970's, from the same thing their other divisions did: A serious lack of leadership and vision at the top, IMHO.

Art Anderson

[Jim Thurman]

Michael,

Since I haven't had a chance to mention this earlier...

Thanks for posting the champions and point standings. I know how much you've had to suffer to do this, being The Monoposto Monomaniac

Seriously, thanks for posting the list.

One bit of info I can add is that my recollection of the 1983 season was correct, the USAC schedule consisted of just three races, jointly sanctioned with ARCA.


Jim Thurman