The hotrod phenomenon came East from California and caught me up in it, he once explained. [citation needed] Hansgen arranged for Donohue to become his teammate in 1965, co-driving a Ferrari 275 at the 12 Hours of Sebring endurance race,[2] which they finished in 11th place. 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. 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.. Bahrain GP: F1 technical images direct from the pitlane, What we learned from Friday practice at F1's 2023 Bahrain GP, What we learned from Friday practice at F1's 2023 Bahrain GP To be sure, it seems what we now know as The Penske Way gained steam with Donohue as its pied piper. A 25-year-old passenger in the Infiniti, a woman from Olney, was seriously hurt and taken to the hospital. 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. https://www.nytimes.com/1975/08/20/archives/donohue-38-dead-of-racing-injuries-mark-donohue-is-dead-of-racing.html. It became official last September. He had one religion: testing. He won three national sports car championships as an amateur before he turned professional in 1966, first as the late Walt Hansgen's codriver, then for the rest of his life with Penske. But his edge was rarely lost. And, according to Cox, Roger certainly did his part in coming up with next projects.. The Iconic 1967 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 Raced by Mark Donohue Is Up for Strange and smart, but very driven., The drive set Mark Donohue apart and made him the winningest driver in Team Penske history. One night I was in Philadelphia and was following Mark to the old shop in Newtown Square. Goldberg Segalla, LLP, Albany (Mark Donohue of counsel), for respondents. Donohues father was a patent attorney. In the 1971 Indianapolis 500, Donohue started second and led 52 of the first 66 laps before breaking a gearbox. Portrait of American racing driver Mark Donohue as he poses with his car after winning the Indianapolis 500 race, Speedway, Indiana, May 1972. . 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. Mark Donohue. Donohue disagreed. Aug 21, 2015, 4:28 PM. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. In February of '65 Donohue was named as comptroller at Griffith Motors but was soon spirited away from Griffith by Roger Penske early in 1966. 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. 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 . I'd always thought that I'm not as good a driver as I am capable of figuring out how to make the car the quickest, he once said. Even with only three caution flags, the race lasted 12 minutes shy of five hours, a brutal exercise for the majority of the right-turn-averse stock car regulars, but nothing a veteran of the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring hadnt already experienced. You never saw him in an argument with anybody. During a practice session for the race, Donohue lost control of his March after a tyre failed, sending him into the catch fencing at the fastest corner on the track, Vest Hgel Kurve. In his career, Donohue started 311 races and won 119 of them, a winning average of 38 percent. (Photo: Bob DOlivo / The Enthusiast Network via Getty Images). Donohue's racing tradition is carried on by his son, David Donohue, a successful road racer in his own right. Twice before he had had serious accidents and he walked like a man who had had his knees shattered and put back together again. Its been 43 years since Donohues death, but he remains Penske Racings cornerstone. Maybe it was some Austrian rock, but whatever it was, one of Donohue's tires blew at 160 miles an hour. Secrets of the mysterious 1975-77 Camaro Racemark GT Back to Victory Lane, Every Indy 500 Winner from the Dawn of Time, In search of Team Penske racing legend Mark Donohue. 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. To those who work at the cemetery, Donohue is simply known as The Race Car Driver to visitors looking for his gravesite. Why Autosport is changing how it ranks F1 drivers from 2023 onwards, The key factors behind F1s Premier League-style managerial revolving door, The key factors behind F1s Premier League-style managerial revolving door Penske and Donohue did not stop acid-dipping after this, however. On August 9, 1975, Donohue drove the 91730 to a world closed-course speed record at the Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. Mark Donohue was killed during a practice session for the 1975 Austrian Grand Prix. A motorist was killed early Tuesday in a single-car crash in Montgomery County, police said. Between 1971 and 1972, Penske Racing (along with Donohue as the primary test and development driver) was commissioned by Porsche to help develop the 917-10 to compete in the Can-Am series. 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. Your message has been sent. In 1974, he quit driving and became president of Penske Racing. George Follmer, Donohue's old Trans-Am teammate, took over testing the 917-10 for Donohue, who said: It just doesn't feel right. Together, they took on Trans-Am, then turned their attention to the Indianapolis 500. He won many races for us and the first IROC championship with the Porsche. Driver who fled fatal Olney crash gets 20-year sentence. Choose a Username Available! - Remembering Mark Donohue - FormulaSpy No, I never worried about the dangers of racing, he said in March, 1974, in New York while being honored at a luncheon. The Penske grand prix car proved a disappointment and Donohue's best finish this season was a fifth place in the British Grand Prix. Hangsen was killed testing a car for the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. They won the race, finished third overall, and went on to win 10 out of 13 races that year. He was my original partner in racing, Penske told Autoweek. His condition quickly worsened and he passed away two days later, victim of a blood clot in his brain.Following the fatal accident the sterreichring first turn was tightened in 1976 and the track lenght passed from 5.911 to 5.906 kilometers. 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]. He also gave us our first NASCAR win. He was a sweet gentleman in every race. With Donohues methodical approach and his commitment to work for Penske fulltime that counted for a lot Penske said. Despite this, Donohue still dominated the series, even though he suffered three DNFs during the season due to mechanical problems with the M6A. In 1967, Penske contacted Donohue about driving Penske's brand new Lola T70 spyder in the United States Road Racing Championship. I think the people at Indy thought we were the college guys with the crew haircuts and the polished wheels. As an American driver, he had done it all. In the final race of the season, Javelins finished in first, second and third place, with George Follmer becoming the only other Javelin driver to win besides Donohue. A bad week or the dark horse from F1 testing? A headache resulted, however, and worsened. He was, I feel, the finest road race driver this country has ever produced, Allison told Hemmings Motor News years later. In 1969, Penske and Donohue raced in their first Indianapolis 500,[14] with Donohue finishing seventh, winning the rookie of the year award. His body will be flown to the United States tomorrow and the funeral will take place Monday in Summit, N. J., where Donohue grew up and first got caught up in the hotrod phenomenon. A Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated at 1 P.M. in St. Teresa's Church. The trip to the airport was like the Mille Miglia. Le cavalier du diable - Film d'pouvante sur Tl 7 Jours Donohue raced in several NASCAR Grand American races and a NASCAR pony car division from 1968 until 1971. Donohue was considered a leading Trans-Am driver of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Stay close to the outside curbing, brake hard, and turn in . Riverside was over 2.6 miles long and the duration of the race 500 miles meant this particular event was more of an endurance contest. Losing a driver is something you cant replace. [2], Donohue was invited back to Le Mans by Ford in 1967. The setup he designed for his car didnt have as much speed as teammate Gary Bettenhausens setup. 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. We started with a Lola 4-wheel drive, and in 1971 we got a McLaren. And neither found what they expected. Donohue was hit in the head by a fence post and knocked . We used to clean our garage out every night, and that was something people didnt understand.. He thinks the same way. Its as if his father is in his presence. In 1974, Mark Donohue took a year off from driving at the height of his racing career to write "The Unfair Advantage," a candid and revealing book about his journey through the world of auto racing -- from amateur SCCA races in his own '57 Corvette to winning the Indy 500 in Roger Penske's McLaren M16. There were victories in stockcar racing against Richard Petty, Bobby Allison and the other Southern drivers; in the TransAm series, where three times he captured the season title competing against the best sedans the Detroit factories could produce; in the 24 hours of Daytona, against the best international sports cars endurance pilots, and in the initital Pocono 500 in 1971 against A. J. Foyt, Bobby and Al Unser, Mario Andretti and the other stars from the United States Auto Club championship circuit. And I know that Roger loved him. 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. As ADAM COOPER recalls, though, it ended in tragedy. The key factors behind F1s Premier League-style managerial revolving door, The tangible steps Alpine has taken to meeting its humble F1 2023 targets, The tangible steps Alpine has taken to meeting its humble F1 2023 targets An investigation determined tire failure caused Donohue's fatal crash, and the family won a $12 million settlement. Hamilton: F1 retirement talk from Button and Hill not "helpful, How Gulf deal has boosted Williams's F1 commercial strategy, How Gulf deal has boosted Williams's F1 commercial strategy A doctor's take: Jules Bianchi brain injury Try a week on us. It would have been really fun to watch the two of them because they are so much alike. It affected the whole team. The latter passed away at 09h20 on Tuesday 19 August 1975, while being treated at a Knittelfeld hospital.Donohue was hit in the head by one of the catch-fence supporting posts and was knocked unconscious. He was good in Trans-Am, Indy cars, Can-Am and Formula One. During its production life, there were 192 Series 200 Griffiths built, 59 of the Series 400 and only 10 of the Series 600. In 1970 new Javelin team owner Roger Penske and driver Mark Donohue would breathe new life into the AMC team. Worse yet, when Donohue wasnt racing, he was working 18- to 20-hour days at the teams small race shop, located in a garage in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, a Philadelphia suburb, and later, a more modern facility in nearby Reading. Mark contracted polio when he was 6, but he fully recovered. Donohue. Donohue demolished Al Unser's IMS track record of 170.221mph with a 181.2mph practice lap on May 12, a day that still makes Penske chuckle. Donohue co-drove in the No. Had there been a Drivers' Championship in place at the time, he would have won three of them (his last in 1971) while driving Camaros in 1968 and 1969, and an AMC Javelin in 1971, all for Roger Penske Racing. He became a great friend of mine, Penske said in an IMS tribute to Donohue. (key) (Bold Pole position. When she brought us in to see the finish, I dont think she knew he had won. It was. It was an epic stomping; he led over 361 miles that day, and in perusing the finishing order Bobby Unser finished fourth while West Series drivers Ray Elder, Jimmy Insolo, Jack McCoy and Richard White, all of whom made regular stops at Riverside, finished third, fifth, sixth and eighth, respectively it was clear this was a race decided by the interlopers, the kind of race we no longer see in modern-day NASCAR, where drivers have been cross-trained and educated on technology and data to the point each race contains 38 different versions of the Donohue prototype. 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. It was August 9, 1975. [17] That race was Penske's first NASCAR win in a long history of NASCAR participation. 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. The 38yearold Donohue underwent a threehour operation at a hospital here Sunday to remove a blood clot from his brain. Mark wasnt an emotional guy. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links. 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. Thank you. Today, he works for Porsche Cars North America as client relationship manager. He just decided it was time to get out, and he wanted to do the Formula 1 program, Penske said. The team was third at Daytona and second at Sebring. U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s-current. Seeing another man driving your car, a car you know so well. 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). Donohue was hit in the head by a fence post and knocked unconscious. The original Penske Racing team included Penske, Donohue, chief mechanic and crew chief Karl Kainhofer. Ford immediately signed Donohue to drive one of their GT-40 Mk II race cars campaigned at the 24 Hours of Le Mans by the Holman & Moody racing team. [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. Donohue began working with cars while growing up in the nineteenfifties in a comfortable neighborhood in Summit, N. J. A friend once described riding in Donohue's Porsche 911 as a 'Wall of Death thing most of the time. Why "grounded" Hamilton remains confident in Mercedes' F1 recovery. Donohue, who also competed in endurance racing, IndyCar, NASCAR, Can-Am,. Cresser v CDTS, 1 (2015 NY Slip Op 03227) Settlement of Mark Donohue's Estate Reached - Los Angeles Times The Griffith company closed its doors in November, 1966. But his thinking man's approach to racing, while successful on the track, was difficult off. Maryland DUI Driver Who Killed 3 Gets More Prison Time for Trying to That didnt satisfy his competitive spirits, so he decided to take on Formula One. As one of the best test drivers and developers in the business, he would get the car ready, then Penske would have to turn it over to a younger hotshot. But the intended hotshot, Peter Revson, was killed in a grandprix accident in March, 1974. Mark Donohue: Returns to Die - The New York Times But he was still, a great driver. A bad week or the dark horse from F1 testing? Has Alonso made the right choice gambling on Aston Martin F1? 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]. Donohue had stepped out of driving retirement . Think about the championships we won together, the first Indy 500 victory for the team, three Trans-Am championships. Of 55 Trans-Ams he entered, he won 29. He was just that way. Mark Donohue was an enigma. Everything You Need to Know to Master Road Atlanta - Car and Driver In 1968, Donohue and Penske returned to defend their USRRC championship with the McLaren M6A Chevrolet. But if his father, Mark Sr., a successful patent lawyer, never envisaged a racing career for his son, neither cid young Mark. Please try again. He was young Roger Penskes equal. I saw him race at Lime Rock in an Elva, and (longtime Penske friend and later president of the IROC series) Jay Signore said I should watch this guy. The winner of the 1972 Indianapolis 500 and the Can Am in l973. DUI accident in the history of this county," Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy said at a news conference. Sometimes, I would leave early and take my own car to the airport because I didnt want to put up with him. Both Olvey and Trammell got their start in trackside medical response in similar fashion: Answering a bulletin board call for med students to help out at the Indianapolis 500 - Olvey in about 1969, Trammell in 1972. Mark Donohue profile on SnapLap I didnt expect that at all, David Donohue, 51, said. They were embarrassed, and like the streak of success following the 71 Indianapolis 500, they returned to Riverside in 1973 with a heavy chip on their shoulders. John Phillips: For Mark Donohue, 1100 hp was 'Far From Too Much' He flew under the radar a lot, but he was always there. Drs. Stephen Olvey and Terry Trammell in Motorsports Hall of Fame of Acid-dipping car bodies was prevalent with competing Trans-Am teams also. He was helped by Emerson Fittipaldi, Bob Evans and Hans-Joachim Stuck, who arrived to the scene of the accident and parked their cars. Please try again. Mark felt he had to devote all his time to the team. Once, in 1971, he and Penske showed up at the Canadian Grand Prix and Jackie Stewart, the former world champion, kidded them: Welcome to the major leagues.. The 2023 Genesis G90 Shows Sedans Still Matter, Horner: FIA 'Got a New Couch' From His Team's Fine, Why Ford and GM Truck Production Has Stopped, Alonso, Aston Martin Put Red Bull on Notice, Autoweek Racing on TV: February 27-March 5, Racer helped build the foundation for Roger Penske's racing success, Newman/Haas Racing Is Selling 42 Indy Cars Oct. 29, Three-time Indy 500 Starter Rasmussen Dies at 85, How Dixon's Simple Mistake Cost Him Indy 500 Win, Move Over ABBA, Sweden Has a New Racing Superstar, Jimmie Johnson's Indy 500 Experience Ends in Crash, Ayla Agren Is Montoya's Eyes in the Sky for 500, 11 Closest Indianapolis 500 Finishes in History, Larry Foyt Out to Get A.J. Mark Donohue was one of the daredevil drivers of the 1970's. He exuded boyhood charm, was a speed demon behind the wheel, and was a legend of US racing, with wins at Daytona, the Indy 500, and Trans-Am Champion. He knew, maybe all along, that he would come back. We were there to go racing.. Amazingly, Donohue only suffered an internal derangement of his knee with meniscus damage and limited cruciate plus collateral ligament damage. In 1961, Donohue bought the Elva and battled with another young racing star, Peter Revson, for the SCCA divisional championship. He died two days later. The only engineering Donohue went back to concerned race cars. Complete Canadian-American Challenge Cup results, Inskip Family History & Competition Engineering staff.
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