A Holman & Moody Ford was a much more competitive proposition, but Mario struggled to get up to speed in practice until he figured out that he had a sour engine that was down 400 rpm.Įquipped with a motor built by Waddell Wilson, Andretti was much more competitive in his qualifying race, leading laps before finishing sixth. I wouldn't trade that part of my career for anything, quite honestly."Īndretti wasn't a rookie at Daytona he started the race in 1966 in a Chevrolet entered by Smokey Yunick, but crashed out after 31 laps. How opposite is that? And I used to love that opportunity. "You know, from Formula One to a dirt car. "I'd go from Argentina to DuQuion, Illinois, from Monza to the Hoosier Hundred," he marveled. Foyt, by Dan Gurney, by people like that who would move around and do other things, and I loved my driving so much that I just wanted to be driving. The bottom line is that I would be inspired by A.J. "I did it to really challenge myself, and I was curious to see the feeling that different race cars gave you back. "I didn't just do it for the hell of it," Andretti recalled. The Ford connection also landed him in a Holman & Moody Fairlane for selected NASCAR races, starting with Daytona.
He dreamed of Formula One, so he joined Ford's sports car program to hone his road-racing skills. So he tested the waters outside of Indianapolis. He had already experienced incredible success in Indy cars, winning the USAC title as a rookie in 1965 and backing it up in much more dominant fashion a year later. Two days short of his 27th birthday, the two-time defending USAC Indy car champion defeated NASCAR's best drivers in a straight fight to win the Daytona 500.Įven though he was a relative newcomer on a national (and increasingly international) level, Andretti already relished stepping out of his comfort zone to test himself against the best competition the world had to offer.
He also ran midget and Can-Am races on the side.īut what Mario accomplished on Feb. He scored 12 wins in Indy cars, stock cars and sprint cars, and he shared the winning Ford in the 12 Hours of Sebring with Bruce McLaren. In 1967, Andretti competed in 45 races across nine categories. In a career that spanned 30 years at the top level, he was a force to be reckoned with wherever he raced. Mario Andretti may well be the most versatile driver the world has ever seen. Mario Andretti's Daytona 500 win 50 years ago one for the agesĭAYTONA BEACH, Fla. You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser
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